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US agency investigates FAA shift in airspace and controllers overseeing Newark
The U.S. Government Watchdog announced on Monday that it would investigate the Federal Aviation Administration’s decision in 2024 to move some Newark air-traffic controllers from New York to Philadelphia to deal with staffing shortages as well as congested airspace around New York City. The Office of Inspector General of the Transportation Department has opened a review following two communications failures for air traffic control operators in Newark's airspace that occurred between April and May. These outages caused alarm and delayed dozens of flight. New Jersey Airport is one of New York City's main airports and also a hub for United Airlines. The FAA cut flights at Newark in May after a series major disruptions. The Inspector General's Office said that "these events have raised serious questions about the FAA's handling of the relocation. This includes the impact on redundancy in systems, training and staffing for controllers, and operational resilience." In late July of last year, the FAA ordered 17 air traffic controllers from New York Terminal radar Approach Control (also known as N90) to Philadelphia. New York TRACON, one of the busiest facilities in the United States, is one of its most important components. The FAA cited "low staffing levels at N90 and a low training success rate as reasons for moving control of Newark airspace to increase staffing and ease congestion. The FAA announced on Monday that it welcomes feedback and will cooperate fully with audit. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has asked if former President Joe Biden's administration took sufficient precautions to ensure the reliability of telecommunications when they ordered the move. Earlier this week, the FAA started using a fiber optic communication network between New York City and the Philadelphia TRACON to direct aircraft into and out of Newark. The FAA has extended the reductions in minimum flight requirements for New York City airports that are congested until October 2026. About 3,500 air traffic control positions are not filled by the FAA. Safety concerns have been raised by a series of near miss incidents in recent years. The persistent staffing shortfall has caused delays and forced controllers to work six-day weekends and mandatory overtime at many facilities. This month, Congress approved $12.5 billion to increase hiring and revamp the system. Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Chris Reese & Nis Williams
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Houthis claim to have 10 crew members from a Greek-operated vessel they sank in Yemen
Houthis, who are Iran-aligned and live in Yemen, said on Monday that they had rescued ten seafarers off the Greek cargo ship EternityC which they had attacked and sunk earlier this month in the Red Sea. Eternity C, flying the Liberian flag, was the second vessel to sink in Yemen this month following repeated attacks from Houthi militants using sea drones and rocket propelled grenades. The Magic Seas was another Greek-operated ship that had been lost days before. The Houthis have been resuming their attacks on ships, having hit over 100 vessels between November 2023 to December 2024 as a sign of solidarity for the Palestinians during the Gaza war. After the attacks, the Eternity C's crew and three armed security guards had to abandon ship. A private mission rescued ten people, and five others are believed to be dead due to the attacks. Sources from maritime security said that 10 more people are believed to be being held by the Houthis. The Houthis released a video on Monday that showed 10 pictures of seafarers, some of whom were contacting their family members. The group also played testimonies stating that the crew was unaware of a Houthis maritime ban against vessels sailing into Israeli ports. The vessel was said to be heading to Israel's Eilat port to load fertilizers. Could not independently verify footage. The Houthis announced on Sunday that they would be targeting any ships owned by companies doing business in Israeli ports. Greece announced that it will deploy a salvage ship in the Red Sea in response to the recent attacks. The vessel is designed to help in maritime accidents, protect seafarers, and provide global shipping with protection. Reporting by Menna alaa El din in Cairo and Renee Maltezou at Athens, editing by Chizu nomiyama
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Kurdish officials estimate the oil production in Iraqi Kurdistan at 120,000 barrels per day.
Two Iraqi Kurdish officials stated on Sunday that oil production in Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdistan Region has reached 120,000 barrels of oil per day. By mid-August this is expected to increase to 280,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Officials said that no timeline has been set with the Iraqi oil ministry for the resumption of crude exports to the north. In July, a series of drones attacked oilfields in Iraqi Kurdistan. The Kurdistan Region's Ministry of Natural Resources reported that several oilfields had ceased operations because of significant infrastructure damage. It also stated that the attacks were meant to put civilian workers working in the energy industry at risk. There have been no reported casualties, but the oil production in this region has been reduced. Iraqi Kurdistan officials reported that the region produced around 285,000 barrels of oil per day. Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed, Baghdad. Editing by Matthew Lewis.
