Star Alliance carrier United Airlines has extended its lead as the world's largest airline in terms of fleet size with the historic delivery of its 1,000th aircraft. The Boeing 737 aircraft was delivered this week, making the carrier the first airline worldwide to operate more than one thousand planes. The Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft (registered N77584) was successfully delivered on Monday and is scheduled to fly to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) from King County International Airport, commonly known as Boeing Field (BFI), later this afternoon. According to data from Flightradar24, the narrowbody passenger jet is due to take off shortly after 13:00 and land at SEA bearing the flight number UA3849. The plane previously flew on Friday, January 24th, for what appears to be the customer acceptance flight. Aircraft tracking data shows the plane departing Boeing Field at 11:48 and flying west across Olympic National Park to reach the Pacific Ocean before turning back and flying across southern Washington State and northern Oregon before circling Boeing's Moses Lake facility and returning to Seattle at 14:16.<br/>
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Air France-KLM is exploring potential cooperation on sustainable aviation fuel with Portuguese partners ahead of the privatisation of Portugal's flag carrier TAP, a spokesperson for the airline said on Tuesday. The Franco-Dutch group, Lufthansa and British Airways owner IAG have already shown interest in TAP's privatisation, which the government wants to carry out this year. The spokesperson said a delegation of Air France-KLM comprising the group's sustainability teams visited Lisbon in the last few days. "They met various stakeholders to discuss potential cooperation opportunities in the field of sustainability and more specifically SAF, of which Air France-KLM is the world's number one buyer and user," the spokesperson added. A source close to the matter said Air France-KLM had meetings with companies, analysts and entities linked to environmental sustainability. A ranking by Brussels-based advocacy group Transport and Environment named Air France-KLM, United Airlines and Norwegian as some of the airlines that have taken tangible steps to buy sustainable jet fuel, which will be crucial for the industry to meet the goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Air France-KLM has said it incorporated 80,000 metric tons of SAF - made from renewable biomass or waste materials - into flight operations in 2023, doubling 2022 levels.<br/>
Boeing confirms German airline Lufthansa will be the launch customer for the in-certification 777-9, settling uncertainty about whether Emirates Airline might take the first of the type. The US aircraft manufacturer’s CFO Brian West on 28 January named Lufthansa as the launch customer. Boeing also says it is working through seat-certification challenges specific to Lufthansa’s jets and that it still anticipates delivering the first 777-9 in 2026. The seat-certification issues are separate from Boeing’s wider challenge of achieving the 777-9’s aircraft-level certification from the Federal Aviation Administration. In recent years, there had been uncertainty about whether Lufthansa or Dubai’s Emirates would be first to receive the massive Boeing twinjet. In 2017, Boeing had confirmed that Emirates had taken the title of 777-9 launch customer from Lufthansa, according to a FlightGlobal report. Boeing later claimed it had not named a launch operator. Lufthansa holds orders for 27 777Xs, including 777-9s and 777-8 Freighters, while Emirates has orders for 205 of those types, according to Boeing’s data.<br/>
German airline group Lufthansa is in talks with Spanish carrier Air Europa about the possibility of acquiring a minority stake, according to two sources with knowledge of the talks. The airline is 20% owned by BA-parent IAG, which backed out of taking full ownership last year due to regulatory concerns. Air Europa is seeking funds to pay an outstanding package of loans worth a total of E475m granted by the government during the pandemic. According to Spanish newspaper el Economista, the discussion with Lufthansa is about the German flag carrier taking a 20% stake in Air Europa. One source told Reuters the talks were focused on a stake around 20%.<br/>Air Europa and Lufthansa declined to comment. Air Europa owner Globalia said in November that Air France-KLM was potentially interested in a 20% stake in the carrier.<br/>
Ethiopian Airlines celebrated the 2025 Chinese New Year on Monday at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, bringing festive warmth to passengers traveling to China. This event highlighted Ethiopian Airlines' commitment to fostering strong connections with Chinese communities worldwide, the airline said in a statement on Tuesday. Passengers traveling to China received special gifts at the boarding gate on Monday night, adding a festive touch to their journey. According to the Chinese lunar calendar, the Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, falls on Jan. 29 this year. "At Ethiopian Airlines, we are thrilled to celebrate the Chinese New Year in a vibrant and meaningful way with the Chinese community and our valued customers. This celebration is our way of honoring the unique traditions and rich cultural heritage of the Chinese people," said Mesfin Tasew, group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, in the statement.<br/>