An airline has launched an internal investigation after a spat between two flight attendants was documented by an ESPN anchor on TikTok and Twitter. ESPN's Ashley Brewer said the disagreement between the SkyWest flight attendants on Saturday's flight from Los Angeles to Houston came after a woman in first class asked if she could give up her seat to a coach passenger so that she could sit by her husband. A male flight attendant said yes, but a female flight attendant said no and that it is against the rules, Brewer said in a TikTok. While the first-class passenger was fine with the decision, the disagreement between the flight attendants only got worse, according to Brewer. Plane tracker FlightAware recorded that flight 4860, being operated by SkyWest for American Eagle, landed one hour and two minutes later than scheduled. In a statement, SkyWest said it "is aware of reports regarding a flight attendant issue" involving the flight. "We regret the delay this caused for our passengers and apologize for any inconvenience," the airline said. "We hold all our employees to the highest standards of professionalism and are conducting an internal investigation related to this flight."<br/>
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A report from US officials has found that two planes came within a kilometre of each other at a Florida airport after air traffic control gave an American Airlines jet permission to land on the same runway that an Air Canada Rouge jet was about to take off on. The incident happened just before 9 p.m. on Feb. 16 at Sarasota Bradenton International Airport in the Tampa Bay area. In a preliminary report published on Thursday, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said air traffic control had cleared the American Airlines jet from Charlotte, N.C. to land on Runway 14. However, air traffic control had also cleared an Air Canada Rouge plane heading to Toronto for takeoff on the same runway, despite the fact that the American Airlines jet was on a final approach towards the runway, less than 5.5 kilometres away. When the American Airlines jet was 2.8 kilometres away, the controller confirmed that the Air Canada Rouge plane was to takeoff from the runway. About 53 seconds later, the American Airlines pilots aborted the landing, known in aviation as a "go-around." "What was the reason for your go-around?" the controller could be heard asking the American Airlines pilot on the air traffic control recording. "A guy was still on the runway," the American Airlines pilot said, referring to the Air Canada Rouge jet that was about to take off. "That's a good reason," the controller replied. At their closest point, there two aircraft were around 1.1 kilometres away from each other. There were no injuries and no damage to either aircraft, but this report comes at a time when U.S. airports have been seeing an uptick in close calls, also known as runway incursions. On Wednesday, the NTSB and the US FAA held a safety summit to discuss these near-misses with representative from the industry, union and aviation experts. <br/>
Middle Eastern carrier Emirates has unveiled a new standard livery for its fleet, which primarily features a modified version of the United Arab Emirates flag design on the fin. The latest livery is the third iteration of the Dubai-based airline’s colour scheme, and includes changes to the wing fences and an enlargement, by one-third, of the carrier’s name in gold on the fuselage. Emirates says the fin design includes a “more dynamic and flowing” version of the national flag, with three-dimensional artwork. The carrier operates Airbus A380s and Boeing 777-300ERs, but has orders for A350-900, 787 and 777X twinjets. One of its A380s (A6-EOE) is the first to be painted in the new scheme and will conduct its first service, to Munich, on 17 March. “We’re refreshing our livery to keep it modern, without losing the key elements of our identity such as the UAE flag on our tail fin and the Arabic calligraphy,” says Emirates president Tim Clark. The outer side of the wing fences will carry the Emirates logo, a stylised version of the carrier’s name in Arabic, while the inner side – visible to passengers – will have the UAE flag colours. Emirates commenced services in 1985 and has since only undergone one livery change, when it introduced its first 777-300 in 1999. It expects to have 24 aircraft, including 17 777s, to be repainted by the end of this year and its initial A350 – due in August 2024 – will be delivered with the refreshed branding.<br/>
India’s private air carrier SpiceJet has grounded two of its pilots for allegedly having beverages and sweets inside the cockpit during a flight. The incident came to light after a purported photo of sweets and a cup of beverage placed inside the cockpit’s centre console went viral, sparking concerns that a possible spillage could have affected the safety of those onboard the passenger plane. The picture going viral on social media showed a cup with SpiceJet’s logo half filled with what looked like coffee, alongside gujiyas, a crescent-shaped dessert popularly made around the Holi festival. India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, has sought details from the air carrier, asking to identify crew members and take appropriate action. A SpiceJet spokesperson said the two pilots have been grounded pending an inquiry. “SpiceJet has a strict policy for consumption of food inside the cockpit which is adhered to by all flight crew. Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken upon completion of the investigation,” the statement added. The picture was taken when the SpiceJet aircraft was cruising at 37,000ft, Times of India reported. The incident reportedly occurred on a flight from Delhi to Guwahati city on 8 March, the day of the Hindu festival of Holi. The picture has sparked anger on social media with aviation experts and people expressing anguish over the pilot’s dangerous behaviour that could have affected the safety of passengers.<br/>
Philippine Airlines expects to firm up a potential order for more widebody aircraft in the coming months, as the airline eyes a profitable year amid strong travel demand. In comments first published in local media and later confirmed by the airline, PAL chief Stanley Ng says that the airline plans to “revisit” its orderbook, and is looking at more aircraft, specifically the larger A350-1000. PAL is an existing operator of the A350-900, and has two examples in its fleet, according to Cirium fleets data. The airline previously operated up to six -900s, but cut its fleet size amid a business restructuring. Ng, who was speaking a media event for the airline’s 82nd anniversary, did not indicate how many aircraft it was looking to order. It is not the first time the airline has expressed interest in the larger variant: in 2018, two years after it first committed to six -900s, the airline said it was keen to add -1000s to its fleet. Ng also told reporters the airline will reactivate seven parked jets by the end of the year, bringing its fleet of to 75 in-service aircraft. The airline also confirms it will also be taking delivery of 13 A321neos through 2026. “The [capital expenditure] might be almost double because of the all the improvements that we want to invest in, including system upgrades, customer relationship management systems,” Ng was reported as saying. Ng adds that the airline is “optimistic” about a profitable 2023, noting that the airline’s financial results for the quarter to 31 March were “positive”, as international and domestic travel demand remain robust. The airline has been profitable for most of 2022, its first full year since exiting restructuring in late-December 2021. <br/>
AirAsia Group is eyeing an expansion of existing services as well as new services in South and Central Asia to capitalise on the growing middle class there, and it also wants to capture some of the labour traffic in and out of the region, according to Routes Online. Karen Chan, AirAsia Group CCO, said that the AirAsia parent was considering acquiring air operator's certificates (AOCs) in certain markets in the region. "We are also looking at the Indian subcontinent. With the increase of the middle class in both Bangladesh and Pakistan, there is an opportunity to leverage that because of their population sizes," she said. "The labour traffic is significant. Can we use the labour traffic outbound from Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan, as well as inbound to Bangladesh as a stepping stone to go to the Middle East? We’re therefore looking at that as a possible hub." Capital A, the Malaysia-based entity that owns stakes in various AirAsia brands around the region, recently sold its 16.33% holding in AirAsia India, now AIX Connect, to Tata Sons, scaling back its presence in India. However, AirAsia maintains some flights into the subcontinent from Kuala Lumpur. None of the AirAsia Group airlines presently fly into Nepal or Pakistan. "We are exploring Central Asia too," said Chan. "We’ve been talking to the Uzbeks and Kazakhs for many years, and now with the whole situation in Ukraine there are 300,000 Russians stuck in Kazakhstan. Europe has closed the doors on Russia so where can they go? I think there’s an opportunity, but it may not be in the immediate future."<br/>