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Ethiopian Airlines Group would consider buying a stake in South African Airways -- should South Africa decide to sell equity in the struggling state carrier. SAA hasn’t made a profit since 2011 and last week delayed the release of annual earnings due to its precarious financial state. While the ruling African National Congress has frequently said that it would consider selling equity in the airline, there’s been no visible strategy for such a plan, said Tewolde Gebre Mariam, the chief executive officer of Ethiopian, Africa’s biggest and only consistently profitable airline. “We are interested in supporting South African Airways,” he said. If South Africa asked Ethiopian to buy a stake, “we would consider it,” Tewolde said. Ethiopian and SAA are already partners in the Star Alliance. The group had discussions with SAA’s former CEO Vuyani Jarana before his resignation in May, Tewolde said. A deal may involve help with SAA’s chronic debt problem, with banks withholding further loans until the airline can present a repayment plan for 9.2b rand ($611m) of borrowings. SAA hasn’t yet appointed a permanent replacement for Jarana. Ethiopian is Africa’s biggest aviation success story, with main rivals SAA and Kenya Airways Plc struggling with losses and relying on government support. <br/>

An attorney representing families of passengers killed in a Boeing 737 MAX crash in Ethiopia said Friday he will seek sworn evidence from a Boeing engineer who claims the company rejected a proposed safety upgrade to the 737 MAX because it was too costly. The engineer, Curtis Ewbank, said the upgrade could have reduced risks that contributed to two fatal crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that together killed 346 people, according to two people familiar with the complaint. Ewbank filed the complaint through internal Boeing channels after the March crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 302, the sources said. Managers rejected the proposed upgrade from Ewbank’s team of engineers, called synthetic airspeed, on the basis of “cost and potential (pilot) training impact,” according to the Seattle Times, which first reported the complaint on Wednesday. Robert Clifford, the lead counsel representing families of victims from the Ethiopian Airlines crash, said in an email the complaint raises fresh concerns about Boeing’s culture and whether the company placed too great an emphasis on cost and schedule at the expense of safety. He said he would take steps to depose Ewbank as quickly as possible. Boeing is facing roughly 100 lawsuits over the Ethiopian crash on March 10 that killed 157 people on its way from Addis Ababa to Nairobi. The lawsuits claim that design flaws allowed erroneous sensor data to set off the automated system and overwhelm pilots. In his complaint, Ewbank describes management as “more concerned with cost and schedule than safety and quality,” the Seattle Times reported.<br/>

Bankruptcy proceedings have officially been initiated against Slovenia's Adria Airways following its cessation of operations. Documentation issued by the district court in the city of Kranj gives creditors three months, until 3 January 2020, to declare claims against the operator. It names Janez Pustaticnik as the manager. Adria's latest operating licence, issued in 2011, has been revoked by the Slovenian civil aviation agency and the carrier banned from operating commercial air transport. Star Alliance has also confirmed, as a matter of formality, that Adria Airways has left the airline group as a result of the bankruptcy. Adria ceased to be a member of Star on 2 October, the alliance says. It says the situation is a "regrettable development", given that Adria has been a member for 15 years. But Star points out that its links with Slovenia are being maintained by new services from Lufthansa, Swiss and Brussels Airlines.<br/>

Last-ditch attempts to save XL Airways France have failed, after a commercial court declared the airline would be liquidated, ending a turbulent history for an airline which had undergone multiple ownership changes over the past 15 years. All flights by the Paris-based carrier, which had previously been suspended until 7 October, have been permanently cancelled. Insolvency procedures against XL Airways France had opened at the Bobigny commercial court on 23 September, granting time for the airline to secure a rescuer. But this effort failed and the carrier says a hearing at the court on 4 October has resulted in the liquidation decision. "We apologise for the inconvenience this situation may have caused our valuable customers," it states. The airline had been the subject of a reported investment offer, linked to shareholders of recently-collapsed Aigle Azur, but this appears not to have gained momentum. XL Airways says some airlines – including French Bee and Corsair – are offering "rescue fares" for passengers, and it is advising customers with package holiday agreements to contact their tour operator for assistance. Originally known as Star Europe and then Star Airlines – an acronym for Societe de Transport Aerien Regional – the French carrier had initially been associated with tour operator Look Voyages. Story has more background.<br/>