Virgin Atlantic has signed a memorandum of understanding for a large-scale direct air capture (DAC) facility, designed to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The agreement with carbon capture company Storegga is part of the airline's plans to become net neutral by 2050. Storegga and its technical partner Carbon Engineering plan to establish a DAC facility in northeast Scotland that will be capable of removing one million tonnes of CO2 per year, and is intended to serve businesses that cannot capture or reduce all their carbon emissions at source. "Reducing Virgin Atlantic's carbon footprint is our number one climate action priority and the removal of CO2 directly from the atmosphere has the potential to become a powerful tool in reaching our target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050," states the airline's chief commercial officer Juha Jarvinen. "We hope that early adoption of this technology and development of a facility here in the UK will demonstrate the commercial potential of DAC and inspire other businesses to be involved." Storegga's planned facility will be the first large-scale facility of its kind in Europe and is targeting first operations for 2026. When combined with geological storage, Storegga says its DAC technology will be able to reverse the emissions process and deliver climate-stabilising quantities of permanent carbon removal for the world's most difficult sources of emissions. "The need for high quality, permanent, engineered offsetting is clear. To reach our net zero goals and prevent significant temperature rises, we need utilise all the tools available to us. Technical offsetting with DAC is urgently needed at scale to sit alongside nature-based offsetting," comments Storegga chief executive Nick Cooper.

New Italian flag carrier Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA) has received its air operator's certificate (AOC) from the country's National Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC), crossing a key hurdle as the airline prepares to begin operations in October. "ITA can take off", comments Pierluigi Di Palma, president of ENAC. "The hope is that the new national reference company will contribute to the restart of the sector, making a decisive contribution to overcoming the difficulties deriving from the pandemic crisis. ENAC will continue in its institutional and technical task to ensure the operational start-up of ITA, ensuring compliance with public interests and the rights of passengers which are essential elements of the air transport business." ENAC adds that the issuance of the AOC confirms that the company has the "professional capacity and business organization" required to safely operate its aircraft, and is the final tranche of the necessary legal, financial and technical checks. "With the possession of the AOC and the aircraft operator license, the company can start the sale of tickets", says Alessio Quaranta, ENAC director general. In July ITA’s board and the European Commission approved the company's business plan, with the new carrier having been engaged in legal wrangling because of its position as the successor to Alitalia, including inheriting its fleet and the bulk of its other assets.

Emirates has arranged a codeshare agreement with Brazilian carrier Azul to offer seamless connections from eight cities in the country to the Middle Eastern carrier's network via Sao Paulo. The Brazilian regulator ANAC has approved the codeshare agreement, Emirates says. Through the new agreement, passengers can travel to and from Rio de Janeiro Santos Dumont, Belem, Belo Horizonte, Cuiaba, Curtiba, Juazeiro Do Norte, Porto Alegre and Recife on Azul flights to Emirates' services from Sao Paulo to Dubai and beyond. Emirates currently operates five weekly flights from Dubai to Sao Paulo with Boeing 777-300ER's, it says. The Middle Easter carrier notes it has codeshare co-operations with 21 airlines and two rail companies.