A Californian man has described "holding on for dear life" as he sat on an Alaska Airlines flight inches away from a gaping hole which appeared when an unused door flew off mid-flight. Cuong Tran told the BBC his seat belt saved him as his phone, socks and shoes were ripped off by an uncontrolled decompression 16,000ft above Portland. He is among seven passengers to have filed a lawsuit against Boeing, Alaska Airlines and Spirit AeroSystems. The companies declined to comment. Images shared online - and later by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) - showed a wide hole in the side of the Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft, with oxygen masks dangling from the ceiling on 5 January. In a preliminary investigation US regulators found four critical bolts - meant to hold the so-called door plug in place - were missing from the flight which was bound for Ontario, California. None of the 177 passengers and crew on-board were killed but Tran, who was sitting next to his friend one row behind the section which blew out, suffered injuries including a laceration to his leg. Tran, 40, said it happened soon after take-off when he would usually be getting ready to doze off. "The captain said we had passed 10,000 feet. Then the hole blew out on us and I remember my body getting lifted up. Then my whole lower body got sucked down by the howling wind." Tran said the decompression lasted around 10 or 20 seconds and he described looking around at other passengers who could not believe what was happening. "It was probably the first time in my life I had a feeling of no control over everything. I was in disbelief over the whole situation," said Tran. Story has more.<br/>
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British Airways is planning to use driverless baggage tugs at Gatwick Airport to help in the battle against staff shortages across the aviation industry. The Telegraph reported that one of the self-driving robot baggage carriers could be trialled by the International Consolidated Airlines Group – the parent company of BA – at Gatwick Airport as early as May. If successful, the machines, including some equipped with unloading arms, could approve the efficiency and turnaround time of baggage claim at airports. Last July, the threat of ground handling strikes at Gatwick Airport over one of the busiest weekends of the year was lifted after companies made improved pay offers to workers, but short staffing continues. The senior vice president for Airport Futures at IAG, Steve McGowan, said that the baggage tugs require 90 per cent less labour and equipment from baggage handling staff. McGowan told The Telegraph: “IAG is exploring innovative ways to help its airlines run their operations as smoothly and punctually as possible. We are working with Aurrigo to trial the use of autonomous baggage trollies, to help support the work of the fantastic baggage teams at our group airlines and our ground handling partners.” The Aurrigo machines priced between GBP100,000 and GBP250,000 have been tested at Changi Airport in Singapore since 2020 and were previously trialled part-time at Heathrow Airport by BA.<br/>
The executive director of Malaysia Aviation Group and CE of Malaysia Airlines has said he is actively working to expand joint venture partners and reboot abandoned JV talks with Cathay Pacific. Speaking earlier this month, Izham Ismail said joint ventures would be an important part of the airline's future operating strategy. As Malaysia Airlines winds up its fifth and most comprehensive restructuring programme, he said that a well thought-out JV could offer the partners strong business opportunities. "The only joint venture we have now is with JAL - Japan Airlines (JL, Tokyo Haneda)," he said. "Our ambition is to grow our joint business with many other airlines." Izham was not asked about the 13-member Oneworld alliance that Malaysia Airlines is a member of, whose carriers cooperate to facilitate the smooth transfer of passengers, codeshares, and connecting flights - all features of most commercial passenger airline joint venture agreements. Malaysia Airlines did not respond to a request for comment. "Recently, we had ambitions to get a joint venture with Cathay Pacific, but the deal was not palatable to regulators so we pulled the plug," the CE said.<br/>
SriLankan Airlines and Korean Air have officially begun a new codeshare partnership effective March 15, providing passengers of both airlines with improved travel options and connections between Colombo and Seoul. The new partnership allows SriLankan Airlines to codeshare (UL) on flights operated between Singapore and Seoul Incheon by Korean Air, allowing customers to travel on a single “SriLankan Airlines” ticket between Colombo and Incheon via Singapore. Similarly, Korean Air will codeshare (KE) on flights operated by SriLankan Airlines between Colombo and Seoul Incheon, Singapore, Chennai, and Malé in the Maldives. Currently, SriLankan Airlines operates twice weekly between Colombo and Incheon. Still, now SriLankan Airlines employs Korean Air’s extensive Far East network through code-share partnerships, offering Sri Lankan passengers daily flights between Colombo and Seoul via Singapore. Korean Air customers can also access SriLankan Airlines’ strong network in the Indian subcontinent. SriLankan Airlines’ routes cover all coasts of India and the Maldives. The airline has around 100 weekly flights to nine Indian cities and 23 weekly flights to the Maldives. This includes three daily flights between Colombo and Chennai and more than 20 weekly flights between Colombo and Maldives.<br/>
Former Qantas employees were prescribed medication to deal with depression and anxiety after being illegally sacked, a court has heard, as the airline faces a mammoth compensation bill over the saga. Compensation hearings began on Monday to resolve the legal battle between the Transport Workers Union (TWU) and the airline over its pandemic-induced decision to outsource almost 1,700 ground handler jobs in late 2020 – a move the federal court found to be illegal as it acted against protections in the Fair Work Act and was in part driven by a desire to avoid industrial action. Qantas appealed the decision to the full bench of the court and later the high court, both of which were unsuccessful, with the matter now returning to the federal court to determine compensation and penalties for the airline must pay. The court heard on Monday some of the workers suffered significant psychological distress after losing their jobs and had to take medication to cope. One worker was taking four Valiums a day, the court heard, while another was prescribed antidepressants. A court previously found Qantas contravened the Fair Work Act by its decision to outsource the roles of almost 1700 ground staff at 10 Australian airports in late 2020. The airline fought the case all the way to the high court, but lost its appeal in September. Qantas previously claimed the outsourcing would save more than $100m a year to help cope with the impact of the pandemic on air travel. The court will hear three test cases of retrenched workers to help determine an appropriate level of financial compensation. Affidavits from the three former workers were the subject of legal arguments on Monday.<br/>