Flydubai has agreed to purchase 30 Boeing 787-9s. The deal, placed at the Dubai air show, represents the Middle Eastern low-cost carrier's first order for widebodies, which will diversify its from its current all-737 fleet. "Today's order reaffirms Flydubai's commitment to enabling more people to travel across its expanding network," states airline chairman Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum. "The highly fuel-efficient Boeing 787 Dreamliner will allow Flydubai to expand its horizon and cater to the growing demand on existing routes." Flydubai notes that half of all scheduled 787 flights are operated on short- and medium-haul connections, and says it plans to use its 787-9s partly to upgrade capacity on routes currently operated with 737s, without having to add frequencies. Stan Deal, chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, adds that the aircraft will also enable Flydubai to "open up new, longer-range routes and add capacity across its network". Flydubai currently operates 80 narrowbodies: 30 737-800s, 47 Max 8s and three Max 9s. It has an order backlog of more than 130 Max jets for delivery by 2035. The airline is "currently evaluating engine options" for its latest order, it says.

Alaska Airlines plans to launch a daily service between Portland, Oregon and Nashville, Tennessee on 14 March 2024.
The carrier says it will be the only airline that serves this route and will be its 53rd non-stop destination from Portland.
It will operate daily flights the route using Boeing 737 aircraft. Alaska Airlines will also start a new service connecting Portland with Miami on 17 November and another seasonal service from Portland to Redmond in Oregon on 23 November.

Emirates Group has posted a net profit of $2.7 billion for its six months ended 30 September, more than doubling it from 2022's half-year profit of $1.2 billion. This was driven by strong demand for air transport across the world, which has been on an upward trajectory since the last pandemic travel restrictions were lifted, the Dubai-based group says. Revenue across the group, which includes Emirates Airline and ground-based services company Dnata, increased 20% year on year to $18.3 billion. Emirates' revenue was up 19% to $16.2 billion and profit increased 134% year on year to $2.6 billion. Dnata's revenue was up 27% to $2.5 billion as operations ramped up, and its profit increased 200% to $193 million. Emirates carried 26.1 million passengers during the period, up 31% year on year. Capacity, as measured in available seat-kilometres, was boosted 30%. "We are seeing the fruition of our plans to return stronger and better from the dark days of the pandemic," states chief executive Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, adding, "The group has surpassed previous records to report our best-ever half-year performance." The group ended the period with $11.6 billion in cash.