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Air India reduces international flights by 15% on widebody aircraft
Air India announced on Wednesday that it would reduce international flights on its widebody aircraft to 15% in the coming weeks. The company cited ongoing safety inspections as well as operational disruptions after last week's fatal crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The authorities continue to investigate the crash that killed 241 and was the deadliest aviation accident in the last decade. In a press release, the airline stated that 26 of its 33 Boeing 787/8 and 787-9 aircraft had passed inspections and were cleared to fly. Tata Group's airline announced that the cuts would be effective until mid-July. The aim was to "ensure stability, improve efficiency, and minimise any inconvenience for passengers." Air India said that additional checks will be conducted on its Boeing 777 aircraft in the near future. The flight AI171, bound to London's Gatwick Airport from Ahmedabad crashed shortly after takeoff, killing everyone on board except one and approximately 30 people on the surface. Air India Chairman N. Chandrasekaran had said earlier on Wednesday that the plane which crashed had a history of clean engines. Chandrasekaran told Indian broadcaster Times Now that Air India Flight 171's left engine had last been serviced in March 2023, while the right engine is new and was installed in March 2025. The Dreamliner is equipped with GE Aerospace GEnx engines. Air India cited geopolitical tensions and "night curfews" in European and East Asian airspaces as factors that contributed to the cancellation of 83 flights in the last six days. Reporting by Abhijith Ganahapavaram and Surbhi Mishri, Mrinmay dey and Abinaya V. Editing by Timothy Heritage and Alan Barona.
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Waymo tests its cars in NYC and applies for an autonomous driving license
Alphabet’s self-driving division Waymo announced on Wednesday that its vehicles would be returning to New York City for autonomous testing next month, as the company continues to scale up operations in the U.S. As Waymo continues to expand its testing, Tesla is preparing to launch limited trials for its autonomous taxi service this weekend with just 10 cars. This shows the growing momentum of self-driving car development. Waymo applied for a permit with the New York City Department of Transportation in Manhattan to operate autonomously. Waymo stated that "this is not an extension, but we do have plans to bring our fully autonomous ride hailing service to the city at some point in the future." Waymo's first drive will be manual in order to get the permit. If approved, this would be the first time New York City has tested autonomous vehicles. Waymo has said that it will advocate for a law change in New York State, which currently prohibits driving a car without a human driver. In 2021, the company brought their cars to Manhattan for manual driving and data collection. Waymo announced on Tuesday that it would expand its operations to include more of the San Francisco Peninsula and Silicon Valley. It received California approval last month to expand its operations. Waymo, the only U.S. company to offer robotaxis with paid passengers, has over 1,500 vehicles and provides more than 250,000 rides per week in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Arizona, and Austin, Texas. (Reporting from Juby Babu, Mexico City; editing by Alan Barona).
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US ends investigation into 2,000,000 Nissan vehicles without seeking recall
The U.S. Auto Safety Agency closed on Wednesday a seven-year old investigation of 2.03 million Nissan Motors vehicles for issues related to rear suspension arm failure, without seeking a vehicle recall. In 2018, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation that covered Nissan Altima 2013-2018 and Nissan Maxima 2016-2018 vehicles. This was upgraded to a engineering analysis in 2019. The investigation examined whether corrosion could cause the lower control arm in the rear suspension system to separate from the chassis, posing a safety risk. Nissan made a change to the design of the lower control arm in January 2018. This was done to increase the durability. Nissan didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. NHTSA stated that it had reviewed approximately 1,300 reports on the issue. A small number of complaints indicated they were in near-collisions. One complaint stated that a vehicle had made physical contact with an object by bumping into a trailer hitch on a truck. The agency stated that "Nissan admits that cracks can develop on control arms that are affected due to normal stress loads and that the salts used for road snow and ice treatments may cause corrosion which accelerates the crack's progression." The majority of reports were from states in the U.S. salt belt, which are prone to corrosion. Vehicles had traveled an average of over 113,000 miles (181,856 kilometers) when they failed. There have been no reported injuries. Nissan's 2019 customer satisfaction campaign saw more than 47,000 cars repaired with new parts. Some vehicles also received an extended warranty of up to 10 years. NHTSA stated that further investigation was not warranted due to the declining trend in reports, Nissan's countermeasures and their extended warranty coverage. (Reporting from Abhinav Paramar in Bengaluru, and David Shepardson at Washington; Editing and proofreading by Shreya Biwas and Marguerita Chy)
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Macquarie, a Macquarie company in Australia, has acquired stakes at UK airports
Macquarie Group, Australia's largest financial services company, announced on Wednesday that it had acquired from Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan stakes in the airports of Bristol City, Birmingham City and London City for an undisclosed sum. The investment bank has purchased a 55% share in Bristol Airport, 26.5% in Birmingham Airport, and 25% in London City Airport. Sky News broke the story of this deal, which is for London City Airport - the fifth largest airport in London - earlier this month. Macquarie said that through the investment it is committed to support the airports which serve more than 25 million passengers per year over the long-term by expanding their routes networks and further improving passenger experience. Macquarie announced that the deal for London City Airport has reached financial closure. The acquisitions of the other two airports will be completed by the fourth fiscal quarter in 2025.
