Belarusian authorities scrambled a fighter jet and flagged what turned out to be a false bomb alert to force a Ryanair plane to land on Sunday and then detained an opposition-minded journalist who was on board, drawing condemnation from Europe and the United States. In what was described by some EU leaders as a hijacking, the passenger plane flying from Athens to Lithuania was suddenly diverted to Minsk, the capital of Belarus, escorted there by a Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jet. On its landing, authorities took journalist Roman Protasevich into custody. Protasevich had his head in his hands and was shaking when he realised the flight was headed for Minsk, Lithuania’s Delfi news outlet said, quoting a passenger. Later, as he was led away, according to the report, he remarked: “I’ll get the death penalty here.” Reuters could not verify the report. The 26-year-old journalist worked for Poland-based online news service NEXTA, which broadcast footage of mass protests against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko last year via the Telegram messenger app at a time when it was hard for foreign media to do so.<br/>Data from the flightradar24.com website showed the plane was diverted just two minutes before it was due to cross into Lithuanian airspace. After seven hours on the ground, the plane took off and finally landed in Vilnius where Lithuanian PM Ingrida Simonyte was waiting to meet the passengers. Story has more.<br/>
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EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen pushed for sanctions after the forced landing of a Ryanair plane in Belarus, shortly before a EU summit is set to discuss such measures on Monday in Brussels. “Those responsible for the Ryanair hijacking must be sanctioned,” von der Leyen said late on Sunday on Twitter, adding European Union leaders on Monday would discuss what action to take. Belarusian authorities scrambled a fighter jet and flagged what turned out to be a false bomb alert to force a Ryanair plane to land on Sunday and then detained an opposition-minded journalist who was on board, drawing criticism from across Europe. “Journalist Roman Protasevich must be released immediately,” von der Leyen, who heads the EU’s executive Commission, said on Twitter.<br/>
Ryanair Holdings wants to have a deal by the end of the year to buy at least 100 737 Max 10 jets from Boeing starting in 2026, CE Michael O’Leary told the Mail on Sunday. The planes carry 230 passengers each, versus 197 for Ryanair’s current fleet, according to the report. Ryanair has already ordered 210 Max-8200 “Gamechanger” planes and will receive the first 60 of them by next April, taking its fleet to 510. Europe’s biggest discount carrier is planning for a rebound in traffic as the coronavirus pandemic eases. The Irish airline predicts passenger numbers will increase to 90% of pre-Covid levels by September, and European travel will be back to normal by the fall, barring any fresh virus obstacles. Ryanair had 1.75m bookings for the summer period by Friday, according to the newspaper. Families are booking flights to countries on the UK “amber” travel list in anticipation of a relaxation of the guidance later, O’Leary said, according to the newspaper. “Everybody realizes the restrictions are going to be gone by the time you get to the end of June and into July and August,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.<br/>
Airlines scrambling to capitalize on a rebound in travel as the pandemic wanes in the US have yet another competitor in the skies. Breeze Airways, a new airline started by JetBlue Airways’ founder David Neeleman, started selling tickets on Friday. It is the second US carrier to debut in about a month. Neeleman’s fifth airline, Breeze Airways is offering fares that start at $39, for routes it says are underserved around the US. Flights begin May 27, just before Memorial Day weekend, with service from Charleston, South Carolina, to Tampa, Florida, and Hartford, Connecticut. It plans to operate 39 routes by July 22, including Charleston to Columbus, Ohio, New Orleans and Huntsville, Alabama. Breeze will use 10 all-economy class Embraer E-190 jets with 108 seats and three E-195 planes with 118 seats. Other routes, which will be added in July, include service from New Orleans to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Louisville, Kentucky. “Covid’s been really tough on our industry, but we’ve been able to take advantage of low aircraft prices,” Neeleman said Friday. “We have really low prices. We’re flying routes that really haven’t been flown nonstop, really, ever, and with really low trip costs.” Breeze says it won’t charge fees for changing or canceling flights. Major carriers got rid of change fees during the pandemic for standard economy tickets in an effort to win back travelers. The start-up will charge $20 for checked or carry-on bags.<br/>
