A Copa Airlines Boeing 737-800 with 166 people aboard left the runway after landing in Panama City from Mexico City on 25 September. The Panamanian flag carrier said on 25 September that its aircraft, with the registration HP-1539CMP and operating flight CM135, “was involved in an incident” at Tocumen International airport but that no injuries were reported. “The aircraft remains at the incident location and will be removed by specialised personnel as soon as possible,” the airline says. “Due to the temporary closure of the airport, one flight was diverted to the Panama Pacifico airport while others were delayed.” According to flight tracking website FlightAware.com, the aircraft left Mexico City’s Benito Juarez International airport at 17:26 local time, and landed in Panama City at 21:12 local time. Video and images posted on social media show the aircraft resting on grass to the left of Runway 03R. All 159 passengers and six crew evacuated the aircraft via emergency exits. The runway remains closed until at least 27 September, according to a Notice to Air Crew. The 737 is almost 13 years old and was originally operated by Delta Air Lines, according to Cirium data. <br/>
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Asiana Airlines, Korea's second-biggest carrier, said Tuesday it will expand flights to Japan from late October on Japan's decision to ease travel restrictions despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan announced last week it will lift the ban on the number of inbound passengers and resume visa-free travel for visitors from specific countries, including Korea, from Oct. 11. Currently, Japan only allows package tours and requires visas for all visitors in a move to control the spread of the pandemic. Asiana plans to increase the number of flights by 10 to 32 starting from Oct. 30 on its major routes from Incheon to Narita, Osaka, Fukuoka and Nagoya, the company said. Asiana said it is also considering increasing the number of flights on the Gimpo-Haneda and other routes, such as Sapporo and Miyazaki, depending on travel demand. It offers seven flights a week on the Haneda route. <br/>
A database that provided faulty predictions on headwinds is being blamed for the bumpy start to Air New Zealand's flagship service to and from New York. The airline blamed extreme weather for disruption to a non-stop flight from New York to Auckland on Sunday. Fifteen customers, who were supposed to travel on Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's flight, had to agree to take alternative flights, to lighten the load in the face of unusually strong headwinds on the way. It was not the new route's first hiccup. Sixty-five passengers on the inaugural flight arrived in Auckland last Monday without their bags, while passengers on a flight - departing from New York on Friday - were told they would have to stop over in Fiji so the plane could refuel. The winds eased and the flight was able to bypass Fiji. Air New Zealand chief operational integrity and safety officer David Morgan said the airline had planned for two years in the expectation of a successful launch of its Auckland-JFK airport route. Flight plans to determine payload had been run over the last year and the airline was hopeful "it had the numbers right". However, some factors had arisen such as significantly higher headwinds plus the inability to use Ohakea Air Force base as a backup and the need to fly around cyclones.<br/>