A flight from North Carolina to Los Angeles was diverted to New Mexico overnight after a passenger made a "threatening statement" to a crew member, a spokesperson for American Airlines said.<br/>"American Airlines flight 482 from Charlotte (CLT) to Los Angeles (LAX) diverted to Albuquerque (ABQ) following a passenger disruption in which a threatening statement was made toward a crew member," airline spokesperson Curtis Blessing said. "The aircraft was met by local law enforcement after landing safely at ABQ at 10:25 p.m. local time. The passengers involved were deplaned, and the flight later re-departed for LAX... We thank our crew for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for any inconvenience this caused to their travel plans." So far this year, 323 unruly passenger incidents had been reported to the Federal Aviation Administration as of February 1. There were 5,981 incidents reported last year. A spokesperson with the Albuquerque International Sunport airport said they could "confirm that there was an unscheduled inbound American Airlines flight last evening." The FBI has taken over the case, the spokesperson said.<br/>
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A $600m contractual and safety dispute between Airbus and Qatar Airways deepened on Tuesday when the European planemaker revoked orders for two A350-1000 jets, days after ripping up an order from the Gulf carrier for 50 A321neos. Qatar Airways has sued Airbus for more than $600m and is refusing to take delivery of further A350s until its regulator receives a formal analysis of erosion to the painted surface and underlying lightning protection on 21 of the jets. Airbus, which has two completed A350s ready for delivery to Qatar Airways, has said it has provided the necessary information on the problem of surface degradation and that the damage does not amount to a safety issue. The planemaker said in a UK court filing last month that it was declaring Qatar Airways in default on two A350 jets that were completed and ready to be delivered. It also took the unusual step of cancelling an order for 50 A321neo jets on the grounds that the alleged default on the larger planes had triggered a clause allowing it to revoke the order for A321neos, which are in high demand. Qatar Airways last week ordered 25 competing Boeing 737 MAX, plus options for another 25, as well as 34 new 777X freighters during a visit by the Gulf state's ruling emir to Washington. The airline has denied in legal arguments that it has broken its contract by refusing to take two A350s waiting on the tarmac in Toulouse. It also says Airbus is not entitled to claim a "cross-default" allowing it to cancel the A321neo deal. An Airbus spokesman said on Tuesday the company had "terminated delivery positions for two A350s for Qatar Airways in full compliance with our rights".<br/>
Hong Kong is further tightening quarantine rules for airline staff, with cargo pilots isolating at home to be tracked with electronic monitoring bracelets and crew on passenger planes who have been in countries with high levels of the virus made to quarantine for 14 days. The updated rules will come into effect Wednesday. The strengthened protocols for turnaround cargo pilots and cargo crew, the last remaining category of flight staff to not require hotel quarantine, close a loophole that allowed some to shirk stay-at-home orders because there was no monitoring or checking in place. Previously, aircrew flying to 10 so-called Group A countries -- including the UK and Indonesia -- were required to quarantine for 14 days. And when the rest of the world’s countries were gradually shifted into the highest-risk category since late last year, airlines retained an amendment to quarantine crews coming from most nations for a reduced period of seven days. That’s now been wiped away. Additionally as part of the enhanced aircrew rules, airlines will be required to supply authorities with some form of “visual documentation” regarding staff working abroad as part of strict audit checks, the document shows, without going into detail about what that might be. Airlines also won’t be able to mix-and-match locally based and overseas aircrew on the same flight, and all aircrew on the same flight can only fly together if they’re quarantining for the same length of time. For cargo crew based in Hong Kong, the electronic bracelets will need to be worn at all times for the first three days upon return to the city, according to the document. The tightened rules will mainly impact Cathay Pacific.<br/>