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FAA overtime costs are on the rise as hiring is slow, according to a report
A report released by the National Academies of Sciences on Wednesday revealed that the Federal Aviation Administration has seen its overtime costs for air traffic control increase more than 300 percent since 2013, due to hiring restrictions and an incorrectly allocated workforce. According to the report, the FAA air traffic controllers in 2024 will have logged 2.2 millions hours of overtime, costing them $200 million. The report also stated that "overtime usage may be due in part to inefficient scheduling by the controllers at the facilities." Since 2013, the average number of hours worked per air traffic control officer has increased by 308%, or 126 per year. In the report, it was also stated that despite an increase of 4% in air traffic, controllers spent less time on managing positions. In a 2024 report, an independent FAA panel that assessed the risks of fatigue among controllers called for mandatory periods of rest after raising "serious concern." The FAA has only hired two-thirds the number of air traffic controllers that its staffing models call for, as the staffing dropped by 13%. In many places, controllers are required to work six-day weeks and must work mandatory overtime. The FAA stated that it would analyze the study, its recommendations, and note it is on schedule to hire at least 2,00 controllers in this year. The Trump administration is seeking at least $20 billion for modernizing air traffic control. This includes new airport equipment that will prevent near-misses and incentives to increase air traffic controller recruitment and retention. By 2024, almost a third (32%) of air traffic control centers had fallen below their staffing targets by 10%, and 22% were 15% below. This was due to hiring constraints, which included two government shutdowns as well as the COVID-19 epidemic. The National Academies' report stated that the FAA "should critically evaluate its models, improve them when possible, and go back to its current practice of adjusting staffing targets to reflect facility-specific issues."
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Ambassador says US is working to evacuate Israeli citizens who wish to leave.
U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee stated in a Wednesday post on X that the United States was working to evacuate U.S. Citizens who wish to leave Israel. This includes arranging cruise ship departures and flights. Huckabee stated that the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem is working on evacuation arrangements. He urged Americans to sign up with the State Department’s Smart Traveler Program for regular updates. "Urgent notice! US citizens who want to leave Israel - US Embassy @usembassyjlm will be working on cruise ship departures & evacuation flights. Huckabee said that you must enroll in STEP (Smart Traveler Enrollment Program). The State Department didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. Uncertain was the number of Americans who wanted to leave Israel, or if the U.S. Military would help with evacuation flights. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has changed his position from calling for an end to the war between Iran and Israel that has been raging for five days to suggest the United States could join in. According to Israeli authorities, Iran has launched around 400 missiles towards Israel since Friday. Of these, 40 of them have penetrated the air defences and killed 24 people.
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Constellium: Clearing the fog in supply chains for plane suppliers
Constellium, a maker of aluminium products, said that Airbus's efforts to resolve supply chain issues which affected demand last year have helped improve visibility for aviation suppliers. Airbus has been unable to increase production due to bottlenecks, particularly in the engine supply chain. However, the jet manufacturer still maintains a delivery date of 2025. Constellium, the largest supplier of aluminum for planes in the world, has seen its aerospace business suffer a drop in volume since last year. At the Paris Airshow, Philippe Hoffmann said, "Things have become more reassuring. We are less in the fog at an industrial level." Hoffman added that Boeing will also accelerate its deliveries after it integrates Spirit AeroSystems. He added that increased deliveries from the two global aircraft manufacturers, as well as a reduction in current inventories, would likely boost demand throughout the supply chain over the next two to three years. Hoffmann said that the longer-term outlook for aluminum in aerospace is healthy. Airbus has orders for models such as its A320 single aisle jet which are aluminium-intensive. Reporting by Gus Trompiz. Mark Potter edited the article.
