Türkiye’s national flag carrier aims to expand its fleet to 813 aircraft by 2033, its CEO said Saturday, in what would cement its role as the airline that flies to the most countries in the world. Turkish Airlines has already said publicly it wants to almost double its fleet from the current 437 aircraft – the ninth biggest fleet in the world. The additions over the next decade would make it an airline boasting the third largest fleet, THY CEO Bilal Ekşi told an event in Istanbul. The carrier is in talks with Airbus for a potential order of 355 new aircraft, which, if agreed, will be the largest in the company’s history. Deliveries under the new orders are expected to commence in 2026. Reflecting on the airline’s growth, Ekşi noted that in 2003, THY had a fleet of only 65 aircraft, ranking 35th globally. “We are currently flying to 129 countries worldwide, with 350 destinations, including Türkiye. This undoubtedly transforms Istanbul and Türkiye into a significant transfer hub,” Ekşi emphasized. He underscored the pivotal role played by Istanbul Airport in this growth, describing it as a catalyst for the expansion.<br/>
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Ethiopian Airlines believes its prospective Nigerian joint venture will go ahead despite concerns within the Nigerian government. Under the plan, it will take a 49% stake in startup Nigeria Air, with private investors taking 46% and the Nigerian government 5%. Ethiopian Airlines CCO Lemma Yadecha Gudeta said the joint venture was "almost a done deal." However, a change of government in Nigeria this year has stalled the process. "The new authorities in Nigeria wanted to look into how the [original] agreements were made," he said. Last month, ch-aviation reported that the joint venture was on hold pending reassessment by new aviation minister, Festus Keyamo, and legal action by the Airline Operators of Nigeria. Gudeta said Ethiopian had ferried a B737-800 to Nigeria some time ago for proving flights in that country's airspace in order to secure a Nigerian air operator's certificate. It had also allocated two B787s and six B737 MAX types to Nigeria Air. "It was disappointing for us because we had put all the resources aside," said Gudeta. "We are waiting for them to tell us when to start the airline, but we are very confident that's going to happen very soon." Meanwhile, Nigeria's Armada News reported that discussions between Ethiopian Airlines and the Nigerian government are in process but that Keyamo has several concerns, including a mooted five-year tax waiver for Ethiopian, the potential creation of a monopoly and hindering of fair competition in the local market, and Ethiopian having control over the appointments of Nigeria Air's personnel. He has reportedly informed the Nigerian president of his concerns; it is up to the president to ultimately give the joint venture the go-ahead.<br/>
Singapore Airlines has removed Airbus A380 from flights between Singapore Changi Airport and Shanghai Pudong International Airport during the latter half of the winter season, with the airline operating its flights between the two cities with either the Airbus A350-900 or Boeing 777-300ER. As first reported by Mainly Miles, the carrier has abandoned its plans to operate Airbus A380s between SIN and PVG from January 2024, continuing to deploy a Boeing 777-300ER to operate flight SQ 830 and the return itinerary SQ 833. In July 2023, data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company, showed that the airline planned to use the A380 on the SIN-PVG route daily starting January 4, 2024. Singapore Airlines deployed the double-decker on the route until the end of the IATA summer season 2023. According to Cirium, the last flight that was operated by the Singaporean carrier’s A380 from SIN to PVG was on October 9, 2023. The IATA summer season 2023 ended on October 28. Now, the Airbus A380 will only return to the SIN to PVG route from April 1, 2023, coinciding with the start of the summer 2024 season. However, it would not return to the SQ 830/SQ 833 itinerary and instead would operate flight SQ 826 and SQ 827. The former is Singapore Airlines’ first flight of the day between the two cities. Currently, both flights are operated by an Airbus A350-900, according to Flightradar24.<br/>