Virgin Australia will in 2023 add four new Boeing 737 Max 8s to its fleet and phase out the use of Fokker F100s.

The Max 8s are scheduled to enter service from February 2023, the group said in a statement today.

These will reduce emissions by 15% per journey compared with 737NG aircraft currently in its fleet, Virgin Australia adds.

The group also has orders for an additional 25 737 Max 10 jets, which it says will reduce carbon emissions by 17% per seat per trip compared with current 737NG aircraft. Adding the Max 8s to its 737 fleet – which comprises 737-700 and -800 jets – is a response to increasing demand, Virgin Australia says. Chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka states: “We are on track to return to 100% of pre-Covid domestic capacity by June this year and expect to well exceed those levels by year’s end, and our resources sector and contract flying in [Western Australia] is in high demand. “This investment in our fleet reflects the increased demand we are experiencing in all parts of Virgin Australia.” For its Fokker fleet, Virgin Australia plans to gradually replace F100s with 737-700s from the first quarter of 2023. It has currently has 10 F100s in service across Western Australia. The group states: “Each 737-700 will fly more passengers for a similar amount of fuel than each F100, resulting in 30% less emissions per seat per trip.” Existing F100 flight and cabin crew, Virgin Australia Regional Airlines’ engineering and support staff as well as corporate and operations functions will be progressively trained to operate and maintain a 737NG fleet, the group says, “as the airline continues to grow its [Western Australia] resources sector and contract flying business”. It also plans to continue operating Airbus A320 aircraft as part of its resources sector and contract flying operations. Chief executive Hrdlicka says that Virgin Australia Group's fleet is of a lower average age than other airlines in the Australian market, placing it in a good position to phase out its older F100s for more fuel-efficient options. She states: “This fleet program is about making sure we capitalise upon that advantage as we work toward achieving our 33% domestic market share, strengthen our resources sector and contract flying, and continue on our journey to net-zero [carbon emissions].”

The US Federal Aviation Administration tells Cirium that it plans a two-day meeting with airlines “in early May” to discuss ways to ease air space congestion in Florida, where airlines endured flight delays during the first quarter due in part to overextended air traffic controllers. Air traffic controller staff employed by the FAA in that state faced challenges managing airline flights in Florida amid severe weather, rocket launches and other factors, the agency says. “At the same time, the number of flights scheduled for Florida’s busiest airports has rebounded to well above pre-pandemic levels,” the FAA says. “The combination of these factors leaves little margin for the system to absorb flight delays, particularly during periods of peak travel demand, such as weekends and holidays.” Florida is a major leisure travel destination and has kept loose travel restrictions during the Covid-19, so congestion on routes to that state complicates network plans for US airlines. Frontier Airlines chief executive Barry Biffle during an earnings call on 28 April said the Denver-based carrier plans to reduce capacity at certain airports in Florida in response to what he calls the “unsustainable” shortage of air traffic controllers in that state. “We are going to be smaller in Florida in the near-term as a result,” Biffle says. JetBlue Airways is also concerned, as around 46% of flights operated during April by that carrier began or ended at Florida airports, data shows. The shortage of air traffic controllers employed by the FAA at Florida airports could be “a more protracted” problem for capacity planning compared with pilot shortages and other operational challenges facing airlines, JetBlue president and chief operating officer Joanna Geraghty said on 26 April during an earnings call. The FAA in recent days has advertised grants to train students to become aviation workers, and its plan to spend $1 billion during 2022 on the US air traffic control system, made possible by the newly-enacted Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Airline alliance SkyTeam has temporarily suspended the membership of Russian carrier Aeroflot in the wake of the country's invasion of Ukraine and the corresponding sanctions regime. In a brief statement, SkyTeam says the action was agreed with Aeroflot and that it is "working to limit the impact for customers and will inform those affected by any changes to SkyTeam benefits and services". Although mostly symbolic, the move further isolates Russia from the rest of the world, with connections to Western countries having been severed by the impact of sanctions and airspace closures. Even airlines from countries that have not sanctioned Russia have frequently had to cease operations to the country because their insurance, issued in Europe or the US, has been invalidated by sanctions. Meanwhile the commandeering of Western-owned aircraft leased by Russian carriers means that Aeroflot and other airlines based in the country have increasingly become domestic-only operators. Aeroflot joined SkyTeam in 2006, becoming the first Russian carrier to join an airline alliance. It's removal follows the suspension of fellow Russian carrier S7 from Oneworld earlier this month and leaves no Russian carrier with membership of an alliance.