Interpol has at Mexico's request issued an international arrest warrant for Miguel Aleman, co-founder of budget airline Interjet, on criminal tax fraud charges, according to government sources and Mexican media. Last month, prosecutors issued a national arrest warrant for Aleman, the grandson of a former president and the son of an ex-governor of Veracruz state. Prosecutors have requested the international red alert for Aleman, two government sources with knowledge of the matter confirmed to Reuters. Mexican broadcaster Milenio first reported the request. A spokesman for the airline declined to comment and a lawyer for Aleman told Milenio that he did not understand why his client was wanted. He has said Aleman has been living in Paris since early January. Prosecutors have been seeking Aleman's detention as part of a tax fraud investigation, according to local media.<br/>
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Italy’s civil aviation authority ENAC on Tuesday warned Ryanair it could fine the budget carrier if it charges extra fees for seats assigned to adults accompanying minors and disabled people. With the summer holiday season at its peak in Italy, ENAC has urged all airlines operating in Italy to cancel seat surcharge for certain passengers. On Tuesday, the authority said that preliminary checks showed Ryanair had not yet adapted its IT and operating systems to ensure that a supplement is not charged when booking seats next to underage passengers or people with disabilities. “(Ryanair’s) behaviour is based solely on the carrier’s profit and does not protect passengers’ rights or comply with safety rules,” said ENAC President Pierluigi Di Palma. The authority added it is ready to impose a 35,000 euro penalty on Ryanair and is also considering filing a legal complaint against the Irish carrier, it said. A Ryanair spokesperson declined to comment on the issue. Italy was Ryanair’s biggest market in terms of revenue in the fiscal year ended on March 31.<br/>
Flights between Cardiff and Dublin are to resume from October, Cardiff Airport has announced. The airport said Ryanair would operate four weekly flights from 31 October, running on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The route was previously operated by Flybe, which collapsed in March 2020, with the Covid pandemic partly blamed. In May, the airport announced Stobart Air would operate the route, but the airline went bust in June. The airport said the route was key for travelling sports teams and fans, business travellers, holidaymakers and people visiting friends and relatives. Spencer Birns, CE of Cardiff Airport said: "It's brilliant news that one of Europe's leading low-cost airlines will be operating a regular service to Dublin from Cardiff. He said he was "delighted" Ryanair had stepped in as it had been a priority of the airport to reinstate the route.<br/>
Latvian lawmakers have agreed to grant government-owned Air Baltic another E90m in equity for the purpose of alleviating pandemic-related losses and helping the airline recover. The investment requires approval by the European Commission. In 2020, the Latvian government, which owns nearly all of Air Baltic, invested E250m in the carrier, also for pandemic relief. The country’s cabinet of ministers on 17 August green-lighted the E90m “to compensate the losses caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and to support overcoming the economic crisis”, the airline says. “The investment is planned to be returned to the Latvian state in [the] form of proceeds from selling shares during a planned initial public offering of air Baltic in the future,” it adds. Air Baltic lost E278m in 2020, with revenue plummeting 73% year on year. The airline’s fleet includes 27 Airbus A220-300s, according to Cirium data. The Latvian government’s E250m equity investment in 2020 brought the government’s ownership of Air Baltic to 96%.<br/>
Russian airline Pobeda has pulled out of contracts for 20 Boeing 737 MAX planes, the low cost unit of national flag carrier Aeroflot said Tuesday. Russia has not authorised flights by Boeing 737 MAX planes since a ban that followed two crashes involving the aircraft that killed 346 people in 2018-19. "We have given up on firm contracts for 20 Boeings 737 MAX, without any penalties," Pobeda said. Leasing companies GECAS and SMBC had been due to deliver five and 15 of the planes to Pobeda, respectively. The airline said one of the reasons for the decision not to acquire the aircraft was the lack of state approval to use them. Pobeda operates 44 Boeing 737-800 aircraft and expects to receive 20 planes a year from its parent company Aeroflot in 2022–2023.<br/>
Jetstar is reviewing its domestic schedule amid the COVID-19 alert level 4 restrictions announced for the entirety of New Zealand on Tuesday. The lockdown means only essential travel is authorised. During previous level 3 and 4 lockdowns, Jetstar suspended all domestic flights within Aotearoa. A Jetstar spokesperson says customers impacted by cancellations as a result of the latest level 4 lockdown will be contacted directly by the airline to make arrangements. For the next 48 hours, Jetstar flights in New Zealand will continue to operate normally to allow customers to return home, in line with Government advice. The airline is allowing customers with upcoming bookings to and from Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington, to bring their travel dates to a flight operating before August 19 at no additional cost. <br/>