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Spirit Airlines will furlough 270 Pilots and demote another 140 on a downsized schedule
Spirit Airlines announced on Monday that it would lay off 270 pilots and demote another 140 as the budget airline tries to reduce its workforce in order to meet a reduced schedule. Furloughs are set to begin on November 1, and captains' designations will be downgraded on October 1, according to a company statement sent via email. The airline stated that it was taking steps to make sure they operated as efficiently as possible in order to get back to profitability. Bloomberg News was the first to report on Spirit's announcement. Spirit is trying to revamp its business and move away from a no-frills brand to rebrand itself as a premium carrier. After years of losses, heavy financial debt and failed mergers, the Florida-based carrier filed for bankruptcy protection in November last year. It emerged from bankruptcy on March. Reporting by Utkarsh Shietti and Shivansh Tiwary from Bengaluru, editing by Vijay Kishore
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The US and EU aerospace rivals unite to protect tariff-free aircraft export
The United States and European Union have reached a provisional agreement to exempt planes from tariffs. This will avoid a possible threat to jet production in both regions, and cap months of unusual unity among rival plane makers. Officials in Europe said that the framework agreement, announced on sunday, would see the U.S. impose an import tariff of 15% on most EU products, but protect industries such as aerospace with zero-forzero tariffs for aircraft and parts. After intense lobbying it spares a sector that is often the lightning rod of trade tensions. The World Trade Organization was tested to its limit by a 17 year dispute over Airbus or Boeing subsidies, before a truce came in 2021. The threat of U.S. Tariffs, which would have compounded the supply chain issues, had led to a potential increase in costs for aircraft, engines, spare parts and components, from landing gear to seat. There are still questions about the details of the agreement and whether they will include other components such as space. One European industry official said, "We just wait until we see these written down." Airbus confirmed that it has taken note of this deal. It said that "a stable and predictable trading environment is essential for the highly integrated global aerospace industries." Boeing has not yet commented on the matter. UNITED CAMPAIGN The agreement reached on Sunday follows a discrete and unusually united campaign aimed at reverting to the landmark 1979 agreement that mandated duty free trading of civil aircraft between more than 30 nations. Airbus and Boeing were involved in a trade dispute over subsidies that had splintered the industry only a few short years ago. Now, both sides of Atlantic are working together. Sources say that two terms in the previous handbook of the industry have been quietly dropped: WTO and multilateral. The 1979 Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft, which eliminated tariffs on parts and aircraft, is one of the few industry-specific agreements that survived an earlier round when the World Trade Organization was opened in 1995. U.S. president Donald Trump, who called the WTO the "single worst trade deal ever made," seems to prefer bilateral agreements over broad alliances, from trade to security. "Multilateralism" has been one of the most vehement criticisms of America First's philosophy. All sides were active in lobbying, but sources within the industry highlighted a discrete but influential role that GE Aerospace CEO Larry Culp played. Culp said in April that he advocated the re-establishment of the tariff-free régime for the aerospace sector during a meeting at the White House with Trump. He stressed that the administration "understands" the position, and that the zero-duty system had helped the U.S. Aerospace industry achieve a $75 billion trade surplus each year. Officials from the aerospace industry also claimed that there was a strong interconnection between Boeing and its European rival Airbus. Tariffs in the U.S. would hurt all of us, they said. GE had no immediate comment to make on the new agreement. In May, Trump and Britain reached a trading agreement that restored duty-free jet engine trade. Talking Templates Aerospace industry officials have urged the White House, following the US-UK deal, to use the template as a guide for future trade negotiations. GE's