Breaking Travel News

Airline News Page 5

AVIAREPS to represent Jazeera Airways across Europe

AVIAREPS to represent Jazeera Airways across Europe

AVIAREPS, the global leader in aviation, tourism and hospitality representation with 77 offices in 71 countries around the world, has been appointed as General Sales Agent (GSA) for Jazeera Airways in the UK, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. The appointment marks a significant step in strengthening the airline’s commercial footprint across Europe and supporting the continued growth of its international network.

Arajet and Dominican Republic Ministry of Tourism Continue Efforts to Promote the Dominican Republic

Arajet and Dominican Republic Ministry of Tourism Continue Efforts to Promote the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic Ministry of Tourism (MITUR) and Arajet hosted a new destination marketing activation at Miami’s LoanDepot Park during the game between the San Francisco Giants and the Miami Marlins, featuring Dominican baseball legend Juan Marichal as the event’s guest of honor. The initiative showcased the Dominican Republic’s premier tourism offerings to thousands of baseball fans attending the game. Visitors engaged with themed activations throughout the stadium and participated in promotions and giveaways for airline tickets and complimentary vacation stays at destinations across the country.

Saudia Ranked First Globally for On-Time Performance in May 2026

Saudia Ranked First Globally for On-Time Performance in May 2026

Saudia, the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has achieved a new global milestone in operational excellence. The airline ranked first among airlines worldwide for on-time performance in both departure and arrival rates in May 2026, according to the latest report by Cirium, the leading global aviation analytics provider. The airline recorded an on-time departure rate of 92.30% and an on-time arrival rate of 90.12%, operating 13,669 flights across its network of over 100 destinations across four continents.

The North’s only direct Bangkok service to quadruple in frequency this year

The North’s only direct Bangkok service to quadruple in frequency this year

Manchester Airport and Norse Atlantic Airways have announced that flights between the UK’s global gateway in the North and Bangkok will run four times a week from December. The seasonal service launched in November 2025 and has proven popular, with more than 10,000 passengers taking advantage of a direct link between the North’s global hub airport and one of the world’s most popular tourism hotspots.

Emirates expands operations in Ghana with additional weekly flights

Emirates expands operations in Ghana with additional weekly flights

Emirates, the world's largest international airline, is expanding its operations in Ghana with the introduction of four additional weekly services between Dubai and Accra from 12 July 2026. This reaffirms the airline’s long-term commitment to Ghana and supports the country's growing demand for travel and global connectivity. The new service will complement Emirates' existing daily operation and the sustained growth in air travel demand to and from Accra, which continues to experience high seat occupancy year-round. From 12 July, Emirates’ direct service, operating as EK789, will depart Dubai at 03:30hrs*, arriving in Accra at 07:40hrs*; the return flight, EK790, will depart Accra at 10:25hrs*, arriving in Dubai at 22:40hrs*. Operated by a Boeing 777-300ER, these flights will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Riyadh Air Commences Daily Dubai-Riyadh Flights as Inaugural Flight Takes Flight

Riyadh Air Commences Daily Dubai-Riyadh Flights as Inaugural Flight Takes Flight

Riyadh Air, the Saudi Arabia’s new national carrier, today celebrated the inauguration of its 3rd official destination, starting daily service connecting Riyadh and Dubai, operated on one of its brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. The daily service, flight RX243, scheduled for departure from Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport (RUH) at 14:05 with arrival at Dubai Airport (DXB) at 17:00, marking a major milestone in the airline's evolution and continuing to build a new era of travel and connectivity for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES PARTNERS WITH AMAZON WEB SERVICES (AWS)

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES PARTNERS WITH AMAZON WEB SERVICES (AWS)

Southwest Airlines Co. is partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS) as its preferred cloud provider to modernize its technology foundation and evolve how the airline operates, builds, and is able to serve its Customers. As part of this partnership, Southwest will transition from a largely on-premises environment to a cloud-based, AI- and agent-enabled architecture on AWS by 2028—laying the foundation to operate with greater speed, flexibility, and reliability to support the business.

Delta Advances Fleet Efficiency with VCT Finlets Across 737NG Fleet

Delta Advances Fleet Efficiency with VCT Finlets Across 737NG Fleet

VCT today announced that Delta Air Lines will install a finlet modification package from Vortex Control Technologies (VCT) across its Boeing 737-800 and 737-900ER fleet, bringing the enhancement to 240 aircraft once installation has been completed. The decision follows a comprehensive technical collaboration and in-service evaluation between the two companies, including analysis of flight test data, operational trends and engineering review of aerodynamic performance.

Emirates SkyCargo partners with Dogs 4 Wildlife to combat poaching

Emirates SkyCargo partners with Dogs 4 Wildlife to combat poaching

Emirates SkyCargo has partnered with Dogs 4 Wildlife, a UK-based charity that protects endangered wildlife in Africa through the deployment of specialist conservation dogs. The first phase of the partnership will see Emirates SkyCargo transport dogs from the UK to Southern Africa, where they will work alongside wildlife park rangers to track poachers and strengthen conservation efforts. The first two dogs, Vega and Kuda, both Belgian Malinois, are specialist human scent tracking dogs trained by Dogs 4 Wildlife for conservation operations. Selected for their exceptional drive, determination, and natural tracking abilities, Vega and Kuda will help form a new conservation K9 unit supporting wildlife protection efforts in Zimbabwe.

WHY SOME OF AFRICA'S MOST PROMISING ROUTES STILL HAVE NO FLIGHTS

WHY SOME OF AFRICA'S MOST PROMISING ROUTES STILL HAVE NO FLIGHTS

Two of Sub-Saharan Africa’s strongest unserved routes still have no direct flight: Johannesburg to Mumbai, and Brussels to Cape Town. Both appear in the Airbus Exploring the Horizons study among high-demand corridors where passengers continue to route through a third city because no carrier has yet launched a service. Some of the continent’s connectivity gaps have narrowed over the past year. Qantas added Perth to Johannesburg, Edelweiss introduced its A350 service to Windhoek, Air Congo announced a Brussels link to Kinshasa, and Ethiopian secured approval to serve Mauritius. If those routes can move from proposal to operation, why do others with similarly strong demand remain unserved? That question sat at the centre of a discussion at AviaDev Africa 2026 in Gaborone, the continent’s main route development forum, where airlines, airports and tourism bodies meet to build new air links. It was chaired by Natalia Rosa, Project Lead at the Southern Africa Tourism Alliance (SATA).

Qatar Airways Strengthens Leadership for Next Phase of Growth

Qatar Airways Strengthens Leadership for Next Phase of Growth

Qatar Airways Group has restored its network to 85 percent of pre-crisis levels and created two new executive roles to sharpen its operations and deepen its focus on customers. The milestone was reached with the launch of the airline's summer 2026 schedule this week, which sees more than 140 daily departures from Doha to over 160 destinations worldwide. It delivers a target the Group set itself earlier this year, at the height of the regional disruption that grounded much of its network, to rebuild to 85 percent by mid-June.