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A jury in California ruled that a clothing company should pay more than $1m to four American Airlines flight attendants who blamed chemicals used in the production of their uniforms for causing a variety of ailments including rashes, headaches and breathing problems. The verdict last week could be just the tip of the iceberg: Lawyers say they represent more than 400 other flight attendants who are making the same claims against the uniform maker. The judge has not affirmed the jury’s decision. A lawyer for the flight attendants called that step a technicality. The uniform maker’s lawyers declined to say whether they will appeal. American gave new uniforms to flight attendants in 2016, and many were happy to get them after a decade wearing the same outfit. Complaints soon followed, however. “I would wake up and my eyes would be completely swollen. I looked like I had been in a boxing match,” says Tracey Silver-Charan. “I was unable to breathe. I often felt like I was going to pass out on the job. I was coming home and my husband was running me to the urgent care.” American gave flight attendants the option of wearing their old uniforms, or even picking out an outfit at Macy’s or JCPenney, said Silver-Charan, a Los Angeles-based flight attendant who has been in the field for 37 years. Silver-Charan is part of a group of flight attendants who sued in 2017, and she was among four involved in the bellwether trial in Alameda County Superior Court near San Francisco to see how a jury would view the case.<br/>

Three passengers sued Alaska Airlines on Thursday, saying they suffered emotional distress from an incident last month in which an off-duty pilot is accused of trying to shut down the engines of a plane while catching a ride in the cockpit from Washington state to San Francisco. In the complaint filed Thursday in King County Superior Court in Washington state, San Francisco residents Matthew Doland and Theresa Stelter and Paul Stephen of Kenmore, Washington, alleged that the pilot should never have been allowed in the cockpit because he was suffering from depression and a lack of sleep. Alaska Airlines said in an emailed statement that it is reviewing the complaint. “The pilots and flight attendants operating Flight 2059 responded without hesitation to ensure the safety of all onboard,” it added. “We are incredibly proud and grateful for their skilled actions.” Alaska pilot Joseph David Emerson, 44, was riding in the jump seat — an extra seat in the cockpit — when he suddenly said “I’m not OK” and tried to pull two handles that would engage a fire-suppression system and cut fuel to the engines, authorities said in charging documents. Flight 2059, operated by Alaska affiliate Horizon Air, diverted safely to Portland, Oregon, after the pilots quickly subdued Emerson and he was voluntarily handcuffed in the back of the plane, police said. The lawsuit said the plane experienced “what felt like a nose-dive,” though some passengers quoted in news accounts have not described any such thing. Passenger Aubrey Gavello told ABC News: “We didn’t know anything was happening until the flight attendant got on the loudspeaker and made an announcement that there was an emergency situation and the plane needed to land immediately.” According to the complaint, the plaintiffs have suffered from anxiety, insomnia, fear of flying and other emotional effects as a result of the incident. The lawsuit seeks class-action status on behalf of other passengers and says the airline owed the highest duty of care to its passengers and failed to follow that when it allowed Emerson in the cockpit.<br/>

Royal Air Maroc is expecting to issue a request for proposals relating to a large fleet expansion by the end of this year. Speaking during the Arab Air Carriers Organization conference in Riyadh, the Moroccan flag-carrier’s chief executive, Abdelhamid Addou, said the airline was looking to expand the fleet to 200 aircraft. “We believe Casablanca can become one of the major hubs in the region,” says Addou. One-third of this fleet total will comprise widebody types, with narrowbodies – including regional models – making up the other two-thirds. The airline is also looking to source a number of aircraft to serve as a “bridge” before the larger fleet expansion, says Addou. Royal Air Maroc had indicated earlier this year that it was embarking on an ambitious growth plan covering the period to 2037, including a four-fold increase in size. Addou says the decision process would normally take around two years but the carrier is hoping to “finish in one year”, with a result around July-July 2024. He says Casablanca is a regional hub but needs to “become more global”, capitalising on its position between Europe and Africa, and its ‘open skies’ relationships with both the European Union and USA. Addou expects the hub to evolve as a connecting facility with transit accounting for two-thirds of its traffic. The Oneworld carrier is looking to compete against such airlines as Air France, Ethiopian Airlines and Turkish Airlines.<br/>

Royal Jordanian CE Samer Majali believes the airline is an ideal candidate for acquisition by a larger Gulf-based operator, given its location and capabilities. Speaking to FlightGlobal at the Arab Air Carriers Organization conference in Riyadh, Majali said a strategic investor would obtain an alternative hub – away from closely-spaced ones in the Gulf region – with access to the Levant and a trained workforce. “We’re surprised none of the Gulf carriers ever thought to buy Royal Jordanian,” he says. “Because they could buy it for a song. They can buy it for the price of an aeroplane.” He says the carrier is well-run but small and, as a result, its financial performance is “always on the margins”, typically hovering around plus-or-minus $15m on revenues of around $1b. “That’s what we’re looking for, to partner with a well-funded carrier that will allow RJ to be profitable,” he states. “It’s not a huge liability. In fact it could become profitable with the economies of scale they have, the purchasing power, and so on.” Majali suggests Qatar Airways would “make sense” as such a partner. While both airlines are Oneworld partners, Majali argues there are other reasons to explore a tie-up. “They don’t have population. We have population,” he says. “They’re sitting in the middle of a very difficult region.” Saudi Arabia’s ambitious airline plans will pose a substantial challenge to other Gulf carriers, he believes: “They’re going to be battering them to pieces. Down the line the main target of this new Saudi carrier [Riyadh Air] is [Emirates and Qatar Airways].”<br/>

Australia's Qantas Chairman Richard Goyder acknowledged on Friday that there will be an 'overwhelming' vote against the company's remuneration report, a complete reversal of the 90-plus % support it had received in the previous years. The weight of public fury will most likely overshadow a record annual profit for the carrier in 2023 as shareholders respond to reputation blunders by voting against executive pay and other motions. Shareholders are set to vote on eight resolutions later in the day, including the remuneration report and the election of CEO Vanessa Hudson as a director. If the report is voted down two years in a row, shareholders can vote on whether to sack the board. "There has been a substantial loss of trust in the national carrier," Goyder said at the airline's much awaited annual general meeting on Friday, adding that its post-COVID return to flying was more challenging than expected. The flagship Australian airline has been beleaguered by multiple legal and regulatory actions, leading to calls for the resignation of the outgoing chairman, while outgoing CEO Alan Joyce brought forward his retirement. Qantas had said in September that it would pay Joyce A$21.4m ($13.48m) for the 2023 fiscal year, a near 10-fold jump from last year.<br/>