Airbus has fully denied any change in its position regarding the UK’s planned withdrawal from the European Union, after a report emerged which has been widely interpreted as a shift in its plans. The aircraft manufacturer has been vocal in its opposition to ‘Brexit’ as well as the UK government’s lack of progress in providing certainty to companies which, like Airbus, depend on just-in-time manufacturing and smooth international integration processes. “We’re aware that an online article has suggested [Airbus’s] stance on Brexit may have changed,” says the airframer's UK operation. “It hasn’t. We are still seeking clarity, while preparing for a no-deal Bexit.”

Investigators have reason to believe that the wake turbulence from a landing Airbus A350-900 may have contributed to the fatal crash of a light aircraft at Dubai earlier this month. A Thai Airways International A350 had been arriving on runway 30R on the 16th of May, routed from Bangkok, at around the time that the Diamond Aircraft DA62 crashed. French investigation authority BEA, citing United Arab Emirates counterparts, says the DA62 was engaged in inspection activities for ground navigation aids. It had been carrying out an approach to runway 30L which runs parallel to 30R. The two runways are separated by just 380m although the threshold of 30R is displaced some 1,900m beyond that of 30R. “Video footage showed the [DA62] encountered possible wake turbulence at about 1,100ft, following an Airbus A350,” it says.

Indonesian carrier, Garuda has indicated that it will cut back its Europe presence in a bid to reduce its losses. Carrier chief executive Ari Askhara recently told a parliamentary commission that flights to London will end in August, and that frequency to Amsterdam will be halved to thrice-weekly. Askhara explains the carrier was forced to end the London flights as the route could not be sustained without subsidies. Two other routes, Denpasar-Mumbai and Tanjung Pandan-Singapore, also saw a similar fate. A subsidy to support the new route launches also did not materialise as expected. "Those routes were closed, as the Rp8 billion ($555,700) subsidy promised by the Ministry of Tourism did not materialise," says Askhara.