Ukraine said early on Thursday it had closed its airspace to civilian flights because of a "high risk" to safety, hours after a conflict zone monitor warned airlines should stop overflights over the risk of an unintended shootdown or cyber attack. Russian President Vladimir Putin authorised a military operation in eastern Ukraine on Thursday in what appeared to be the start of war in Europe. "The provision of air traffic services to civilian users of the airspace of Ukraine is suspended," Ukrainian State Air Traffic Services Enterprise said on its website. "We will additionally inform about changes in the use of Ukraine's airspace," the agency added, without providing further details. Eurocontrol, which coordinates air traffic in Europe, said that Ukraine's airspace was not available because of military restrictions. An El Al flight from Tel Aviv to Toronto made a sudden U-turn out of Ukraine's airspace around the time a notice to airmen was issued early on Thursday deeming the area restricted, according to flight tracking website FlightRadar24. A LOT Polish Airlines flight from Warsaw to Kyiv also turned back to Warsaw around the same time. The turnarounds came after Safe Airspace, which was set up to provide safety and conflict zone information for airlines after Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014, said it had increased its risk level to "do not fly".<br/>
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The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) warned airlines on Thursday to avoid flying over Ukraine and exercise "extreme caution" in airspace within 100 nautical miles (185 km) of the Belarus-Ukraine and Russia-Ukraine borders.<br/>
The videos light up social media and dominate news headlines. From verbal confrontations to all-out brawls, scenes of airplane passengers behaving badly have become increasingly familiar in Covid-era travel. While “air rage” may seem to be another inevitability of living through a pandemic, some parts of the world are seeing fewer frustrations unleashed in the skies. Before the pandemic, there were between 100 to 150 reports of unruly passengers in a typical year on US airlines. In 2021, there were nearly 6,000, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, with some 72% related to mask disputes. “The issue is mostly a US problem,” said Shem Malmquist, a visiting instructor at Florida Institute of Technology’s College of Aeronautics. “Part of this is absolutely related to the politicization of the pandemic in US politics. That aside, US passengers are considered to be more generally problematic by most cabin crew.” Europe is also grappling with its share of disruptive passengers. High-profile incidents have been reported on flights departing from Spain, Scotland, Amsterdam and Glasgow. Australia’s major airlines launched a joint campaign in 2021, following an increase in abusive behavior among flyers. Videos and airport signage have been put up to remind travelers to bring masks and respectful attitudes on board. Last year, Canadian authorities reported that nearly 1,600 hundred people refused to comply with mask rules during flights. Others were denied boarding or deplaned before take-off, according to Transport Canada, the country’s transportation department. In Asia, news of unruly flyers remains scarce. “I have not heard of any incidents — zip, none,” said Jeffrey C. Lowe, CEO of the Hong-Kong-based aviation services company Asian Sky Group. “Airline schedules are still greatly reduced,” he said of travel within Asia. Plus, there is “the pre-existing acceptance for masks in Asia before the pandemic … and, last but not least, a different perception here in Asia as to what infringes on our personal freedoms.”<br/>
The FAA has warned that 5G wireless operations can interfere with radio altimeters in Boeing 737s, impeding a crew's ability to safely fly or land, but FAA officials stressed the issue poses little practical effect for airlines. Despite dire-sounding language in the FAA airworthiness directive issued on Wednesday about potential effects on 737 landings, it does not apply to aircraft flying into areas where the 5G environment has been rendered safe for aviation, which the FAA said includes nearly all airports. The overwhelming majority of commercial airports have either established 5G wireless buffer zones around them or lack 5G operations altogether, meaning that planes landing there are protected from radio interference warned about in the FAA directive, agency officials said on Wednesday. The FAA said the directive posted on Wednesday for most of Boeing's 737 aircraft is very similar to notices issued previously for 737 MAX aircraft, as well as 747, 757, 767 and 777 jetliners. However unlikely as a practical matter, Wednesday's directive warns that certain airplane systems may not properly function "during approach, landings, and go-arounds" due to interference with radio altimeters from wireless broadband operations in the 3.7-3.98 GHz frequency band (5G C-Band). This in turn could lead to "increased flight crew workload while on approach with the flight director, autothrottle, or autopilot engaged, which could result in reduced ability of the flight crew to maintain safe flight and landing of the airplane," the directive said. The notice affects some 2,400 airplanes in the United States and about 8,300 worldwide, the FAA said.<br/>
A new organization aims to spur Canadian development of sustainable aviation fuel, a technology advocates say is the airline industry's best shot at reducing its greenhouse gas emissions. The Canadian Council for Sustainable Aviation Fuels (C-SAF) was launched Wednesday by a consortium of 60 airlines operating in Canada, both domestic (Air Canada, WestJet) and foreign-owned (British Airways, Cathay Pacific). The group's members also include airports, research institutions, and jet fuel producers and refiners. Geoff Tauvette, executive director of C-SAF, said the organization's mission is to develop targets and a strategy for a made-in-Canada sustainable aviation fuel industry. "There is very little (sustainable aviation fuel) being used right now in Canada, not even a significant volume being produced today in Canada," Tauvette said. "But there's a global race going on, and we would like to get the right processes in place and get it rolling to ensure we get a piece of the pie." While SAF doesn't eliminate aircraft emissions entirely, it is a lower-carbon solution that can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 85% compared with conventional jet fuel. It's also a "drop-in" fuel, meaning it doesn't require changes to aircraft or any special infrastructure at airports. That makes it very attractive to the global aviation industry, which committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. SAF is something that can be implemented now, while other technological solutions -- such as hydrogen-powered or electric aircraft -- remain far off in the future. "Aviation is going to be one of the hardest industries to decarbonize," Tauvette said. "We don't have a lot of options on the table today to be able to do so."<br/>
