London Gatwick airport has submitted an application to planners that could bring its Northern Runway into regular use by the end of the decade. The runway is currently maintained for emergencies only, but Gatwick believe that by repositioning its centreline by 12m it could safely be used to operate departing flights. This would allow the airport to serve up to 75 million passengers per year, up from nearly 47 million in 2019. Gatwick has now submitted an application known as a Development Consent Order to the UK's Planning Inspectorate, outlining its ambitions. It says the move would create around 14,000 new jobs and inject £1 billion ($1.3 billion) into the region's economy each year. "If approved, our plan will also improve airport resilience, meet future passenger demand, and increase competition in the London airport market, by providing vital new international connections to support 'Global Britain'," states Gatwick chief executive Stewart Wingate. "The consultation and engagement activity over the past two years has been hugely valuable in shaping our plans to ensure they best meet the needs and requirements of local people, as well as our airlines, passengers and other stakeholders. We are confident that our plans are both economically and environmentally robust." The airport says eight out of 10 residents in the nearby region support the plan. As part of its submission, Gatwick has also made legally binding commitments around noise levels and reduces carbon emissions, including that within nine years of the Northern Runway opening the airport’s operations will generate less noise than in 2019. The Northern Runway would also not be used routinely between 23:00 and 06:00.

Scottish regional airline Loganair has introduced its first ATR 42-600s to Glasgow airport as part of a major investment in new fleet. "The new ATR 42-600 aircraft, which are larger, quieter and more efficient than the Saab 340s they replace, will operate on services linking Glasgow with Islay, Benbecula, Sumburgh and Donegal from July, followed by Kirkwall and Derry services from August," the carrier states. The first of the new aircraft started operations on 3 July with departure to Islay, it adds. These services will benefit from up to a 45% increase in capacity, the airline notes. The introduction of the ATRs will also enable greater year-round connectivity to domestic and international destinations via Glasgow with Loganair and its interline partners. "This is a major milestone in Loganair's investment plans to renew our fleet, and it futureproofs the essential air links to Scotland's island communities which is Loganair's privilege to serve," says Loganair chief executive Jonathan Hinkles. "Investment in new equipment has been undertaken by Loganair on a purely commercial basis and without recourse to public subsidy."

The European Commission has launched an in-depth investigation into the €1 billion ($1.08 billion) recapitalisation of SAS by the Danish and Swedish governments during the pandemic. The measure was initially approved by the Commission in August 2020 under temporary Covid rules, but was subsequently annulled by the EU’s General Court's on 10 May. SAS was undergoing severe financial distress in 2020 due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and related travel restrictions, with Denmark and Sweden stepping in to avoid the company’s collapse. The recapitalisation took the form of equity participation through the subscription of new shares, a rights issue, and newly issued state hybrid notes. Despite the Commission's approval in 2020, the General Court later found that the measure did not meet one of the conditions outlined in the Covid Temporary Framework. Specifically, the Court ruled that the Commission failed to require a step-up mechanism or an alternative mechanism with the same effect to ensure sufficient remuneration for Denmark and Sweden's investment and to incentivize SAS to buy back the shares acquired by the two countries as soon as possible. Following the annulment on 10 May, the Commission has decided to conduct a more thorough investigation to assess the recapitalisation measure. “Today’s opening decision confirms, on a preliminary basis, that the recapitalisation measure is largely in line with the conditions set out in the Covid Temporary Framework,” states Margrethe Vestager, executive vice president for competition policy. “The opening addresses the General Court’s judgment on the absence of a step-up mechanism. If this aspect satisfactorily is addressed, the concerns as expressed by the General Court would be resolved. On process, it should be possible to conclude the analysis by the end of the year. Today’s decision has no direct link with the ongoing work on the future of SAS,” she adds.