Spirit Airlines has asked a US court for permission to reject leases on 87 aircraft out of its 214-strong all-Airbus fleet. In a motion filed with the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on 2 October, the US carrier asks the court to enter an order to reject certain equipment leases for aircraft and other related equipment that Spirit says it no longer needs in the operation of its business. In its 29 August disclosure that it had once again filed for Chapter 11, Spirit pledged that in its latest restructuring it would "be far more strategic about" its fleet and markets than it had been during its first restructuring after its previous November 2024 filing. Florida-based Spirit disclosed in September that it would furlough around 1,800 flight attendants from 1 December. Later that month, vice-president of network planning Andrea Lusso told staff in a 26 September internal memo that the carrier would suspend about 40 routes in November and cease service to two cities. "To align our fleet with our previously announced network adjustments, we have filed a motion with the court to reject certain aircraft leases," "This step is expected to generate significant cost savings for the airline. The motion is subject to court approval, and we continue to engage with key stakeholders, including our lessors, as part of our ongoing restructuring to position Spirit for the future." Of Spirit's 214 aircraft, 166 are leased, Fleets data shows. AerCap ranks first in number of aircraft leased to Spirit, with 37 (19 A320neos and 18 A321neos), followed by SMBC Aviation Capital (26, comprising four A320ceos and 22 A320neos) and Jackson Square Aviation (23, comprising one A320ceo, 18 A320neos and four A321neos).

Turkish Airlines' planned investment in Air Europa will give the two carriers greater reach into their respective route networks, the Istanbul-based carrier's finance chief has suggested. Speaking on stage at the ISTAT EMEA conference in Prague on 6 October, Murat Seker said Turkish's intention to take a minority stake in Air Europa represented an opportunity to expand beyond its "organic growth prospects". Turkish agreed earlier this year to acquire a 25-30% holding in Madrid-based Air Europa for €300 million ($352 million). Seker notes that Spain is the second-most-visited country in Europe, while Turkiye is fifth most visited. Thus the tie-up "could be a great way to connect Madrid with Istanbul, to start with". There is also potential for Star Alliance member Turkish to expand beyond the 10 destinations it serves in Latin America, while Air Europa will be able to take advantage of its partner's Asian network. "Istanbul is the most connected city globally, and then through Istanbul airport, you can connect anywhere within two hours," adds Seker. He cites lack of widebody capacity as one of the factors that influenced Turkish's decision to invest in Air Europa. Seker predicts that Turkish will grow from 500 aircraft at year-end to 620 within the next 10 years. This will allow it to add more services to the Americas and also increase capacity into Asia. The airline plans to add a second daily bank of services from Istanbul to the market. "They usually leave at night and then arrive early morning and then either distribute to Europe or, if they visit Istanbul, Turkiye. But if we add like a new bank to that, it will provide additional opportunities to collect and distribute," says Seker.

KLM has commissioned its first Airbus A350 full-flight simulator and plans to "shortly" begin pilot training for the incoming long-haul jet. The CAE-supplied simulator is the first for A350 pilots in the Netherlands, KLM says, noting that the equipment's acceptance process at the Canadian manufacturer's facility in Montreal is similar to that for aircraft deliveries. The simulator's transport, in parts, to Amsterdam and subsequent reassembly at a recently expanded training centre at KLM's Schiphol-East site presented a logistical challenge, the Dutch carrier adds. "Due to its size, the simulator couldn’t pass through the main gate and had to be hoisted over the fence. It is now fully installed and ready for use. The first group of A350 pilots will begin training shortly," the airline states. KLM's first A350 "will join the fleet at the end of 2026", it adds. Air France-KLM in 2023 ordered 50 A350s, spanning both the -900 and -1000 variants, for delivery across the across two mainlines, and took options on another 40. KLM plans to introduce A350s to replace A330s and Boeing 777s in its fleet.