Grupo Viva Aerobus generated an operating profit of Ps1.63 billion ($79 million) in the third quarter, swinging from a loss of Ps751 million in the same period previous year. The figure represents a 175% increase from the same period in 2019, the Mexican airline group says. The group posted revenue of Ps5.94 billion, up 225% year on year and 50% as compared to 2019. Net income was Ps919 million as compared to a loss of Ps734 million in the previous year quarter. It is the second consecutive quarter in the net income zone, the group says. The figure also represents an increase of 307% from 2019. At 4.21 million, booked passengers continued posting encouraging numbers, growing 128% year on year and 26% as compared to 2019, the group says. Capacity, as measured in available seat-kilometres, rose 113% year on year and 43% as compared to 2019, whereas revenue passenger-kilometres grew 127% year on year and 33% versus 2019. As of 30 September, the cash and equivalents balance stood at Ps8.18 billion as compared Ps3.07 billion and Ps3.80 billion in 2020 and 2019, respectively. During the quarter, Viva Aerobus operated 125 routes, 103 domestic routes and 22 international. Additionally, the group added one Airbus A321ceo and one A321neo aircraft, its 50th aircraft. The group incorporated a total of seven aircraft so far this year. Currently, the group has 20 A320ceo, 20 A320neo, five A321ceo and five A321neo aircraft in its fleet. On 20 September, Sonia Jerez joined Viva Aerobus as finance chief, the group says.

Emirates plans to recruit over 6,000 staff over the next six months as part of plans to rebuild capacity in response to a "sooner-than-expected surge" in customer bookings. As part of this, the Middle Eastern carrier has restored around 90% of its pre-pandemic network and plans to reach around 70% of capacity by the end of 2021. This "accelerated recovery" will entail additional frequencies, including its Airbus A380's. "By November, Emirates will offer more than 165,000 additional seats on its flagship A380 aircraft," says the carrier. It currently operates its A380s to 18 destinations, but plans to ramp this up 65%, to 27 routes, by end-November. The recruitment drive will seek to onboard 3,000 new cabin crew, 500 airport services staff, 700 ground staff, 600 pilots, and 1,200 technical staff. Emirates Group chief executive Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum states: "We have been prudently restoring our operations in line with the borders reopening and ease of travel protocols, and with the positive signs in the economic recovery and continuous growth of demand, we are hopeful to be back to where we were pre-pandemic, from mid-2022." Data shows that the carrier is continuing to expand capacity, with sharp gains recorded through October, even as flight activity has slowed elsewhere into the winter. Emirates operated a seven-day average of 272 flights on 24 October, for example, up from 245 on 1 October and 162 on 1 June. This remains, however, around half of the capacity it operated in October 2019, long-haul travel having been particularly hard hit by the pandemic.

The Indian government has signed a share purchase agreement relating to the sale of Air India with local conglomerate Tata Sons. "Share purchase agreement signed today by government with Tata Sons for strategic disinvestment of Air India," said the secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Tuhin Kanta Pandey in a 25 October tweet. Earlier, on 11 October, Pandey tweeted via the DIPAM account that a letter of intent had been issued to the successful bidder for Air India and that a share purchase agreement would be signed "soon". Before that, on 8 October, Tata Sons confirmed that it had put in the winning bid for Indian flag carrier Air India, after bids were received in mid-September.