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There are some flights to the Middle East that have resumed but there is still disruption.
Some airlines have maintained their suspensions, while others are increasing the number of flights they offer to certain parts of the Middle East. The following is a list of the alphabetical status updates for airlines flights: AEGEAN AIRLINES The largest airline in Greece has cancelled flights to Dubai and Erbil until September 30. AIRBALTIC The cancellation of flights to Dubai is effective until October 24. AIR CANADA Canadian Airlines has cancelled all flights to Tel Aviv, Dubai and Abu Dhabi until October 24. AIR FRANCE-KLM Air France has suspended flights to Beirut until July 20. Air France resumed flights to Riyadh and Tel Aviv in June, but Dubai was not reopened until July 8. KLM has suspended all flights to Riyadh Dammam, and Dubai until the 23rd of August. CATHAY PACIFIC Hong Kong Airlines plans to resume flights to Dubai and Riyadh on September 1. The U.S. carrier suspended?services on the Atlanta-Tel Aviv routes through December 18, The airline plans to resume New York JFK-Tel Aviv flights starting September 6. However, the launch of its Boston-Tel Aviv flight, scheduled for late October, was delayed. FINNAIR It has cancelled all Doha flights up to October 2 and continues to avoid the airspace of Israel, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Iraq. The airline will resume its Dubai flights in October, which are only operated during the winter. British Airways, owned by IAG, delayed the resume of flights to Riyadh and Doha until August 8th. Flights from Dubai, Tel Aviv and Bahrain to Amman and Amman will be paused until after the summer. They are expected to resume on October 25, When the airline resumes its services, it plans to reduce flights to Dubai, Doha and Riyadh to just one flight per day, while removing Jeddah from their list of destinations. JAPAN AIRLINES Japan Airlines has suspended its scheduled Tokyo-Doha and Doha-Tokyo flight until August 31, and Doha-Tokyo until September 1. The Polish airline will resume its operations in Beirut during the summer of 2027 and its winter route from Dubai. LUFTHANSA GROUP SWISS delayed the return of flights to August and Brussels Airlines suspended its operations until 24 October. The suspension of Dubai flights by SWISS and Lufthansa will continue until September 13. Until October 24, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa and SWISS have suspended their flights to Abu Dhabi and other destinations, including Amman, Beirut and Dammam as well as Riyadh. Erbil, Muscat, Tehran and Riyadh are also affected. Eurowings, a low-cost carrier, plans to resume flights to Tel Aviv as early as July 10. The airline plans to resume flights to Tel Aviv in the autumn after restarting Erbil and Beirut on July 1. ITA Airways also extended its suspension of flights to Riyadh and Dubai until October 24, for operational reasons. NORWEGIAN AIR No new dates have been set for the launch of Tel Aviv or Beirut flights by the low-cost carrier. SINGAPORE Airlines In response to increased demand, the carrier has extended its Singapore-Dubai suspension until August 2 and added services on Singapore-London Gatwick (late March) and Singapore-Melbourne (late March-October 24). TURKISH AIRLINES SunExpress (a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa) resumed Izmir to Dubai on July 7, with plans to resume Antalya to Dubai route on July 15. SunExpress, a joint venture between Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa, resumed its Izmir-Dubai route on July 7 and plans to resume its Antalya-Dubai route?on July 15. WIZZ AIR Low-cost carrier has suspended flights from Europe to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Amman until mid-September. (Compiled by Josephine Mason and Jamie Freed. Elviira Lioma, Tiago Branao, Agnieszka Olesska, Bernadette HOG, Boleslaw LaSocki, Alexander Klyve Gudbrandsen, Romolo Tosiani. Matt Scuffham and Louise Heavens edited the article.