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Serbia wants to renew gas agreement with Russia at the 'best possible price'
In an interview given on Wednesday, the head the state gas company said that Serbia was working on a gas deal with Russia. It will receive the best price available in Europe. Dusan Bjatovic, head of Srbijagas said that Europe, like Serbia, would be forced to return to Russian gas in order to meet its energy requirements at a reasonable price. Serbia was one of the few remaining Russian gas consumers in Europe last year, with around 3 billion cubic meters. It is seeking to join the European Union. This week, the EU proposed a legally-binding ban on the imports of Russian natural gas and LNG by the end 2027. Bajatovic stated that the new contract would begin in September and last for either three or ten years. The price issue is resolved. Bajatovic stated that the price would be excellent, and it would be the lowest in Europe. He refused to provide details as commercial negotiations were still ongoing. Bajatovic stated that the future of gas markets would be determined by Russia, the United States and China, both as major producers and consumers, and Europe will have to accept it. It's mathematics. "You cannot solve the equation for gas supplies to Europe with acceptable prices without Russian gas", he said at the sidelines of Russia’s main economic event in St Petersburg. Most Western CEOs have shunned the conference because of the conflict in Ukraine. Bajatovic said he supported the idea that U.S. investors buy the Nord Stream pipeline beneath the Baltic Sea. The Nord Stream was damaged by explosions back in 2022, and since then hasn't delivered any gas. (Reporting and editing by Mark Trevelyan, David Evans, and Gleb Bryanski)
Iran and Israel accuse each other at UN Shipping Agency over sea routes
On Wednesday, Iran and Israel both accused one another of endangering the commercial activity around the Gulf and Red Sea in the UN's Shipping Agency as their military conflict escalated.
Iran's delegation said at a meeting of the International Maritime Organization security committee that Israel has recently extended its "unlawful attack" to include petrochemicals and gas infrastructures in Asalouyeh, along Iran's Gulf Coast.
Iran's livestreamed statement to delegates of the IMO said that "These actions directly threaten international maritime security as well as the global energy supply chains."
If the international community does not take immediate and concrete steps to stop this unlawful aggression, a sea escalation is imminent.
Iran has threatened to close down the Strait of Hormuz in response to Western pressure. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz could affect trade and global oil prices.
Shipping sources reported on Wednesday that maritime agencies are advising commercial ships to avoid Iran's water around Hormuz.
Ehsan Khandouzi, the former Iranian Economy Minister, has stated that only with Iranian approval should tankers and liquified gas cargoes transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Alikhamenei rejected Donald Trump’s demand on Wednesday for unconditional surrender. However, the U.S. President said that his patience was running out and he did not give any indication as to his next move.
Israel's delegation told delegates that Iran was "openly and violently" threatening the IMO's fundamental principle of global navigation safety, in part through its support for Yemen's Houthi milita, whose attacks disrupted shipping via the Suez Canal, and Red Sea, over the past few years.
"Iran turned our entire region, and the Red Sea in particular, into a conflict zone." Israel stated that Iran's political, military and financial support of the Houthi Rebels has allowed a maritime terror campaign against civilian vessels.
It seeks to weaponize world's busiest shipping lanes, take international shipping hostage and impose violence on its will.
The London-based IMO regulates the safety and security in international shipping, and prevents pollution. It has 176 member states.
A spokesperson for the IMO said that the Maritime Safety Committee took note of Israel's and Iran's statements on Wednesday.
There has been increasing pressure on the agency that it is becoming politicised.
In 2023, Russia stated that the IMO would be renouncing its technical role due to "external pressurization", which had an impact on the fair treatment for all member countries.
The United States' proposal to withdraw the bid to host an event on the sea in 2023 led to the rejection of Iran's offer. (Reporting and editing by Alexandra Hudson.)
(source: Reuters)