Culp, and Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian, both referred to the deal as a model. The agreement does not restore the entire 1979 agreement, but instead focuses on just the largest aerospace markets. Boeing delivers around 17% of its aircraft to Europe, while Airbus ships about 12% of its jets, with some being assembled locally, to the United States. According to the French industry lobby Gifas, Europe and the U.S. each have their largest markets for aircraft parts. The agreement has relieved one major source of pressure. However, Boeing, Airbus, and their suppliers may still find themselves caught in the trade tensions between Washington, D.C., and China as they try to do business with them. Aerospace companies also await the results of an ongoing U.S. investigation into trade in aerospace. In May, the U.S. Commerce Department began a national security investigation under "Section 224" into the imports of aircraft, jet engines, and parts for commercial aircraft that could be the basis for tariffs, quotas, or both. U.S. Airlines who met with the Department say that much of their focus was on China, and the potential disruption of key supplies such as rare earths and magnetic materials. Embraer's regional jets are the only ones that have alternatives. Embraer estimates that tariffs of 50% on the importation of these jets could add $9,000,000 per plane to the cost for U.S. carriers. Alaska Air announced last week that it may delay some deliveries. (Writing and editing by Bernadettebaum, Tim Hepher)
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Hackers with a history of disruption have been 'partisans' in Russia who crippled airports.
One group that claims responsibility for the cyber-sabotage of Aeroflot, Russia’s flagship airline has a history of disrupting hacks. Belarusian Cyber Partisans, a group that has been around for a while and is sworn to overthrow Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko, joined forces with an obscure group called Silent Crow in order to claim responsibility. The group was responsible for the crippling hack at Aeroflot on Monday which caused dozens of flights to be cancelled as well as travel disruptions throughout Russia. Cyber Partisans emerged in 2020, following mass protests against Lukashenko’s re-election. They have since claimed responsibility for several eye-catching hacks. These include the defacing of Belarusian media sites, thefts of data from law enforcement, and an attack in 2022 against Belarusian Railway, which they claim interfered with freight transportation. The group made repeated claims of attacks against the fertilizer complex Grodno Azot in which they claimed to have tampered with boiler operations. The group has not been in a position to independently verify all of the claims made by the group or determine its impact. However, data stolen by hackers was previously cross-checked by open source investigators such as Bellingcat. Yuliana Shemetovets is a Cyber Partisans spokesperson who told reporters on Monday that the group consists of 30 core members. Most of them are based outside Belarus. Silent Crow is a less visible group. Silent Crow has a lower profile. According to a database entry by the Russian cybersecurity firm Bi.Zone, Silent Crow is a politically motivated hacker group active since mid-2022. It may have links with multiple pro-Ukrainian hackers groups. Since the Russian invasion in February 2022, Ukraine and Russia are at war. Silent Crow could not be reached immediately and Bi.Zone didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Belarusian Cyber Partisans members may have pro-Ukraine links. Researchers with Russian anti virus firm Kaspersky claimed to have identified a suspected Belarusian Cyber Partisans member in June. The group is active in Telegram group dedicated to "IT Army of Ukraine," which is a group of pro Ukrainian hackers supported by the Kyiv government. Shemetovets said that the Cyber Partisans did not collaborate with any intelligence or state security services in the attack against Aeroflot. Andrii Baranovych is a prominent Ukrainian hacker. He said that independent groups frequently hand over stolen data to Ukraine's Intelligence Service, but as far as he knew, the attack against Aeroflot was not backed by the state. Raphael Satter reported from Washington, and AJ Vicens from Detroit. Tom Balmforth contributed additional reporting from Kyiv. Rosalba O’Brien (Editing)
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Sources say that Taiwan's Lai will delay his U.S. visit as U.S. China trade talks continue.
