Iran has retrieved some data, including a portion of the cockpit conversations, from the Ukrainian jetliner that was accidentally downed by the Revolutionary Guard forces in January, killing all 176 people on board, an Iranian official said Sunday. That’s according to a report on the website of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization, which described the official's remarks as part of the final report that Tehran plans to issue on the shootdown of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752. The development comes months after the Jan. 8 crash near Tehran. Iranian authorities had initially denied responsibility, only changing course days later, after Western nations presented extensive evidence that Iran had shot down the plane. The Ukrainian passenger plane was apparently targeted by two missiles. The plane had just taken off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport when the first missile exploded, possibly damaging its radio equipment. The second missile likely directly struck the aircraft, as videos from that night show the plane exploding into a ball of fire before crashing into a playground and farmland on the outskirts of the Iranian capital. The head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization, Capt. Touraj Dehghani Zangeneh, said on Sunday that the plane’s black boxes have only 19 seconds of conversation following the first explosion, though the second missile reached the plane 25 seconds later. The report quoting him did not elaborate. He said the first missile explosion sent shrapnel into the plane, likely disrupting the plane’s recorders. He did not reveal any details of the cockpit conversation that was retrieved.<br/>
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Virgin Atlantic has entered final talks with its creditors ahead of a crunch High Court vote next week on the GBP1.2b rescue package it has secured to keep it flying. The airline has warned that it could run out of money and enter administration if the creditors do not sign off on the deal that was agreed with shareholders and private investors in July. Support at the vote, which is scheduled for Tuesday at the High Court, London, would be the final piece in the puzzle of the airline’s complex rescue package. About 170 of Virgin Atlantic’s top suppliers, ranging from aircraft lessors to media buying agencies, are being asked to accept a 20% reduction on the money the airline owes them, and to receive the rest in staggered payments. CE Shai Weiss said in July that he was confident the deal with creditors would go through as it was only launched after the negotiations had been finalised. The airline “remains confident” that it will be able to win support from the creditors, it said. Virgin Atlantic’s lawyers told the High Court earlier in August that it would face a critical cash flow situation in September if the bailout funds were not released, and that it would “run out of money altogether” by the final week of the month.<br/>
Indian low-cost carrier IndiGo does not expect to be profitable in the next 18 months, according to the CEO of InterGlobe Aviation, which operates the airline. At the moment, the airline is flying at about 32% of its capacity, Ronojoy Dutta said on Friday. IndiGo is one of the largest carriers in the country, with a fleet size of 274 aircraft as of June. It also operates international flights. “It’s going to be very hard to get profitable at this low levels of flying. But our plan is that we should be at 75% of capacity by early next year. Once we hit that number, we see a better shot at getting profitable,” Dutta said. “We won’t be profitable for the next 18 months is my guess,” he said, adding that the focus right now is getting to positive cash flow. The company earlier this month said it will raise up to 40b rupees ($534m) in funds through a qualified institutions placement, which allows publicly listed firms in India to raise funds from accredited investors by issuing shares without undergoing a lengthy regulatory process. “Our expectation is by mid-next-year, we should be at about 85% of capacity and India’s a little different from other mature economies,” Dutta said. <br/>
Ryanair Holdings plans to cut fewer jobs than initially planned after staff agreed to pay reductions, Sky News reported, citing a senior executive at the company. Europe’s biggest discount carrier originally planned to eliminate 3,000 positions, but will now significantly reduce that total after 97% of pilots and 90% of cabin crew agreed to pay cuts and changes to work practices, director of operations Neal McMahon told Sky. Ryanair has slashed capacity for September and October after demand weakened, and other carriers are weighing similar cuts following a European surge in new virus cases. The carrier said Aug. 17 it will reduce the number of flights by 20% in the next two months due to uncertainty among travelers driven by a rise in Covid-19 cases in some EU countries<br/>
Fiji Airways had a bumper year in 2019, increasing its revenue, profit and passenger numbers despite high-priced fuel, foreign exchange fluctuations and increased competition from major shareholder Qantas, but 2020 saw the airline enter survival mode after the Covid-19 pandemic struck. Group operating profit before tax for the year ended 31 December 2019 was up 17.8% to F$58.9m ($27.6m) from F$50m in the previous financial year. Profit before tax increased 10.7% to F$61.2m from F$55.3m in 2019. Over the same period, group revenue increased by 9%, from F$1.02b to F$1.12b, crossing the F$1b mark for the second consecutive year. Passenger numbers rose by 2% “despite the significant impact of [our 46% shareholder] Qantas commencing flights from Sydney to Nadi in March 2019”. Fiji and its subsidiaries carried 1.7m passengers in 2019, compared to 1.67m passengers during the previous financial year. The airline says it increased frequencies to “most destinations” in 2019 and completed its first full year of services to Tokyo. The airline concluded six new codeshare agreements with Alaska Airlines, Air India, British Airways, Finnair, Japan Airlines and Singapore Airlines, growing its network to 20 direct destinations, and increasing its total destination reach (including codeshares) from 69 to 108 destinations. Story has more.<br/>