Belavia has failed to convince the EU's General Court it should lift a flight ban imposed over allegations that the Belarusian flag carrier was being used to facilitate illegal migration to the bloc. The ban, imposed in 2021 by the Council of the EU, relates to concerns that Belavia was being used to transport thousands of migrants from the Middle East and elsewhere to Minsk, where they were then moved to the borders of the EU. The Council argued that Belavia, under instruction by its government, opened several new routes and expanded other connections specifically for this purpose. "Local tour operators have acted as intermediaries in selling [Belavia] tickets to prospective migrants, thereby helping [the airline] to keep a low profile," the court notes, referencing the original flight ban. Belavia argued that several airlines operated to Belarus from migrant transit destinations in the Middle East – citing specifically Beirut, Turkiye and the United Arab Emirates – often with higher capacities than Belavia. It said that the council had not only made an incorrect assessment of Belavia's actions, but that it had also failed to reach the burden of proof. But the court rejected these assertions, ruling that the facts "do not show that the applicant did not contribute – by its own operations transporting persons from Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and Turkiye to Belarus – to the activities of the [Belarusian president] Lukashenko regime facilitating the illegal crossing of the external borders of the European Union." It notes that Belavia’s own data shows that the number of passengers from Istanbul to Minsk, for example, rose from under 3,000 in May 2021 to nearly 7,000 in October, "which supports the Council's allegations". Moreover, in response to a claim by Belavia that it was not relying on its government's instructions when it operated the routes in question, the court found that as the airline is entirely owned by the government of Belarus, this "renders implausible" the argument that it was operationally independent. The court continues that the "grounds on which the assessment that the applicant benefits from the Lukashenko regime" were correct, "and constitute in themselves a sufficient basis for maintaining the applicant's name" on a list of banned carriers. As a result, the case was dismissed as unfounded, and Belavia ordered to pay legal costs.

Emirates has joined the International Air Transport Association's 'Turbulence Aware Platform'. The Dubai-based carrier says it will be the first airline to integrate the platform within Lufthansa Systems' mobile navigation solution Lido mPilot. It adds that bringing these platforms together offers a wealth of data, combined with new technologies that make up-to-the-minute, accurate turbulence information and forecasts available for pilots. Emirates has equipped more than 140 aircraft with the required onboard software to automatically share turbulence reports with all airlines contributing data to the platform. It notes that all new aircraft joining its fleet over next few years, such as the Airbus A350 and Boeing 777-8, 777-9 and 787, will be enabled to participate in the programme. "Mitigating the adverse effects of turbulence is an industrywide challenge and obtaining accurate and live data is key in this endeavour," states IATA's senior vice-president of commercial products and services Frederic Leger. "The co-operation between IATA Turbulence Aware, Emirates and Lufthansa Systems will further improve the quality and quantity of real-time data made available to the industry, allowing for smoother and safer air travel for all."

Solomon Airlines plans to operate a weekly service between Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands and Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea from 1 July. The carrier says that it will double the frequency on the Honiara-Port Moresby route by adding a second weekly service starting 4 October. Effective 19 June, Solomon Airlines will enhance its service between the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Zealand by operating two weekly flights on the Honiara-Port Vila-Auckland route with plans to further increase the frequency to three weekly flights on the same route from 4 October. Additionally, on 4 October, the carrier will start an Airbus A320 service connecting Brisbane with Munda and Honiara.