Ryanair Group carried 7 million passengers in January, up 438% year on year. The budget airline says the figure decreased 26% versus December 2021. Ryanair operated over 46,400 flights in January with a load factor of 79%, compared to at least 62,200 flights with a load factor of about 85% in November and December. The group says travel restrictions due to the Omicron variant badly affected traffic in December and January.

Ethiopian Airlines returned its Boeing 737 Max fleet to passenger service on 1 February, nearly three years after a fatal accident which killed 157 people and spurred international regulators to ground the aircraft. The airline had committed to being among the last operators to return the Max to service after the crash of ET302 in March 2019. The US Federal Aviation Administration lifted its flight ban on Max jets in November 2020 and other regulators have since followed suit. Ethiopian kept its promise before deciding to resume Max operations, chief executive Tewolde GebreMariam notes in a statement, citing “an assessment of the design modification work and 20-month-long recertification process”. He states: “We have ensured that our pilots, engineers, aircraft technicians and cabin crew are confident on the safety of the fleet. The airline’s confidence is further showcased by flying the top executives and the board chairman and other top government officials on the first flight.” The ET302 accident came months after a Max 8 operated by Indonesian carrier Lion Air crashed in October 2018, killing 189 people. Indonesia lifted its flight ban on Max aircraft in December but Lion has yet to return its nine Max 8s to service.

Turboprop manufacturer ATR has completed a series of ground and flight tests with sustainable aviation fuel as part of an effort to certificate its aircraft for 100% SAF operation from 2025. The airframer says an ATR 72-600 was operated for seven flight-hours with one engine powered by 100% SAF based on “residue” raw materials and waste products, including used cooking oil. In 2021, ATR disclosed a collaboration with Swedish carrier Braathens Regional Airlines and fuel supplier Neste, aimed at accelerating the certification process for full SAF deployment. The three partners plan to complete a demonstration flight with an aircraft in BRA’s ATR fleet this year. One of the aircraft’s engines will be powered by 100% SAF and the other by a 50% blend with fossil-based kerosene. ATR estimates that carbon-dioxide emissions on a “typical” regional route could be reduced 82% if the aircraft were fully SAF-powered. Chief executive Stefano Bortoli describes the ATR series as an “ideal platform” for “significant” CO2 reduction, citing a 40% fuel-burn advantage of the turboprop versus similar-sized regional jets. Full SAF deployment will enable operator to “more sustainable air links not in 2035 or 2050 but in the coming years”, he states.