Ryanair plans to launch nine new UK summer routes, including five from Belfast, following the government's decision to cut domestic air passenger duty (APD) by half from 1 April. New routes from Belfast include flights to Cardiff, Edinburgh, East Midlands, London Stansted and Manchester. The airline also plans to launch flights between Bournemouth and Edinburgh, Newquay and London Stansted, as well as services from Edinburgh to Newquay and London Stansted. Ryanair's head of communications Jade Kirwan states: "Reducing APD will result in market growth in the UK, and these new routes show just that with 74 weekly flights scheduled across Belfast, Bournemouth, Cardiff, Edinburgh, East Midlands, London, Manchester and Newquay representing 95% growth on our UK domestic schedule compared to last summer." He continues: "While the halving of APD on domestic flights from Apr 2023 has allowed Ryanair to add more domestic routes to our UK schedule for summer 2023, if we are to continue to grow and drive traffic/tourism recovery for the UK, the UK government should immediately scrap APD for all travel and provide incentives for airlines like Ryanair to stimulate growth and recovery for the entire UK market."

Airbus has awarded Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) a contract to produce A320neo cargo doors, which will be manufactured at a new facility in Hyderabad. The airframer says that the deal will help to support the ramp-up of production for its A320 programme. TASL is an existing supplier of Airbus, producing aileron and Sharklet panels for the A320, and a range of panels, spars and stiffeners for the A350. "We have an ongoing relationship with Airbus based on trust and operational excellence, and this new contract win will further bolster our partnership in aerospace manufacturing in India," says TASL managing director and chief executive Sukaran Singh. TASL is a sister company to Air India, which in February signed a letter of intent to order 140 A320neos, 70 A321neos, 34 A350-1000s and six A350-900s. TASL also produces components for Boeing, Pilatus and Sikorsky civilian aircraft.

EVA Air has finalised an order with Boeing for five additional 787-9s that will be powered by General Electric GEnx engines. The airframer announced the order just over two weeks after EVA disclosed that its board had approved the purchase in a Taiwan stock exchange disclosure. The Star Alliance carrier currently operates four 787-9s and six 787-10s. In addition to the latest purchase, it also has a further seven -10s and four -9s from previous orders. "Our 787 fleet has become the foundation of our carbon-neutral growth strategy and we will continue to leverage this airplane's unrivaled efficiency and performance for many years to come," says EVA Air president Clay Sun. "This new order supports our ongoing commitment to operate a more sustainable fleet that will enable us to reduce carbon emissions, while providing our passengers with world-class service." In the 14 March stock exchange disclosure, the airline stated that the 787-9s would be delivered between 2025 and 2027, and will be deployed on European and North American routes.