A flight attendant for El Al is comatose after becoming ill with the measles on a flight from New York City to Tel Aviv, according to the Israeli Ministry of Health. The woman, 43, is suffering from the measles-related complication of encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, according to a spokesman for the Israeli Ministry of Health. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said the condition affects one 1 of every 1,000 people who get the measles virus, but is more common in children younger than 5 and adults older than 20. It can cause permanent brain damage, deafness or death. Israeli health officials warned people who were on board El Al flight 002 — which left NY JFK March 26 and landed in Israel a day later — to seek medical care if they developed a fever, often the first sign of the highly contagious disease. <br/>
unaligned
New African flag carrier Uganda Airlines has taken delivery of the first 2 of 4 Bombardier CRJ900 regional jets ordered in July 2018. The new airline will be first in Africa to have Bombardier’s new Atmosphère cabin. The carrier will operate the aircraft in a dual-class configuration of 76 seats, including 12 in the first-class cabin. Earlier this month, the airline firmed up an order for 2 Airbus A330neos for long-haul services. The carrier is one of only 2 to order the smaller A330-800 model. The fact that Kuwait Airways has also chosen the -800 was taken into consideration, but the Uganda Airlines team believes more orders will follow. Uganda Airlines plans to set up a network that will eventually span 18 destinations. <br/>
LCC Air Arabia has taken delivery of the first of 6 Airbus A321neoLRs, the first Middle Eastern airline to operate the extended-range version of the type. Air Arabia’s current fleet comprises 53 A320-family aircraft. The addition of the long-range variant will allow the carrier to expand its reach to flights of up to 8 hours, with Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, destined to be the first on an expanded route map. Other medium-haul destinations in Southeast Asia—plus central and southern Africa—are under consideration for the new variant, although it will also be used for increased capacity on existing routes. Air Arabia’s new aircraft, powered by CFM LEAP-1A engines, has a 215-seat configuration and comes with a new cabin interior that launched as part of the carrier’s new brand identity unveiled in Oct 2018. <br/>
Two warring factions at Chinese conglomerate HNA Group laying claim to ailing Hong Kong Airlines met Thursday to broker a peace deal, sources say. But amid an increasingly acrimonious battle for control, there was a fresh twist to the drama involving airline shareholders – claims of a break-in Thursday morning and the theft of financial documents, potentially pushing both sides further apart. Hong Kong Airlines denied there had been any break-in or theft at its offices Thursday. HNA staff were said to have entered the office and removed papers, leading to accusations by the rival faction that the conglomerate was stealing financial documents. Tuesday, former HKA director Zhong Guosong claimed to have seized control of the carrier at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders. <br/>
Three passengers fled onto the wing of an aircraft in Russia after they saw flames coming from the engine of the Boeing 737. The trio of travellers claimed cabin crew did not give any instructions and ignored the panic of passengers who had seen the fire through the windows, according to local media. The incident occurred when the Utair jet was taxiing on the tarmac at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport, preparing to take off for Makhachkala in the south west of Russia. A video taken by one passenger shows the flames visible through the window. A flight attendant can be heard over the tannoy saying: “For more details please refer to the safety card in front of you.” Despite its claim that the situation was “ordinary”, Utair transferred passengers onto another aircraft to resume the flight. <br/>