A United Airlines flight from Newark Liberty Airport to Los Angeles International Airport was diverted following reports of a “gaseous” smell in the cabin. The aircraft — a Boeing 757-200 — left Newark at 4.24pm on Saturday and landed in Pittsburgh nearly two hours later. A United Airlines spokesperson said all passengers got off the plane normally at the gate. Another aircraft was arranged to take customers to Los Angeles. That plane left Pittsburgh at 10:31 p.m. and landed in Los Angeles about 30 minutes after midnight, causing an almost six-hour delay to the flight’s schedule. It’s unclear what caused the odor, but a spokesperson for the airline said it did not stem from a gas leak. The airline did not release additional information. The plane has been in service since 22 November 1994.<br/>
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South African Airways’ chairman is uncertain whether budget carrier Mango will be revived, but believes that the country’s domestic market is strong and signals that SAA is more focused on regional and intercontinental services. Mango, which is wholly-owned by SAA, stopped operations in July 2021 and was placed under business rescue. Speaking during a parliamentary public accounts committee session on 22 October, SAA chair Derek Hanekom, said the business rescue practitioner “seems to be confident that there is a potential buyer”. But whether Mango would return to the market was “not for us to say”, he added. “It didn’t just go under business rescue for the sake of it,” he says. “It crumbled. And so it may have been providing affordable flights for a period, but it was unsustainable and it was running at a loss, a serious loss.” Hanekom, who was explaining to the committee SAA’s need for funding to support its strategic plans, pointed out that simply providing affordable flights which were unable to cover their own expense would result in demands on public funds. He says the domestic market has become “highly competitive” – with the development of carriers including Airlink, FlySafair and Lift – which is a “good thing, on the pricing side”. “SAA could well, over a period, provide more domestic flights,” says Hanekom. “But as we stand there is a competitive domestic market.<br/>
Egypt's national airline, EgyptAir, on Saturday cancelled its flights to Baghdad, Irbil and Amman due to ongoing military escalation in the region. The airline said in a press release that the cancellations would remain until the regional situation stabilizes. The decision came after Iranian authorities announced earlier in the day that an Israeli occupation airstrike had targeted several locations and caused limited damage. <br/>
Air India has been awarded a Design Organisation Approval (DOA) by Indian regulators, allowing it to carry aircraft interior modifications in-house. The national carrier is the first airline in India to gain the DOA from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and it comes as the airline undertakes a fleet-wide cabin refresh. The approval also follows a partnership between Air India and engineering and digital services company Tata Technologies on aircraft interior enhancements. “The DOA is a transformative step towards enhancing Air India’s in-house capabilities, which has been bolstered by decisions to set up its own engineering, maintenance and training facilities. This will enhance operational efficiency and make the airline more self-reliant,” the airline states. Air India chief Campbell Wilson adds: “The approval reaffirms our capabilities to maintain our fleet and commitment to enhance customer experience of our aircraft interiors.” The Star Alliance carrier has kicked off a cabin retrofit programme for its Airbus A320 family aircraft, and will commence the retrofit programme for its widebodies in early 2025.<br/>
A Singapore Airlines flight en route to Tokyo was diverted to Taiwan on Monday after a cracked windshield was discovered mid-flight, according to the airline. The incident involved Flight SQ636, which departed from Singapore's Changi Airport at approximately 11:00 p.m. on Sunday. The flight, carrying 266 passengers and crew, was scheduled to arrive at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport around 6:20 a.m. on Monday, CNA reported. However, after the crew identified the crack, the aircraft was redirected to Taoyuan International Airport in Taiwan, where it safely landed at around 4 a.m., Singapore Airlines stated. The flight later departed Taipei on Monday night and is expected to reach Haneda Airport by noon on Tuesday, according to The Straits Times.<br/>