general

Airlines are largely avoiding Iranian airspace in their flights over the Middle East, according to flight tracker FlightRadar24, lengthening flight times and hiking up fuel costs as worries over a retaliatory attack from Israel targeting Iran grow. Turmoil in the Middle East in the last year has led to confusion and upheaval for aviation, prompting airlines to frequently change routes as they reassess the safety of the airspace in the region. "Most airlines have rerouted flights away from Iran, with the northern route taking flights through Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India on their way to Asia, and the southern route flying over Egypt and Saudi Arabia," said FlightRadar24 spokesperson Ian Petchenik. Some airlines have said they have resumed most of their operations across the Middle East since Iran hit Israel with a ballistic missile attack on Tuesday, leading to flight cancellations and delays. Petchenik said most strategic changes to flights to avoid parts of the Middle East have been lifted in direct connection with the Tuesday attack. Late on Wednesday, German group Lufthansa said it would resume flights to Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan using a limited amount of Iraqi airspace, and will resume using Jordanian airspace on Thursday. It added that flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut and Tehran will remain suspended for the time being.<br/>

A 38-year-old Chinese woman living in Germany has been arrested on accusations of supplying China’s intelligence services with sensitive information on Germany’s weapons exports. It is the latest spying-related arrest amid increasing worry in Germany about intelligence gathering by China and Russia. Germany’s federal prosecutor said in a statement on Tuesday that the woman, identified only as Yaqi X. in keeping with strict privacy rules, worked at Leipzig/Halle Airport in eastern Germany. She is accused of passing along information about “flights, freight and passengers” related to arms exports, as well as information on employees of a German weapons manufacturer, the statement said. The airport, roughly 90 miles southwest of Berlin, is one of Europe’s largest cargo hubs, handling over 1.5m tons of freight each year. The authorities said that Ms. X. worked for a logistics company that operates out of the airport. The authorities said she also had close links to a Chinese man, identified as Jian G., who was arrested in Germany in April and accused of being a spy in Germany and Brussels. The police arrested Ms. X. on Monday and searched her apartment in Leipzig and her workplace at the airport. Berlin has become concerned with the number of active spies in Germany since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine as well as intelligence gathering by China, Germany’s largest trade partner.<br/>

A passenger cap at Dublin Airport is set to damage Ireland's economy and harm plans to expand the country's dominant airport into an international aviation hub, Irish airline bosses and the airport's CEO warned on Thursday. The number of passengers at the airport, which carries around 80% of the country's air passengers, was capped at 32m when planners approved the construction of a second terminal in 2007, in part to avoid local road congestion. The airport on Thursday warned it was on course to overshoot that by a million passengers this year after a record September, despite having reduced passenger numbers across the year by approximately 650,000. Airlines fear this year's overrun could be clawed back through a corresponding cut in capacity in 2025. While a planning application has been lodged to lift the cap to 40m, the process is widely expected to take years, prompting executives to call on the government to take action. The government has repeatedly said that it has no powers to intervene in the planning process. "Let's not make Ireland the laughing stock of Europe," Ryanair Group CEO Michael O'Leary said at a news conference, adding the reasons for the cap had lapsed. "The road traffic is not an issue, and therefore we believe this restriction should be lifted."<br/>

The transport ministry said Thursday it has imposed fines on Saudia Airlines, Qatar Airways and eight other domestic and foreign airlines for violating Korea's aviation law. Saudia Airlines was slapped with a fine of 100m won ($75,500) for suspending its flights linking Incheon and Riyadh without permission from aviation authorities. The Saudi Arabian airline won approval to operate three weekly flights of the route from March through October, but it has not been operating them since June 27. Under the Aviation Business Act, all airlines operating flights to domestic airports must follow a business plan approved by the ministry. Changes to the plan, such as suspending flights, are only allowed with an approval. Qatar Airways faced a fine of 150m won for the violation of aircraft leasing rules in operating freight aircraft of the Incheon-Doha route last year. Korean low-cost carrier (LCC) T'way Air faced a penalty of 14m won for failing to properly inform passengers of flight delays seven times from March-June this year in violation of the aviation rules, though it acknowledged such delays in advance. Spring Airlines, Air Japan, Lao Airlines, Greater Bay Airlines, Lufthansa, Malaysian Airlines and Peach Aviation faced a fine of 2m won each for violating rules on marking flight tickets.<br/>

Two Democratic senators sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, pressing him to take a tougher approach to Boeing and criminally prosecute the company’s executives for not doing enough to ensure passenger safety on its aircraft. The letter, from Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, criticized the Justice Department for not doing enough to hold Boeing accountable, as the company continues to grapple with ongoing safety issues, including a January incident in which a panel blew off an Alaska Airlines flight midair. “Serious safety issues continue to appear with Boeing planes, despite D.O.J.’s past efforts,” the letter states. “In the past six years, Boeing has cycled through three different C.E.O.s, each promising to improve safety at the company. Meanwhile, Boeing machinists, Boeing managers and the National Transportation Safety Board continue to highlight ongoing safety concerns at the company.” On Sept. 26, the National Transportation Safety Board issued an emergency safety alert for some Boeing planes after learning of a defect that could cause the rudder control system that helps to steer the aircraft to jam. The warning applies to some of the company’s 737 Max and 737NG jets and stems from the agency’s investigation into a United Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 that experienced “stuck” rudder pedals while landing at Newark Liberty International Airport in February. In their letter, Warren and Blumenthal said that the Justice Department’s “continued refusal to criminally prosecute responsible individuals” had allowed Boeing to engage in a culture “that has promoted short-term profit over passenger safety.” Boeing declined to comment. A spokesperson for the Justice Department confirmed receipt of the letter but declined to comment further. Boeing is in the middle of several federal investigations, including a Justice Department inquiry into the Alaska Airlines incident. Separately, the FAA also opened an investigation after Boeing told the agency it might have skipped required inspections involving the wings of some 787 aircraft.<br/>

Next time you're running at full tilt towards your airport gate, spare a thought for the airline staff who made sure that that gate was actually available. Gate allocation is a surprisingly complex task. "With 15 gates and 10 airplanes, there are more than 570b possibilities," says Dr Joseph Doetsch, who has been working on the problem of gate allocation as quantum computing lead at Lufthansa Industry Solutions. Picking the best gate for each flight can help shorten aircraft taxi times and reduce congestion, meaning that travellers spend less time waiting on the tarmac. It also cuts down on the amount of fuel required, and thus the plane's emissions. Typically gates are allocated when flight schedules are published, so as much as a year ahead, but are then revisited a month in advance, a week in advance, and then finally on the day of the flight. All sorts of priorities have to be juggled when working out where best to park an aircraft. "For example, certain carriers may be granted access to gates near their lounges and other facilities. Additionally, flights with a high volume of connecting passengers are often placed to optimise transfer times and improve overall passenger experience," says George Richardson, co-founder of airport management firm AeroCloud. "Some airlines, particularly budget carriers, may opt for more cost-effective remote stands with lower parking fees, prioritising operational savings over proximity to the main terminal." Other factors include the direction the aircraft is coming from, the type of aircraft, the expected runway assignment, gate availability, airport staffing, customer and baggage connections and the scheduled taxiway and tarmac moves of other aircraft.<br/>