Spanish airport operator AENA said on Wednesday its 2021 loss narrowed by half as passenger traffic through its terminals recovered some ground from the 2020 slump though it forecast 2022 traffic to remain well below pre-pandemic levels. The group cut its net loss to E60m ($68.02m) from E126.8m a year earlier, while total revenue climbed 6.7% to E2.39b. Passenger traffic in AENA’s terminals rebounded by nearly 60% last year from a near standstill in 2020 when COVID-19 ground air travel to a virtual halt, but volumes were still less than half their pre-pandemic levels. The company expects its passenger traffic in 2022 at 68% of pre-pandemic levels, CE Maurici Lucena said. “I am more optimistic at present than in other moments during the pandemic,” Lucena told analysts and investors during a conference call. Waves of coronavirus infections followed by rounds of travel restrictions around the world have dashed hopes for a quick rebound airport operators expected when the crisis first hit. AENA’s revenue growth in 2021 was driven by a 35% increase in aeronautical revenues, fees charged to airlines, which more than offset a 23% decline in commercial revenues, rents charged to shops and other businesses operating in the airports. In September, Spain forced AENA to reduce the rents it charges to tenants at its airports until passenger traffic fully recovered from the pandemic. One of the world’s leading airport operators that manages 46 airports in Spain, including Madrid and Barcelona terminals, expects the rent cap to cost it some E1.3b. The company last week said it expected traffic through Spanish terminals to recover to pre-pandemic levels during the summer, while seats on flights to and from Spain between March-October to rise around 3.6% compared with the same period in 2019.<br/>
Flights between Israel and Dubai International Airport are at increasing risk of being halted little over a year after they began as talks about security at the Gulf hub fail to make progress. Dubai’s reluctance to have Israel’s Shin Bet security service base personnel at the airport is at the heart of the dispute, with negotiations on the matter set to end next Monday, according to Yoel Razvozov, Israel’s tourism minister. “We should have reached an agreement already and as tourism minister I am concerned,” Razvozov told Israel’s Kan radio Tuesday. “We have been getting further away from an agreement rather than closer.” Direct flights between the United Arab Emirates and Israel began in 2020 after a historic deal normalized ties. The aviation accord hit difficulties when Shin Bet told Israeli carriers El Al, Arkia and Israir they’d have to end Dubai flights on March 8 without improved security there. While such measures are provided locally across the globe, Israel’s concerns about terrorism have led it to take a more active role in vetting foreign hubs. Services were meanwhile cut to a collective three a day, though flights operated by Dubai-based carriers have continued unhindered.<br/>
Heathrow has predicted that a “surge” of holidaymakers will help a recovery in aviation this summer, despite passenger numbers at the airport last year tumbling to the lowest levels since the 1970s. The UK’s busiest airport also indicated it still hoped to build a third runway in the coming years as the industry emerges from its worst crisis in its history. The airport said on Wednesday it lost GBP1.8b in 2021, bringing total losses during the coronavirus crisis to GBP3.8b. John Holland-Kaye, CE, said 2021 was “the worst year in Heathrow’s history” after passenger numbers fell to 19.4m, even lower than the 22.1m who travelled in 2020, the first year of the pandemic. “Demand is now starting to recover,” as the impact of the Omicron variant had faded, he said. The airport was also working with airlines “to scale up our operations” in time for the summer peak season. Terminal 4, which was mothballed during the tight UK government travel restrictions, would be open in time for the summer, he added. The airport expected to hit its forecast of 45.5m passengers this year thanks to “a surge of Brits heading for summer sun”, even though passenger numbers slipped 23 per cent below expectations in the first two months of the year because of Omicron-related travel restrictions. The upbeat forecast meant Heathrow expansion was “back on the table”, Holland-Kaye told the Financial Times. “We are going to take some time this year to decide what the timetable is going to be . . . but this is the right time to be investing in future capacity, we should not wait to be full again,” he said. Heathrow is entitled to apply for planning permission for a third runway after the Supreme Court in 2020 ruled the project could proceed. Heathrow also pledged to press ahead with plans to raise its landing charges to help recover losses built up during the pandemic, despite fierce opposition from airlines that use the hub.<br/>
Raytheon Technologies said on Wednesday its Pratt and Whitney unit may not ship around 70 engines to Airbus in Q1 2022 due to casting shortages. "Pratt will probably not ship ... let's call it 70 engines to Airbus, because of the casting shortages that we're seeing," Raytheon Chief Executive Greg Hayes said at the Barclays Industrial Conference. Hayes' comments confirm pressure on supply chains as Airbus raises production. Reuters reported in January that aircraft due for delivery in 2022 were already estimated a few months late, with a risk of some deliveries drifting into 2023. Forgings and castings are among the items most severely hit in the aerospace supply chain and have relatively long lead times.<br/>
General Electric expects to have "strong" revenue growth this year despite inflationary and supply-chain challenges, CE Larry Culp said Wednesday. The comments came days after the industrial conglomerate warned that supply and labor shortages, along with inflation, would pressure its profits through the first half of the year. Culp said while the company was adjusting its prices, it would not be able to fully offset higher costs with price increases. "This is a tough operating environment," hesaid at the Citi Industrial conference. Last week, the Boston-based company said it was grappling with supply-chain issues across most of its businesses. Raw material and labor shortages, along with soaring costs, were adversely affecting its healthcare, renewable energy and aviation units, it said. Persistent supply-chain bottlenecks also led to a decline in GE's revenue in the quarter through December.<br/>