European carriers could have no choice but to slash capacity later in the year if the conflict in the Middle East continues, several chief executives have warned. Jet-fuel prices have shot higher since military action was launched against Iran last month by the USA and Israel, causing widespread disruption to energy markets and closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Airlines believe this will ultimately lead to higher prices, depressing demand. At the A4E Aviation Summit taking place in Brussels, IAG chief executive Luis Gallego said that should the conflict endure "we could reach a time where we have to adjust capacity" lower. He notes that, in the short term, IAG's competitive position across the North Atlantic, the main revenue driver for the European airline group, has improved because US carriers unhedged for fuel have already had to increase their prices. European airlines, in contrast, are hedged for the bulk of their requirements over the coming year. Carsten Spohr, chief executive of Lufthansa Group, says that while demand is currently healthy, the situation is more uncertain into the summer. Higher fuel prices "will have an impact on demand" as ticket prices rise, he notes, adding: "We all need to see how that will work out." With margins on its flights averaging around $10 per passenger, Lufthansa has no choice but to pass higher fuel prices on to customers, Spohr warns. Like other airlines, the German group has seen a short-term boom in demand, mainly to Asia, as Middle Eastern rivals have withdrawn from the market. An extra 40 flights to the region "filled within days", notes Spohr. Meanwhile, Ryanair group chief executive Michael O'Leary responded to an audience question about capacity cuts by observing that it "very much depends" on how long the conflict lasts. He too says higher costs will inevitably be passed on to consumers. Ryanair is around 80% hedged for the coming year, but faces higher bills on its unhedged proportion and, as other chiefs noted, the cost of securing hedges further out has risen sharply. Like his long-haul peers, O'Leary highlights that disruption has resulted in a short-term rise in bookings, as travellers who would have visited the Middle East stay closer to home. "Yeah, there's a surge in bookings," he says. But he adds: "I don't expect that to last long." His assumption is that military action will end in the next few weeks. If it takes any longer than that, the situation becomes more uncertain, he warns. "There is an inevitability, if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, the oil price will rise," says O'Leary, cautioning that any other foresight would be "pure speculation".

Boeing has received approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to begin the next stage of flight certification testing for the 777-9. The manufacturer confirms that it has received type inspection authorisation (TIA) phase 4A approval. On 17 March at the Bank of America Global Industrials Conference, Boeing's chief financial officer and executive vice-president of finance Jesus Malave said that it was waiting for approval for TIA 4 "very shortly". Malave says the 777-9 is "a little bit behind from a certification standpoint than 737-7 and 737-10, but we're on the right path", and reaffirmed that first deliveries are expected in 2027. Back in October 2025, Boeing's managing director of customer finance Mike Warner indicated the process of securing type inspection authorisation for the 777X had been slower than expected and that was causing delays to the programme. The OEM has been awaiting type inspection authorisation from the FAA since 2023 which would mean that the regulator is satisfied that it can begin the formal process to evaluate awarding type certification to the 777-9. Boeing launched the 777X programme at the Dubai air show in 2013, which is comprised of the larger -9 variant, a smaller but longer-range -8, and a freighter variant of the -8.

Rolls‑Royce has secured €64 million ($74 million) from the EU's Clean Aviation research programme to advance the development and planned ground testing of its UltraFan 30 demonstrator for future single‑aisle aircraft. The UK engine manufacturer helms a Clean Aviation project named UNIFIED – for "ultra novel and innovative fully integrated engine demonstrations" – which was announced in September 2025. Ground testing of the UltraFan 30 demonstrator is targeted for 2028, says Rolls-Royce. Participants in the UNIFIED project include Airbus, ITP Aero, Lufthansa Technik, TU Darmstadt, Aerospace Transmissions Technologies, Imperial College London and the aerospace research organisations DLR, NLR, ONERA and INSA Lyon. The project is intended as a "decisive step" toward a 30% reduction in greenhouse-gas emissions for short‑ to medium‑range aircraft entering service in 2035 compared with 2020, says Clean Aviation head of unit project management Maria Calvo Blanco. Rolls-Royce director of research and technology Alan Newby describes UNIFIED as "an important step in advancing the UltraFan technologies that could underpin a future narrowbody application", adding: "The narrowbody segment is central to global aviation growth and delivering step-change improvements in efficiency in this market is key to long-term sustainability."