The Czech aviation watchdog said Tuesday it was looking into an incident in which a Smartwings plane flew on 1 engine for more than 2 hours instead of seeking a nearby airport to land. The Boeing 737 operated by the airline was flying from Greece's Samos island to Prague Aug 22 when its left engine stopped over the Aegean Sea. The plane continued to Prague rather than landing at a closer airport. "We are shocked, it is unprecedented in our view in terms of the crew behaviour, according to the information available so far," said a spokesman for the Czech Aviation Authority. Smartwings said at the weekend that the crew had the flight under control and that they followed safety procedures. <br/>
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Air Tanzania appears still to be trying to free an Airbus A220 which was held in Johannesburg following a service from Dar es Salaam. Tanzania's ministry of transport stated that the aircraft failed to make return service because, according to the country's ambassador to South Africa, the high court in Gauteng ordered the flight cancelled. There is no indication that the A220 – one of pair used by the airline – has flown since arriving in Johannesburg Aug 23. The Tanzanian govt says its attorney general's office is investigating the situation. Air Tanzania has informed its passengers that its flight schedules have been changed owing to "reasons beyond our control". Local reports from Tanzania suggest the dispute centres on a historic compensation issue relating to farmland. <br/>
Uganda Tuesday re-launched its national airline after 2 decades with an inaugural flight to Nairobi, becoming the latest East African nation seeking to revive their aviation industry. "The airline will first fly to 7 destinations. Starting with Nairobi, Mogadishu, Juba and Dar es Saalam. And then to Mombasa, Kilimanjaro and Bujumbura," said prime minister Ruhakana Rugunda. Uganda Airlines is launching into increasingly crowded East African skies, where both Rwanda and Tanzania have in recent years revived their national airlines in a bid to capture a slice of the booming market. Uganda Airlines was founded by former Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 1976 but the carrier was liquidated in 2001 after a failed bid to privatise the floundering company, dogged by corruption and mismanagement. <br/>
Hawaiian Airlines insists it has the market presence needed to hold its own against newcomer Southwest Airlines on intra-Hawaii routes. And Southwest somewhat concedes the point, but thinks it has a recipe that works in Hawaii. "Hawaiian is the hometown carrier. I think we will always be second fiddle to them, as far as the local presence," Southwest's chief revenue officer Andrew Watterson said. At the Boyd Group International Aviation Forecast Summit Aug 26, Watterson and Hawaiian's CE Peter Ingram addressed the market battle brewing in the island state. Southwest began Hawaii flights in March. But unlike most other US airlines, Southwest not only flies to Hawaii from the US mainland. The airline also flies a small but expanding network of routes within Hawaii. – a market deeply personal to Hawaiian. <br/>
Renaming the Boeing 737 Max is off the table at Southwest Airlines. In an effort to be transparent with customers, the carrier has chosen to retain the "Max" handle when the type returns to the skies, says chief revenue officer Andrew Watterson. Just when that might happen remains unknown, though Boeing is aiming for Q4. But Watterson notes Southwest's ability to get aircraft back in the skies depends not only on the regulatory approval, but also the pace at which Boeing can deliver hundreds of jets currently sitting in storage. "We will not change the name of the aircraft. That would be disingenuous," Watterson said Speculation has abounded that airlines may feel compelled to drop the "Max" moniker so as to avoid reminding customers of the type's troubled past. <br/>