easyJet and Rolls-Royce have completed a major milestone in sustainable aviation: they ran a modern commercial jet engine on pure hydrogen from start-up through takeoff power and back down again. The test, which took place in late April 2026, is a significant step toward cleaner air travel.
Continue reading Rolls-Royce and easyJet Prove a Jet Engine Can Run on 100% Hydrogen
Spirit Airlines, once one of the biggest budget airlines in the United States, stopped all flights on May 2, 2026. The airline’s sudden collapse left thousands of passengers without travel plans and put 17,000 workers out of a job.
Continue reading Spirit Airlines Closes Its Doors: America’s Discount Carrier Is Gone
A manufacturing process deviation affecting the centre fuselage of several Airbus A321neo variants has prompted the US Federal Aviation Administration to issue a formal airworthiness directive compelling operators to carry out repetitive structural inspections. The directive, published in the Federal Register on 15 April 2026, mirrors a corresponding European Union Aviation Safety Agency order issued a year earlier, underscoring the increasingly coordinated nature of transatlantic aviation regulatory oversight. The aircraft models affected — among the most commercially significant narrowbodies currently in service — are operated by major carriers across North America and beyond.
Continue reading FAA Orders Inspections on Airbus A321neo Fuselage
A small but significant moment in aviation history took place over San Francisco Bay on 13 March 2026, when Joby Aviation completed the first piloted flight of its electric air taxi. The aircraft, which takes off and lands vertically like a helicopter but flies more like a plane, is the first of its kind to meet the standards set by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This milestone brings the era of quiet, zero-emission urban air travel one step closer to reality.
Boeing’s beleaguered 777X programme took a tentative step forward on 4 February 2026, when the manufacturer confirmed that the first flight of a production-standard aircraft — one built to the exact specification intended for commercial service — had been targeted for April of this year. The announcement, welcomed cautiously by an industry that has grown accustomed to the programme’s repeated setbacks, marked the beginning of what Boeing hopes will be a decisive final push towards FAA type certification and, eventually, entry into commercial service in 2027.
Continue reading Boeing 777X First Flight Targeted for April
On 27 January 2026, Southwest Airlines made history by ending its 54-year-old open seating policy. For the first time since the airline began flying in 1971, passengers now choose an assigned seat at the time of booking. The change, driven by shifting customer preferences and intense pressure from investors, marks the end of one of the most recognisable traditions in American aviation.
Continue reading Southwest Airlines Ends 54 Years of Open Seating