The US Federal Aviation Administration will publish an airworthiness directive on 19 February ordering the inspection of cargo compartments on Boeing 787 type aircraft, adding to the list of safety and maintenance complications for the aircraft. The FAA estimates that 222 787 aircraft will be impacted, according to a copy of the unpublished directive obtained. The agency says it received "reports of multiple incidents", so it will require "repetitive inspections" of the forward and aft cargo areas of 787s for disengaged or torn decompression panels, which should be reinstalled or replaced if necessary. These decompression panels are a safety risk because "in the event of a cargo fire, significant leakage in the bilge area could result in insufficient Halon [fire extinguisher gas] concentrations to adequately control the fire", the FAA says. The agency estimates that each inspection cycle will cost $56,610. The first inspections should be done by the end of March and should be repeated within 120 days. This safety fix is the latest in a growing list of maintenance defects and other quirks Boeing faces with its 787 family aircraft. Manufacturing errors reported by Boeing and the aircraft's operators have included a problem that affects the aircraft’s horizontal stabilisers, troubles with its autopilot flight-director systems, and gaps in its fuselage

US carriers during the last three months have decreased by four percentage points the portion of their combined fleet being kept in storage. On 15 November 2020, 25% of US carriers' aircraft were in storage, data shows. On 16 February 2021, 21% of the combined fleet was in storage. US airlines increased the utilisation of their most-operated aircraft families during the three-month period. From 9 to 15 November 2020, 77% (1,452) of US carriers' Boeing 737 family aircraft and 79% (1,185) of Airbus A320 family aircraft were tracked in flight at least once, data shows. During the period 9-15 February 2021, 80% (1,508) of 737 family aircraft and 81% (1,210) of A320 family aircraft were flown. The relatively slow return to service of US airlines' stored aircraft could undergo a jolting acceleration during the second half of this year if, as is hoped, Covid-19 vaccines are available to nearly the entirety of the US population by the end of the summer.

Air Canada's proposed acquisition of Transat AT is in doubt after the European Commission missed the 15 February deadline the companies targeted for approval of the deal amid concerns that allowing Canada's largest carrier to purchase the nation's third largest would harm competition. The Montreal-based tourism provider and parent company of Air Transat says in a statement that it is discussing "potential amendments" to the deal that could incentivise European regulators to approve the acquisition. Now that the 15 February target date has passed, however, either Air Canada or Transat could terminate the deal. Air Canada declined to comment on the deal. Termination of the deal would reopen the door for another bid to purchase Transat by billionaire investor Pierre Karl Peladeau, who is chief executive of telecom firm Quebecor. Transat rejected a takeover bid from Peladeau in January, stating that he failed to demonstrate "committed financing" that could support the company during the coronavirus pandemic. Real estate firm Group Mach had also offered to buy the company in 2019. Transport Canada on 11 February approved the flag carrier's bid to purchase Transat and the Superior Court of Quebec approved the deal in January. Terms set by Canadian regulators to address competition concerns would require Air Canada to continue employing 1,500 workers, to launch new routes within five years to increase options for customers and to maintain the Transat office in Quebec. Air Canada has attempted to buy Transat since 2019, although the coronavirus travel downturn prompted a revaluation of the purchase price. Transat shareholders in October approved a revised acquisition price of C$5 ($3.93) per share, or about C$190 million, lower than Air Canada's previous takeover bid of C$270 million. The first iteration of the deal faced competition concerns during 2020 from Canada's Competition Bureau that the merger could be harmful for Canadians traveling to sun destinations and Europe. Canada’s second-largest airline has criticised the proposed deal for years. Following approval of the merger by Canadian regulators on 11 February, WestJet chief executive Ed Sims said in statement that Transport Canada's approval effectively makes the nation's airline sector "closed to competition". “It is hard to imagine a deal as anti-competitive in any industry where the number one player buys number three without meaningful remedies,” Sims said. Air Transat suspended its flights effective 14 February through 30 April, having completed its flights to repatriate its customers home to Canada following the travel restrictions ordered by Ottawa aimed at halting the spread of coronavirus.