The FAA said Saturday it is investigating a Southwest Airlines flight after it flew at a very low altitude over Tampa Bay, Florida, the most recent in a series of incidents raising safety questions. The July 14 flight by a Southwest Boeing 737 MAX that had departed from Columbus, Ohio, was approximately 3 miles (5 km) from the Tampa airport when it dropped to as low as about 175 feet (53 meters), according to Flightradar24 data. An air traffic controller alerted the crew of Southwest Flight 425 to their low altitude and the plane was diverted to Fort Lauderdale. Southwest said Saturday is in contact with the FAA “to understand and address any irregularities” following the July 14 flight. “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of our customers and employees,” the airline added. This was the latest in a string of Southwest flights that have raised safety concerns, including a Southwest 737 flight in April that came within about 400 feet (122 meters) of the ocean off Hawaii after the first officer inadvertently pushed forward on the control column and the plane hit a maximum descent rate of about 4,400 feet per minute. The FAA is also investigating another very low altitude Southwest flight about 9 miles (14.5 km) from the Oklahoma City airport. The June 19 incident involving Southwest Airlines Flight 4069 that had departed from Las Vegas dropped to about 500 feet. After an alert sounded, an air traffic controller alerted the flight crew. The U.S. NTSB and FAA are also investigating a Southwest 737 MAX flight on May 25 that experienced a “Dutch roll” at 34,000 feet while en route from Phoenix, Arizona, to Oakland, California. Such lateral asymmetric movements are named after a Dutch ice skating technique and can pose serious safety risks.<br/>
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Allegiant Travel Co.’s shares fell the most in more than two years after the beleaguered carrier suspended its quarterly dividend hours after announcing a CEO change. The 60-cent-a-share cash payout will be halted immediately “in anticipation of capital requirements related to fleet investments,” the parent of Allegiant Air said Thursday in a regulatory filing. The surprise announcement comes less than a year after the company reinstated its dividend from a pandemic-driven pause. The move underscores the challenges in the US air travel market, as costs remain high and heavy competition drives down fares. Allegiant’s stock has been battered by weak operating results, particularly amid ongoing struggles with its costly Sunseeker resort.<br/>
Gol and LATAM Airlines are in advanced talks to add Embraer aircraft to their fleets, the head of Brazil's state development bank BNDES said on Friday, as the country urges them to buy planes from the local manufacturer. Gol and the local unit of Chile-based LATAM are two of Brazil's largest carriers, dominating the country's airline industry alongside Azul. However, unlike Azul, they do not fly Embraer jets. "They are already well advanced in these talks," BNDES head Aloizio Mercadante told reporters on the sidelines of an event at Embraer's headquarters, where the bank announced funding to some of the firm's aircraft exports. "Obviously there is a commercial secrecy, we cannot go into details, but the companies are well advanced in the prospect of flying Embraer." LATAM declined to comment, while Gol in a statement reiterated it flies Boeing airplanes but is "always evaluating options of other models to grow its operations."<br/>
The UK boss of Wizz Air claims fares for flights between Britain and the Middle East could drop to a quarter of their current levels once the low-cost airline takes delivery of its new Airbus plane. Wizz Air, based in Hungary, has ordered 47 of the A321XLR planes from Airbus. The models have enhanced fuel capacity, with a maximum flying time of 11 hours, and burn up to 30% less fuel per seat than previous-generation aircraft. Marion Geoffroy, UK managing director of Wizz Air, said the planes will "revolutionise" air travel in terms of ticket prices. The new A321XLRs are expected to arrive in February and will enable Wizz Air to pursue new routes from the UK to the Middle East, adding to those it already has between continental Europe and Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait. "We will be looking at connecting the UK with the GCC [Gulf Co-operation Council] region, the Middle East, where we have a strong brand already and where we do have a sister airline, Wizz Air Abu Dhabi," Geoffroy said. "This is a very important region for us. From the UK that would definitely be a potential network that we would explore, because it makes a lot of sense to be connecting places where we do have a brand, we do have a presence, we do have customers."<br/>