A Tennessee woman turned herself into the FBI on Tuesday after she was accused of assaulting two flight attendants during a Spirit Airlines flight last month, the Justice Department announced. Amanda Renee Henry was charged in a criminal complaint with interfering with a flight crew, after an incident on a November 27 flight from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Nashville. During the flight, Henry allegedly consumed so many alcoholic drinks that one of the crewmembers decided to cut her off, according to the criminal complaint. She allegedly became disruptive, appeared to be intoxicated and was witnessed by other passengers vaping during the flight. Henry, 43, also allegedly made other male passengers uncomfortable when she placed her hands on one of them and made lewd sexual advances, according to the complaint. When flight attendants asked Henry to switch her seat, which was located next to an emergency exit and for the safety of the other passengers, she allegedly screamed, "I'm getting off this plane." Prosecutors said Henry headed toward the main cabin door, and one of the flight attendants blocked her path and attempted to restrain her. A second flight attendant assisted with restraining Henry, who kicked and pulled the hair of one of the crewmembers until they were able to handcuff and place her into a seat, according to the complaint. Story has details.<br/>
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Canada Jetlines, which promised to launch a low-cost airline for years, has taken delivery of its first aircraft, an 11-year-old Airbus A320. The Vancouver-based company, which has gone through numerous top management changes since coming onto the scene in 2015, says the aircraft has been leased from Jackson Square Aviation and it plans to launch operations in spring 2022. “This is a milestone day for our team as we get to witness the inception of our branded fleet, with the delivery of our first aircraft,” says Brad Warren, Jetlines’ vice-president of maintenance operations, on 27 December. Earlier this month, Jetlines’ CE Eddy Doyle said the coronavirus pandemic had created “a rare opportunity” to launch a new airline. While fixed costs have remained stable, aircraft are much cheaper than they were prior to the global health crisis.<br/>
Lufthansa Group-owned German low-cost airline Eurowings is set to launch a new direct route at Sweden’s Göteborg Landvetter Airport, which is operated by Swedavia. The carrier will introduce a range of flights from Gothenburg to Germany’s second largest city, Hamburg. Starting from May next year, the carrier will commence non-stop flights from Göteborg Landvetter Airport to Hamburg Airport four times a week. The company will fly A319 and A320 aircraft types for this European route. At present, Eurowings operates flights to Düsseldorf from Landvetter. Swedavia aviation business director Elizabeth Axtelius said: “We welcome Eurowings’ investment in another European direct route from Göteborg Landvetter, which is a sign of an attractive and growing region."<br/>
Emirates on Tuesday suspended the entry of travellers from several African destinations until further notice. The airline said passengers on direct and transit flights from Angola and Guinea will not be permitted to travel to Dubai from December 28. Six other African countries are also on this list from this date and they are Kenya; Tanzania; Uganda; Ghana; Ivory Coast and Ethiopia. Outbound passenger operations from Dubai to these destinations remain unaffected. The UAE on Thursday had suspended the entry of passengers from Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia and Nigeria. The ban came into force from 7.30am on Christmas Day.<br/>
Skymark Airlines has borrowed 1b yen (US$8.7m) as a subordinated equity loan from Shoko Chukin Bank, the coronavirus-stricken carrier announced on December 24. Effective from December 24, the borrowing period is 10 years. It is the first time the low-cost carrier has borrowed funds from Tokyo-based Shoko Chukin, a financial institution specialising in providing banking services to small and medium-sized enterprises. Skymark said it was taking the loan "for the purpose of strengthening its financial position." Skymark Airlines revealed in July that it would raise 2b yen (US$17.4m) in August through a shareholder allocation capital increase and the same amount again in subordinated loans - debt that ranks after other debts if a company falls into bankruptcy or liquidation.<br/>
Bamboo Airways will make its intercontinental debut with the launch of scheduled flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Melbourne Tullamarine on April 1, 2022. It will also be the first new international route by any carrier to Melbourne since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vietnamese carrier will operate the route using B787-9 aircraft, initially 2x weekly, but with a view to doubling the frequency in future. It said that the choice of the destination was motivated by significant demand from the Vietnamese diaspora; around a third of some 300,000 Vietnamese-Australians live in Melbourne. The city is also a popular destination for Vietnamese workers and students. In the future, the airline plans to connect Melbourne with Hanoi as well. Bamboo Airways will compete directly with Vietnam Airlines, which operates from Ho Chi Minh City to both Melbourne and Sydney Kingsford Smith. Before the pandemic, Jetstar Airways used to ply the route as well.<br/>