Southwest Airlines has further extended the cancellation of Boeing 737 Max flights, removing the aircraft from its schedule through Oct 14. The carrier had previously cancelled 737 Max-operated service through Sept 2. While US regulators said Wednesday June that they had uncovered an additional issue that Boeing needs to address to return the aircraft to service, Southwest says that it decided to extend the cancellations before the recent development. "We are encouraged by the reported progress and proposed path forward for returning the aircraft to service, and we remain confident that, once certified by the FAA, the enhancements will support the safe operation of the Max," says the airline. The latest revision will cancel about 150 daily flights – or less than 4% – of the airline's peak-day schedule. <br/>
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An Angara Airlines Antonov An-24, en route from Ulan-Ude, skidded off the runway after an emergency landing at Nizhneangarsk Airport (Republic of Buryatia, Russia) at 10:24 am local time June 27. The aircraft collided with an airport infrastructure building and caught fire. The first pilot and the board engineer were killed, the airline said. Forty-three passengers, the co-pilot and the flight attendant were evacuated. Fourteen passengers were taken to a hospital, according to Russia's Investigative Committee. The Federal Air Transport Agency said pilots reported engine failure while descending. Russian authorities have started an investigation. Irkutsk-based Angara Airlines was founded in 2000 and operates regional flights in Siberia. Its commercial fleet includes Antonov An-148s, An-24s, An-26-100s and An-2s. <br/>
Peach Aviation slipped to a net loss in its fiscal year ended March 31, which the carrier partly attributed to costs associated with its merger with Vanilla Air. Peach reported a net loss of JPY193m (US$1.8m) for the 2018 fiscal year, reversed from a profit of JPY3.7b in the previous year. The airline noted that “integration-related costs were recorded ahead of schedule.” Peach CE Shinichi Inoue said the carrier has “steadily been promoting the integration process, which is due to be completed by around the end of this fiscal year” March 31, 2020. Inoue said the route from Tokyo Narita to Okinawa was the first to be transferred from Vanilla to the Peach brand June 1. Such moves will “further enhance both our domestic and international routes via the network centered on the Tokyo metropolitan area that has been cultivated by Vanilla Air.” <br/>