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Air Canada hires the top boss of Scandinavian Airlines to be CEO
Anko van 'der Werff will replace Michael Rousseau, the CEO of Canada's largest airline, Air - Canada, as its new CEO. This announcement ends months of speculation about leadership. The search for Rousseau's replacement was concluded by the appointment. In March, he announced that he would be retiring after 19 years with?the airline. Rousseau was criticized earlier this year for failing to express condolences after a crash that claimed the lives of two pilots. Van der Werff will join Air Canada by the end of January, 2027. The?airline announced that SAS, which is a part-owned company of?Air France KLM, would begin the process to appoint a successor.
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Jet2 bookings for summer surge despite Middle East uncertainty
British travel company Jet2 announced on Wednesday that customers were now more likely to book holidays after delaying bookings due to the Middle East conflict. Summer passengers booked to date are up 7.1% and its shares have risen by 16%. Global aviation and leisure industries have been struggling with high costs and low consumer confidence due to the Iran War. Jet2 however, said that booking trends improved over recent weeks because of a reduction in geopolitical uncertainties. Steve Heapy, the Chief Executive of the company, said that the demand for travel had increased following the "calming down" in the Gulf. Customers were delaying their plans to travel rather than cancelling them. The recovery could be threatened by the comments made on Wednesday by U.S. president Donald Trump that the interim agreement signed in June to secure?peace with Iran is "over". The shares of the airline and package tour company rose 9.2% to 1,581 pence at 0937 GMT. They had earlier reached their highest level since January. Summer Trends Leeds-based Jet2 reported that on-sale capacities for the summer were running 7.7% ahead of the previous year. The average load factor in the first four month was 1.2 percentage points more, thanks to targeted price reductions for late bookers. Heapy stated that bookings across Jet2’s network, which spans 25 countries, had recovered. However, the strongest growth was in the areas closest to conflict zones, such as Turkey, Cyprus and eastern Greek islands. In order to protect itself from fuel price volatility, 90% of the UK's third largest airline hedged its full-year jet-fuel requirements at an average of $743 per ton. Jet2 announced in April that it had 87% of its summer jet fuel requirements hedged at an average price of $707 per metric ton. Jet2 also pointed to its new London Gatwick operations performing ahead of ?its initial expectations, ?supported by a stronger-than-expected package holiday mix. The HEATWAVE has not pushed up demand The group added that Europe's heatwave has not yet impacted demand. Heapy said that the intense?humidity of the UK could even encourage bookings by customers looking for drier summers in other countries. Jet2 has also launched a PS250m share buyback despite a 7% drop in pretax profits to PS551m ($735.25m) for the fiscal year ending March 31. JPMorgan analysts wrote in a recent note that despite the recent improvement, it is still expected to be a challenging earnings situation in the near term, given the competitive UK outbound leisure market and the Middle East's impact, as well as the immaturity of the new bases in the UK, including Gatwick. ($1 = 0.7494 pounds)
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Chevron tanker carrying CPC oil is hit by drones in the Black Sea
Two?industry?sources? said that a drone attacked Chevron's Yasa Polaris?tanker used for Caspian Pipeline Consortium's shipments off Russia's?Black?Sea coast on Wednesday. Chevron said on Monday that it was aware of a ship incident near the Caspian?Pipeline Consortium loading facilities in Russia's Black Sea Port of Novorossiysk. The crew was unharmed, and exports from Kazakhstan weren't affected. Tengizchevroil, a company owned by Chevron and operating in Kazakhstan, is the largest exporter of CPC Blend Oil. It sources its oil from a massive Tengiz oilfield. According to LSEG, Yasa Polaris was built in 2022. It is a tanker capable of carrying?160,000 metric tonnes of?oil. The vessel is owned by Yasa Holding, registered in Turkey. The shipmanager didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Since the beginning of the conflict in 2022, Ukraine has repeatedly targeted the CPC Oil Terminal and vessels transporting?oil to the Black Sea region. Last year, one of the single-point moorings on 'the CPC terminal' was heavily damaged by an attack. Two trading sources say the Caspian Pipeline Consortium will export 1.6 million barrels of CPC Blend crude per day in July. This is down from 1.7 million barrels planned for June due to drone damage at a Russian gas facility. Reporting by Olesya Almakhova in Moscow, and Ron Bousso from London. Mark Potter and Louise Heavens edited the article.