Three people with knowledge of the situation say that Taiwan's president Lai Ching Te is likely to postpone a trip to the United States planned by his team for August, a trip that was considered sensitive diplomatically. A trip of this kind was bound to anger Beijing, especially at a moment when U.S. president Donald Trump is negotiating a trade deal with China. Taiwan, which is democratically governed, rejects this claim and denounces Washington's support of Taipei. A person with knowledge of the situation said that the trip, which included possible visits to Guatemala and Belize, as well as Paraguay, had never been formally confirmed, but was discussed with the respective governments. Lai considered stopping in New York or Dallas on his way to and back from Latin America. Lai will delay his trip until later this year, for several reasons. One of them is to plan the government's response in Taiwan to the extreme weather. Two sources also blamed the delay on ongoing U.S. Tariff Talks with Taipei or Beijing. On Monday, top U.S. economic officials and Chinese counterparts met in Stockholm, Sweden to resume discussions. The White House, China's Embassy in Washington and Taiwan's Presidential Office did not respond immediately to a comment request. There's no way to cancel the trip. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, "further arrangements for the trip will take place later this year." Stopovers are likely to include Texas or another U.S. city. Karen Kuo, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, responded to media inquiries on Monday by saying that once the President's overseas itinerary is finalized it will be made public. Kuo stated that the President currently does not have any plans to visit overseas in the near future, due to the recent disaster recovery efforts following the typhoon in southern Taiwan and the reciprocal tariff measures between the U.S. and Taiwan. Reduce Tension Trump made the decision as he has been trying to reduce tensions with Chinese president Xi Jinping, and possibly have a summit with him in Asia this autumn. Lai is yet to visit the U.S. after Trump's inauguration in January. However, he did stop in Hawaii and Guam when he visited the Pacific late last year. Like most countries, the U.S. has no formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, but it is its biggest international supporter. The U.S. is bound by law to give Taiwan the means to defend themselves. Washington is Taiwan's largest arms supplier. China has never renounced using force to take the island under control. Taiwan's government rejects Beijing’s claims of sovereignty, saying that only the island’s people can determine its future. Taiwan claims it already has its own independent country, the Republic of China. Trump spokespeople said that "transits to the United States of high-level Taiwan officials including presidents are in line and fully consistent our longstanding policy." China's Foreign Ministry condemned "sneaky" visits to the U.S. made by Taiwanese officials under any pretext. The U.S. should be aware of the sensitive nature of the Taiwan issue and proceed with caution, they said. Trevor Hunnicutt reported from Washington, and Yimou Le in Taipei. Don Durfee edited the story with Colleen Jenkins and Alistair Bell.
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The US and EU aerospace rivals unite to protect tariff-free aircraft export
The United States and European Union have reached a provisional agreement to exempt aircrafts from tariffs. This will avoid a possible threat to jet production in both regions, and cap months of unusual unity among rival plane makers. Officials from Europe said that the framework agreement, announced on Sunday will see the U.S. impose an import tariff of 15% on most EU products, but also offer protection to industries such as aerospace with zero-to-zero tariffs for aircraft and parts. After intense lobbying it spares an often lightning rod of trade tensions. The World Trade Organization was tested to the limit by a 17 year dispute over Airbus or Boeing subsidies, before a truce is reached in 2021. The threat of U.S. Tariffs, which would have exacerbated the supply chain issues, had led to a potential increase in costs for aircraft, engines, spares, and other components, from landing gear to seat. There are still questions about the details of the agreement and if it will include other components such as space. One European industry official said, "We just wait until we see these written down." Airbus confirmed that it has taken note of this deal. It said that "a stable and predictable trading environment is essential for the highly integrated global aerospace industries." Boeing has not yet commented on the matter. UNITED CAMPAIGN The agreement reached on Sunday follows a discrete and unusually united campaign aimed at reverting to the landmark 1979 agreement that mandated duty free trading of civil aircraft between more than 30 