Air Arabia Maroc, Morocco’s low-cost carrier, has been found in significant breach of international aviation safety standards following a comprehensive audit by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The audit, conducted in September, revealed eight critical (Level 1) and one significant (Level 2) safety violations, raising questions about the airline’s compliance with essential safety regulations. The European Aviation Safety Agency, or EASA, is the European Union’s aviation regulator, responsible for overseeing and enforcing air safety standards across Europe. The agency sets strict operational, maintenance, and safety requirements for airlines to ensure passenger and crew safety. EASA also conducts audits and on-site assessments of airlines operating within or into Europe to verify compliance with international and EU aviation safety rules. EASA’s investigation into Air Arabia Maroc was triggered by a confidential report alleging operational and maintenance shortcomings that could jeopardize flight safety.<br/>
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Emirates said aircraft delays from Boeing Co. and Airbus SE are disrupting the carrier’s growth plans, and added costs dwarf the compensation the Gulf carrier has received from the planemakers. The setbacks include lost business from expansion it’s had to put off, as well as added costs to overhaul existing aircraft, CCO Adnan Kazim said in an interview. “There are a lot of missed opportunities,” Kazim said. “With how the growth is coming in, we are definitely in need of these aircraft now or yesterday even.” Emirates is the latest airline to speak out about jet delivery delays costing them business. Deutsche Lufthansa AG CEO Carsten Spohr said this week that the hold-up in handovers was costing the airline several hundred million euros in annual earnings. Emirates is spending $4b overhauling its existing fleet of Airbus A380 double-deckers and Boeing 777 jets, as the entry into service of the 777X that will replace those planes has been further delayed until 2026, while the first handover of the A350 model has been postponed multiple times this year. <br/>
Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia’s startup carrier, obtained a $1.3b credit facility from a group of Gulf banks as it looks to raise money ahead of its planned launch in the summer of 2025. The airline, owned by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, signed an Islamic revolving credit facility amounting to 3b riyals, with an option for an additional 2b riyals with eight banks in the Gulf, according to a statement Thursday. The financing “will play a critical role in supporting Riyadh Air’s ambitious aircraft acquisition activities and addressing the airline’s short-term working capital needs as it prepares to launch operations,” according to the statement. On Wednesday, the airline placed an order for 60 narrowbody jets from Airbus, adding short-haul aircraft to its fleet as it looks to challenge regional incumbents including Emirates and Qatar Airways. The efforts are part of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s initiative to make Saudi Arabia’s economy less dependent on oil. <br/>
Israeli carrier El Al has abruptly suspended all of its flights to Russia, with the airline due to make a decision about reinstating service at the end of the week. The cancelations come despite no change in official policy from Israeli authorities, and Russian airlines will continue to provide service between the two countries. Passengers booked with the carrier on its services between Tel Aviv and Moscow have begun receiving cancelation messages within the past few days. El Al has cited "operational constraints" as the reason behind its cancelations, although it has not elaborated further on what exactly this entails. A representative from the airline told local media that the decision is not related to the security situation in Israel, nor is it a decision imposed by the government. A spokesperson for El Al commented, "Due to operational constraints, El Al was forced to cancel some Moscow-Tel Aviv flights. Passengers whose flights are being canceled have received and will receive messages and will be allowed to choose any alternative flight option that suits them in addition to what is due to them by law."<br/>
El Al Israel Airlines could not have dreamed of better compensation for the damage caused by the Covid pandemic, which almost led to its collapse, than the consequences of the war, which have resulted in record profits over the past year, and boosted the company's market cap to NIS 3.4b. The long list of those benefiting from the turnaround in El Al's business performance includes the company's shareholders, led by controlling owner Kenny Rozenberg, its senior executives, and, as it turns out, the company's pilots too. An examination by "Globes" found that if the company's profit rate is maintained in the second half of 2024, and all the signs are that this will be the case, then El Al's pilots will receive bonuses worth a total of NIS 130m ($35m). This is in accordance with a clause in the collective wage agreement signed in 2018, when nobody imagined the airline earning so much money in one year. At the end of 2023, El Al employed 555 pilots, so each of them is expected to receive an average bonus of nearly NIS 250,000 ($67,500). Under the 2018 agreement, if El Al's annual pre-tax profit exceeds $100m, the pilots will receive 6% of that year's profits. El Al has already earned almost $300m before tax in the first half of 2024. Market estimates are that the third quarter will be even better than the previous two record quarters, the only question is by how much.<br/>
Indian police have arrested a man for allegedly making a bomb threat to an Abu Dhabi-bound Air Arabia flight. Mohammad Ijas, 26, sent an email to the airport director of Karipur International Airport in Kozhikode in southern Kerala state on Tuesday claiming that the flight heading to Abu Dhabi was rigged with a bomb. He was arrested by police on Wednesday. “We arrested Mohammad Ijas. He emailed the airport using his personal email address saying that there was a bomb in the aircraft. We sent a team yesterday,” Abbas Ali, senior police officer at Karipur Airport police station, told The National. Police said he was on the flight to Abu Dubai but did not want to travel due to financial issues. He had borrowed over 1.1m rupees ($13,000) from friends. “He had financial issues and wanted to cancel the flight. He travelled to Abu Dhabi each month. We don’t know yet what was his actual job or what he did there,” Ali said. Ali said that Ijas was brought before the chief magistrate and sent to two weeks of judicial custody. Authorities have charged him under relevant sections of the Civil Aviation Act, as well as the penal laws and Kerala Police Act. “The punishment for such crimes under the Civil Aviation Act is life imprisonment,” Ali said.<br/>
Pakistan’s sale of national flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines Corp. has become uncertain after the maiden bid was below the minimum price of about $306m. Blue World City submitted a bid 8.5 times lower than the government’s expected price of 85b rupees, according to details provided by the Privatisation Commission in Islamabad. The government is going to review the outcome of the process, said the commission’s Secretary Usman Bajwa. Blue World, one of the six bidders shortlisted by Pakistan authorities, was the sole group to put in a final bid. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s cash-strapped government is trying to shore up the nation’s debt-ridden economy by selling loss-making state-owned enterprises that include the national airline, Roosevelt Hotel in New York and energy utility companies. The government has failed to privatize the airline in previous attempts because of protests by labor unions and political parties. <br/>
Cebu Pacific is close to completing its expected aircraft deliveries for the year following the arrival of three new aircraft this month, the budget carrier said on Thursday. “We’re excited to expand our fleet with these additional aircraft ahead of the peak travel season in December,” Cebu Pacific President and CCO Alexander G. Lao said in a media release on Thursday. The arrival of two A321 NEOs and one A320ceo brings Cebu Pacific to 83.3% of its 18 expected aircraft deliveries for the year. “These deliveries are a key part of our continuous efforts to expand routes and enhance our service, allowing us to better serve the increasing number of travelers,” Lao added. Cebu Pacific said these new aircraft deliveries are meant to support the growing travel demand and its network expansion goals.<br/>