Azerbaijan Airlines and Kazakhstan's Qazaq Air have announced further suspensions of services to Russia in the wake of the crash of flight J2-8243 on 25 December. The Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190, flying from Baku to Grozny in Chechnya, was forced to make an emergency landing near Aktau in Kazakhstan when it crashed with a large loss of life. Azerbaijan Airlines said on 26 December that it would suspend services from Baku to Mineralnye Vody, Sochi, Volgograd, Ufa and Samara, in addition to cancellations to Grozny and Makhachkala announced a day earlier. The carrier will continue to offer services elsewhere in Russia, including Moscow and St Petersburg. Cirium data shows that the carrier operated to 13 Russian destinations in November. "This decision, made in accordance with the Azerbaijan State Civil Aviation Authority, is based on the preliminary results of the investigation into the crash of the Embraer 190 aircraft operating the Baku-Grozny flight J2-8243 of Azerbaijan Airlines due to physical and technical external interference and considers potential risks to flight safety," it states. "The suspension will remain in effect until the completion of the final investigation." Qazaq Air said it would temporarily suspend flights between Astana and Yekaterinburg from 28 December until 27 January. The move is being "carried out to ensure the safety of passengers and crew members based on the results of an ongoing risk assessment of flights to Russia", the airline says. A resumption of flights will be based on a fresh risk assessment. Qazaq Air will continue to operate flights to Omsk and Novosibirsk.

KLM has concluded the installation of newly introduced premium economy seats across its Boeing long-haul fleet. Collins Aerospace MiQ seats were installed on the Dutch carrier's Boeing 787s between 2022 and mid-2023, and on its 777s subsequently. The 777s' cabin reconfiguration also included installation of new business seats, KLM notes. It adds that in total 54 aircraft have been fitted with the new premium-economy section. Seat numbers vary between 21 and 28 per aircraft, depending on model. The installations took between four and 16 days per aircraft. Fleets data shows that the SkyTeam carrier has 16 777-300ERs, 15 777-200ERs, 13 787-9s and 10 787-10s. It has another five 787-10s on order. KLM's long-haul fleet additionally includes 11 Airbus A330s (six -200s and five -300s), which will not be fitted with premium economy seats. "The A330s will continue flying for a few more years [and] be replaced by the new A350s starting in 2026," KLM tells, adding that the A330-300s will receive new Recaro 3710 economy seats and updated IFE screens before their exit from KLM's fleet. Air France-KLM last year placed an order for up to 90 A350s. The deal includes both A350-900s and -1000s. Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2026. KLM previously said it would use the A350s to replace 777-200ERs too. The introduction of premium economy meets demand from leisure and business travellers, says the airline. "The first feedback from our passengers has been very positive," states chief experience officer Barry ter Voert.

Turkish carrier Pegasus has placed a firm order for 100 Boeing 737 Max 10 aircraft with options for up to 100 more, as it seeks to renew its fleet and bolster capacity. Representing the largest order in the low-cost airline’s history, the full value of the transaction at Boeing’s list prices is $36 billion. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2028. As the largest 737 variant designed to carry up to 230 passengers, the airline notes that it will enable it to raise the density on existing routes as well as launch new connections as its fleet expands. "Boeing aircraft have been an integral part of our operations since Pegasus entered the aviation industry in 1990," says Guliz Ozturk, Pegasus’s chief executive. "We are pleased to be expanding our fleet with the new Boeing 737 10 model aircraft. We continue to invest in our fleet in line with our growth targets in Turkiye and globally, and to expand our network by launching new routes." She notes that the airline will make a decision relating to the 100 options in the coming years, “based on market conditions and the needs of our fleet." Primarily an Airbus customer, the low-cost airline, which is based at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport, currently operates 102 A320neo-family aircraft, plus six A320ceos. It has 52 further A321neos on order and one A320neo in storage. It’s current Boeing fleet consists of just nine 737-800s with a median age of 12.6 years, having last placed an order with the American airframer in 2008. “We have been a proud partner of Pegasus Airlines since their inception and we are excited to welcome them as the newest 737 Max customer," says Stephanie Pope, chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "We appreciate their trust in the Boeing team and we look forward to delivering on the 737-10 and its promise of greater efficiency, versatility and reliability." Ozturk has previously expressed frustration with supply chain issues that have caused delivery delays, commenting at the Farnborough air show on 22 July that hold ups through peak season can be "critical to an airline", prompting the Turkish operator to "create a headache" for Airbus.