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NATO announces $50 billion worth of arms deals at Ankara Leaders' Meeting
Defense companies from NATO member countries gathered in Ankara for an industry forum that was held along with?the annual summit of the alliance. Officials touted over $50 billion worth of defence 'procurement' and industrial agreements, as allies sought to bolster?military spending. Some announcements are based on firm contracts or procurement plans while others may be subject to future negotiations, approvals, or development. These agreements are made as European allies continue to be under pressure from U.S. president Donald Trump, who wants them to shoulder more of the defence burden for their alliance. Here are some of the recent deals that have been announced: SAAB Swedish defence manufacturer Saab announced that NATO would begin formal negotiations to acquire up to ten GlobalEye aircraft for airborne early warning and control. Micael J. Johansson, CEO of the company, told reporters that deliveries could begin as early as 2030. The final price would be between $400 and $450 million for each aircraft. LOCKHEED MARTIN RHEINMETALL Lockheed Martin signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rheinmetall on Tuesday, committing to 'jointly manufacture ATACMS missiles outside of the United States. U.S. officials have also announced that the United States plans to establish a facility in Europe where Lockheed Martin’s advanced PAC-3 missile air defence will be maintained. Michael Duffey, the Undersecretary of Defence, said Tuesday. Washington does not rule out the possibility of producing the missiles abroad, Duffey said, though it is still unclear where the facility would be located. According to the Ministry of Defence, Lockheed Martin's Precision?Strike missiles (PrSM) with a long range will cost £254million. The first deliveries are expected in 2027. The UK may join the current program partners Australia and the U.S. to further develop the missile. NORTHROP GUMMAN NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte announced that NATO allies would 'buy up to five?Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton?high-altitude surveillance drones. Norway, Finland Germany and Denmark signed a letter for the purchase. AIRBUS NATO's Secretary General Mark Rutte announced that the alliance will?launch a fleet of strategic Airbus A400M transport aircraft and?expand?its A330 MRTT Tanker fleet by an additional aircraft. ISAR AEROSPACE German Rocket Maker Isar Aerospace has signed a 'contract with Canada’s Maritime Launch Services for the 'build and use of a dedicated launchpad for a specialised rocket called Spectrum at Spaceport Nova Scotia in eastern Canada. ACCENTURE, LEONARDO The IT consulting company Accenture and the Italian defence company Leonardo have signed a contract worth about 200 million euro for a seven-year period to design and run a secure NATO communication network.
