An Air Canada flight was diverted on Thursday to Hawaii after a sudden case of severe turbulence left 35 passengers with minor injuries, the carrier said. Flight AC33, carrying 269 passengers and 15 crew, was flying from Vancouver to Sydney, Australia, when the Boeing 777 aircraft “encountered unforecasted and sudden turbulence approximately two hours past Hawaii,” the carrier said. The plane was diverted to Honolulu and landed at 12:45 pm EST. The passengers were taken to hospital and nine of them suffered “serious” injuries, local media reported, citing Hawaiian officials. All customers except one had now left the hospital, while the remaining person was also expected to be released, a spokesperson for Air Canada said later on Thursday. The carrier’s initial reports were of 25 people with minor injuries. Medical personnel were on standby to examine passengers in Honolulu, Air Canada said earlier.<br/>
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South African Airways will receive additional state funding after CEO Vuyani Jarana resigned over what he said was a lack of government support for the loss-making carrier. Finance Minister Tito Mboweni included the country’s flagship airline on a list of companies that will be get support from the country’s contingency reserve account. Power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd., South African Broadcasting Corp. and weapons maker Denel SOC Ltd. were also identified as in need of aid. “I must emphasize that this additional government support cannot be a blank check to these state-owned enterprises,” Mboweni said Thursday. “We really and truly cannot go on like this.” SAA needs a clear government commitment of support for lenders to deal with the company, Jarana said in his resignation letter released early last month. The airline went unmentioned in both President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state-of-the-nation address last month and Finance Minister Tito Mboweni’s budget in February, raising concerns about how it will handle 9.2 billion rand of debt set to mature later this year. A 3.5 billion-rand bridge facility was expected to run out at the end of June.<br/>
Air China has placed an order for 20 Airbus A350-900s. The order is valued at approximately $6.54 billion, based on list prices, says the Star Alliance carrier in a stock-exchange disclosure. It adds that it has been given a "price concession" from the airframer, after negotiations. The A350s are slated for delivery between 2020 to 2022, the disclosure notes. Among the 20 A350s on order, the airline has the option of converting the last five to the larger A350-1000 variant. Air China also states that the transaction will be beneficial to its fleet optimisation. The transaction will not have any "material impact" on the airline's operations and cash flow position, it adds in the disclosure. Air China currently operates 10 A350-900s.<br/>
ANA will introduce an entirely new cabin product for 12 of its Boeing 777-300ERs, after five years of research and design. Designed by Britain’s Acumen and Japan architect Kengo Kuma, the key features are the new first-class seats, known as THE Suite and new business-class product, known as THE Room. The new configuration will see eight in first class, 64 in business, 24 in premium economy and 116 in economy. This means 50 economy seats have been reduced in favor of 12 more business-class seats from the current configuration. Inspired by Japan’s luxury hotels, THE Suite is the most spacious product on any ANA aircraft. It boosts a 43-in. monitor, which ANA says is the largest in any commercial airliner. Arranged in 1-2-1 layout, the centre partition can be lowered for passengers traveling in pairs. The business class will be rearranged in an unusual alternate forward facing and rear-facing seats, with flexible doors for privacy. The airline says the design is inspired by “modern, multifunctional Japanese living spaces” and has doubled the seat width to around 42 in. On top of updated upholstery in premium economy and economy class, its IFE is also upgraded to 13.3-in. touch screens seen on its new 787-10. The first retrofit 777-300ER will begin service Aug. 2, on the Tokyo-Haneda to London route.<br/>