Airbus will go ahead with plans to increase the range of its smallest jet, the A220, its newest operator said, allowing airlines to open more niche routes internationally. Airline entrepreneur David Neeleman said last month he was discussing adding extra endurance to the jetliner with Airbus, which took over the Canadian-designed programme in 2018. Speaking Friday as he launched his latest venture, US startup Breeze Airways, Neeleman said a decision to offer the longer-range jet was now a given. "It is under way, so we are ... kind of arguing about when. But it is not a matter of 'if,' it is just a matter of 'when'," Neeleman said. Airbus declined to comment. "We are always working with our customers and listening to their fleet needs, and we don’t comment on the status of our confidential discussions," an Airbus spokeswoman said. The upgrade would require an extra fuel tank, which means Airbus would also have to increase the plane's maximum take-off weight in order to preserve and then improve performance. Airbus has already announced some increases in that metric.<br/>
Norwegian Air is set to exit its restructuring process next week after raising the 6b Norwegian crowns ($714m) it targeted through the sale of perpetual bonds, new shares and a rights issue, the company said Friday. Financed largely by debt, Norwegian Air grew rapidly, serving routes across Europe and flying to North and South America, Southeast Asia and the Middle East before the COVID-19 pandemic plunged the budget airline into crisis. Courts in Ireland and Norway had demanded the airline raise at least 4.5b crowns as part of a scheme to emerge from bankruptcy protection in the two countries on May 26. The private placement of new shares raised 3.73b crowns and was "significantly oversubscribed", the firm said. The perpetual bond sale added 1.88b crowns from current creditors, while the rights issue to existing shareholders was oversubscribed and the final results are to be settled on May 25, the company said. The courts in Oslo and Dublin last month gave their approval for Norwegian to sharply cut its debt by converting it to stock so long as it raised the 4.5b crowns. With the pandemic still curbing travel, the company then decided to try and raise an additional 1.5b crowns to bolster resources as it exits the restructuring process it began last December. The survival plan brings an end to Norwegian's long-haul business, leaving a slimmed-down carrier focusing on Nordic and European routes.<br/>
David Brodet will step down as chairman of cash-strapped El Al Israel Airlines (ELAL.TA) at the end of May after seven months in the job, he said on Sunday, having waited until the Israeli flag carrier received a government bailout package. The Israeli government this month approved a $210m bailout package for El Al on condition of steep spending cuts and a cash injection from the airline's owners. "During my tenure as chairman, I worked ... to get the company what it needed, to overcome the great crisis El Al has gone through since it was founded," Brodet wrote in a letter to directors, saying he led the negotiations with the Finance Ministry. A new chairman has yet to be named.<br/>
Emirates Sunday said passenger flights from India will remain suspended until June 14, 2021. The carrier added that travelers who have transited through India in the last 14 days will not be accepted to travel from any other point to the UAE. UAE Nationals, holders of UAE Golden Visas and members of diplomatic missions who comply with the revised published COVID-19 protocols will be exempt for travel, said Emirates on its website. Passengers can choose to keep their ticket for future flights and can contact their booking office when they are ready to travel. They could also rebook their flights through their travel agent or a booking office.<br/>
The biggest customer for Airbus’s top-selling A320 narrow-body has chosen General Electric engines for a massive order, after pitting the conglomerate against its dominant US supplier, Pratt & Whitney. IndiGo, India’s largest airline, has selected CFM International Inc., a venture between GE and France’s Safran SA, to supply LEAP-1A engines for its fleet of 310 new Airbus A320-family aircraft, the carrier said Friday, without specifying the size of the deal. A CFM spokesman says it’s the largest single order for the company in terms of the number of engines, but declined to put a price tag. The deal is a surprise considering the global aviation industry has been paralyzed by the pandemic. India had the world’s fastest-growing aviation market for several years before demand started to falter and Covid-19 shut borders and diminished international travel. The order is a blow to Pratt, which is owned by Raytheon Technologies Corp. After spending $10b to develop a new engine for narrowbody jets, it’s faced delivery delays and multiple issues leading to midair shutdowns. IndiGo decided to switch away from its engines in 2019, placing a $20b order with rival CFM.<br/>