nations. Airbus and Boeing were involved in a trade dispute over subsidies that had splintered the industry only a few short years ago. Now, both sides of Atlantic are working together. Sources say that two terms in the previous handbook of the industry have been quietly dropped: WTO and multilateral. The 1979 Agreement on Trade in Civil Aircraft, which eliminated tariffs on parts and aircraft, is one of the few industry-specific agreements that survived an earlier round when the World Trade Organization was opened in 1995. U.S. president Donald Trump, a man who called the WTO the "worst trade deal ever made," seems to prefer bilateral agreements over broad alliances, from trade to security. "Multilateralism" has been one of the most vehement criticisms of America First. All sides were active in lobbying, but sources within the industry highlighted a discrete but influential role that GE Aerospace CEO Larry Culp played. Culp said in April that he advocated the re-establishment of the tariff-free régime for the aerospace sector during a meeting at the White House with Trump. He stressed that the administration "understands" the position, and highlighted the fact that the zero-duty system had helped the U.S. Aerospace industry achieve a $75 billion trade surplus each year. Officials from the aerospace industry also claimed that there was a strong interconnection between Boeing and its European rival Airbus. Tariffs in the U.S. would hurt all of us, they said. GE had no immediate comment to make on the new agreement. In May, Trump and Britain reached a trading agreement that restored duty-free jet engine trade. Talking Templates Aerospace industry officials have urged the White House, following the US-UK deal, to use the template as a guide for future trade negotiations. GE's Culp, and Delta Air Lines' CEO Ed Bastian, both referred to the deal as a model. The agreement does not restore the entire 1979 agreement, but instead focuses on just the largest aerospace markets. Boeing delivers around 17% of its jets in Europe, while Airbus delivers about 12% of its jets in the United States. Some of these are assembled locally. According to the French industry lobby Gifas, Europe and the U.S. each have their largest markets for aircraft parts. The agreement has relieved one major source of pressure. However, Boeing, Airbus, and their suppliers may still find themselves caught in the trade tensions between Washington, D.C., and China as they try to do business with them. Aerospace companies also await the results of an ongoing U.S. investigation into trade in aerospace. In May, the U.S. Commerce Department began a national security "Section-232" investigation on imports of aircraft, jet engines, and parts, which could be the basis for tariffs, quotas, or other measures. U.S. Airlines who met with the Department say that much of their focus was on China, and the potential disruption of key supplies such as rare earths and magnetic materials. Embraer's regional jets are the only ones that have alternatives. Embraer estimates that tariffs of 50% on the importation of these jets could add $9,000,000 per plane to the cost for U.S. carriers. Alaska Air announced last week that it may delay some deliveries. (Writing and editing by Bernadettebaum, Tim Hepher)
Italy is expected to complete the Sicily Bridge project by next week
Sources said that the Italian government will likely give its approval for the construction of a multi-billion euro bridge connecting Sicily to the mainland in the next week. This will allow the project to begin, which has been long delayed.
Source who requested anonymity said that the CIPESS Economic Planning Committee meeting to approve the bridge was yet to be scheduled, but it is expected to happen by August 7.
Since Roman times there has been talk of a stable connection across Strait of Messina. But the project seemed to be dead for good when, in 2013, the company set up to supervise its construction was shut down as part of a government-led austerity campaign.
The project was revived by Prime Minister Giorgia Mello, who allocated 13.5 billion euro ($15.7 billion), to build a suspension span 3.6 kilometers (2.2 miles) between Messina in Sicily and the Calabria Region.
The Messina Strait Company, which supervises the project says that approval from CIPESS would pave the path for preliminary work such as land expropriation, archaeological and geological studies, and other preparatory works.
The construction of the bridge, due to be completed in 2032, is being carried out by a consortium led Italy's Webuild, 60 years after the country held an international competition for proposals.
WeBuild CEO Pietro Salini stated last week that the Messina Bridge is receiving a lot attention from around the globe. People are asking about the bridge and the financial results of the group for the first six months of the year. Reporting by Angelo Amante; editing by Alvise Armellini and Giles Elgood
(source: Reuters)