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Pakistani rescuers search for missing cargo plane off the coast of Karachi
Pakistani rescuers searched the waters around the suspected crash site of a Boeing cargo aircraft on Wednesday. The plane had lost contact with the air traffic controller on its way to Karachi, with five crew on board. Shehbaz sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, has ordered authorities to accelerate search and rescue efforts for a 27-year old converted freighter that went missing after reporting navigational problems in the Arabian Sea. K2 Airways, which operated the plane, reported that the crew consisted of two pilots and two?engineers, as well as one support staffer. The authorities have not made an official announcement on their situation, but Sharif has expressed his "heartfelt sympathies" to their families. Flightradar24, which tracks flights, says that the plane crashed into the sea after making a series abrupt altitude changes and a steep descent. Pakistan Airports Authority announced on Facebook that authorities have launched a coordinated rescue and search operation at sea via various agencies. K2 Airways said it was working with the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority as well as other government agencies. Boeing has yet to?comment. Airports authority reported that the plane had reported a navigational?issue while flying to Karachi at 9:18 PM Pakistan Standard Time (1618 GMT). The authority stated that local air traffic control attempted to guide the plane, but after three minutes radar systems showed it descending rapidly. Communication was lost. According to the statement, the flight was approximately 155 nautical miles (287km) west of Karachi when it took off. Flightradar24’s tracking data showed a chaotic final minute. The plane plummeted about 5,000 feet within a few minutes, then soared about 6,000 feet over 30 seconds, before entering a catastrophic descent from 36,550. The last data point transmitted placed the aircraft 1,100 feet above ground level with a vertical speed of minus 22,400 feet per minute - about 400 km/h. This is an abnormally steep rate of descent. It is a Boeing 737-400, two generations older than 737 MAX? that has been in a safety scandal. The aircraft uses engines from CFM International which is jointly owned by GE Aerospace, France's Safran and GE Aerospace. Flightradar24 reports that the 737-400 first flew as a passenger aircraft for Aeroflot, a Russian airline. It was then converted into a freighter by 2012 and entered service with the carrier in 2024. The aircraft is the only one owned by K2 Airways and began service in 2024. Flightradar24 shows that its previous flight took place on June 28. This would be Pakistan's 1st fatal crash since 2020 when a Pakistan International Airlines Airbus A320 crashed short of the runway at Karachi killing 97 people. Asif Shahzad reported; Hugh Lawson edited.
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Ukraine claims that its drones have struck three refineries and tankers in a night of major strikes
Ukrainian drones struck overnight three Russian oil refineries and Russian tankers on the Sea of Azov. The Ukrainian military and Russian local officials confirmed this on Wednesday. Kyiv is continuing its campaign against Russian energy infrastructure. As Ukraine intensifies its drone attacks against Russia's oil refineries, it is hitting targets further and farther from its territory. Kyiv has attacked the largest Russian refinery in Siberia located around 2,700 km (1 700 miles) away from Ukrainian-held territory. Separate statements from Ukraine's General Staff and Special Forces said that drones have hit the TANECO & TAIF NK oil refineries located in Tatarstan?Nizhnekamsk and the Saratov Oil Refinery as well as the Borisoglebsk Military Airbase in Voronezh Region. Russian officials confirmed that strikes had taken place in these regions, but they did not specify what was targeted. The Russian Defence Ministry announced that it had shot down 415 drones over night. It was not immediately apparent the extent of damage caused by these strikes. ADVANCED RIFFINERY?HIT Local media reported that authorities in Tatarstan - which is located around 1,400 km from the Ukrainian border - had said a number of injured people in the Nizhnekamsk strikes. The TANECO refinery in Nizhnekamsk is one of the most technologically advanced Russian refineries. It has hydrocracking, catalyst cracking and delayed coking units. According to data from the industry, TANECO processed 17,0 million tons of crude in 2024. TAIF-NK processed 6.6 millions metric tons (132,000 bbls per day) that year. Roman Busargin, Governor of the Saratov Region, said via Telegram that a person was killed and others injured during a "strike" that damaged what he described as "civil industrial sites". Saratov is Russia's oldest and largest refinery. It has been repeatedly attacked by Ukraine in the last few years. Alexander Gusev, Voronezh Governor, also?confirmed an Ukrainian strike by saying that there was a fire at a "infrastructure item" in the region. Kyiv said that it had also?struck nine oil tankers on the Sea of Azov. This is a major supply route for Russian troops in Crimea and in other Russian-controlled areas of southern Ukraine. Rostov Region?Governor Yury slyusar stated on Telegram that there were two injuries in the attacks, but that only two empty tankers had been hit. Gazprom, a Russian company, also confirmed that drones attacked the Krasnodarskaya Pumping Station, which is used to send?gas via the Blue Stream Pipeline,? but exports were not affected. Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukraine's energy grid during the conflict, which is now in its fifth-year. This has caused widespread power outages, and heating shortages throughout winter. Overnight, Russia launched ballistic missiles towards Kyiv, its third attack within a week. At least one person was killed. Reporting by Felix Light, Writing by Sharon Singleton and Aidan Lewis; Editing by Sharon Singleton and Aidan Lewis
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Ryanair loses EU Court appeals against Italy’s COVID assistance to airlines
The General Court of the European Union dismissed on Wednesday appeals filed by Irish low-cost carrier?Ryanair?against a?Italian?state aid program approved to support airlines in the COVID epidemic. The court found that the scheme of aid consisting of the subsidies paid by Italy by airlines affected by 'COVID-19 crises was compliant with EU Law, insofar it did not violate the principle of nondiscrimination or the principles of freedom of providing'services and freedom of establishment. The budget airline brought the case because it wanted to cancel a 2020 aid scheme set up by Italy. It was intended to help airlines that are licensed in Italy with a fund of EUR130 million ($148.54 millions), which later increased to EUR100 million. The European Commission, which is the European body that evaluates the aid programs of member states, approved the scheme. Ryanair claimed that the aid was unfair and that the European Commission's approval?violated procedural rules. The General Court first struck down the 'Commission decision' in 2023. However, the Court of Justice referred the case back to General Court in 2025. In April of this past year, Ryanair was successful in another similar case before the EU's Court of Justice against German state aid to Lufthansa, its main airline.
What are the dangers of an LNG tanker exploding?
One source stated that a Qatari LNG tanker was in danger of exploding after it suffered significant damage during an attack on Tuesday on the Omani side of the Strait of Hormuz.
Although the LNG industry has had a few accidents at onshore facilities, a catastrophic LNG cargo tank explosion on a commercial "LNG" carrier has not occurred. The recent targeting of energy-shipping vessels by belligerents during the Ukraine and Iran Wars has however raised concern.
The incident on Tuesday involving the Al Rekayyat tanker is the second instance this year in which an LNG vessel has been caught up in a conflict-related attack. The Russian LNG tanker Arctic Metagaz was hit by Ukrainian drones in March and caught fire. According to the Russian transport ministry, its crew had to abandon the ship.
What is LNG and how does it get stored and transported?
Natural gas that has been chilled to minus 162 degrees Celsius is LNG. The cooling process turns the gas to a liquid, and reduces its volume by 600 times. This makes it easier to ship.
The LNG is kept at extremely low temperature in cryogenic tanks with thick insulation. The LNG is then loaded onto LNG carriers at the export terminals. The LNG carriers have double-hulled ships and cargo tanks that are highly insulated to keep LNG cool throughout the voyage.
During transport, a small amount of LNG vaporizes. Unmanaged boil-off gases can increase the pressure and volume of storage tanks if left unattended. It is captured and used as primary fuel in ship engines.
What are the main risks?
LNG does not burn when it is liquid. However, risks can occur if LNG is leaked, turns into a gas and mixes with air at the right ratio, or reaches an ignition source.
LNG ships reduce this risk by using double-hull constructions, multiple containment systems, gas detection equipment, pressure-relief systems, emergency shutdown systems and firefighting equipment. They also follow strict operating procedures, crew training, and use equipment such as emergency shut-down systems, firefighting systems, and emergency shutdown systems.
Could the QATARI tanker explode?
The 'Al Rekayyat' tanker reported an engine room fire. A source stated that the ship was at risk of explosion, though there were no signs that the LNG tanks had been compromised. The crew was evacuated safely.
Theoretically, any LNG carrier is at risk if damage leads to a large LNG release or the formation of a gas cloud.
Modern?LNG carriers have multiple layers of protective coatings to keep any fire from reaching the cargo tanks. Industry experts also say that a fire in the engine room does not necessarily mean that the tanker is going to 'explode.
Risks would be increased if the fire spread to cargo systems, caused damage to containment tanks, or led a significant LNG spill.
According to a source in the industry, Al Rekayyat is likely to stay as it is as long as there are no further attacks.
(source: Reuters)