Cleared To Approach: The Aviation Blog

  Indian Airlines Allowed to Lease Turkish Aircraft: Indigo and SpiceJet have been cleared by the DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) to lease Turkish registered aircraft. This comes after civil aviation ties with turkey were cutoff about 3 months ago, because several drones launched into India by Pakistan were off Turkish origin during the conflict in May. Indigo has received permission to extend its lease for its two Boeing 777-300ERs from Turkish Airlines. Similarly, SpiceJet has received permission to lease 5 B737s from a Turkish Airlines subsidiary- Corendon Airlines. InterGlobe Aviation's Shares drop by 4%: The stocks of InterGlobe Aviation, Indigo's parent company, have dropped by 4%. This is because Rakesh Ganganwal's family sold their 1.3% stack for INR 2,933 crore. Aegean New Routes: The Greek airline Aegean has declared new routes from Athens (ATH / LGAV) to New Delhi (DEL / VIDP) and Mumbai (BOM / VAAB). These routes are supposed to start operating in e...

  Indian Oil - Air India Agreement: Indian Oil and Air India signed a memorandum on Monday, 19 August for the supply of Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Indian Oil has been internationally certified to produced SAF. Click  Click here to see the previous week's article about the same. New SWISS Grand Suite: SWISS just unveiled their new, most premium product, the SWISS First Grand Suite, which could possibly be the best first class in the world. The suite has its own aisle and dining room setup.  It consists of two main parts, which both have their own lie flat beds and are linked by a private aisle. It is suitable for families or groups consisting of multiple people. It will be fit on their new A350s, refurbished A330s, and 777s. It should be available to book by 2026.

  Putin Alaska Visit: As Putin visited Alaska for negotiations about the war in Ukraine, we got to see some pretty cool aviation moments. In an unprecedented move, Putin's IL96 aircraft was escorted by US fighters, most likely F35s as it departed Russia. This is the first documented instance of an official Russian aircraft receiving such an escort in US airspace, making it a historic aviation moment. Italian F35s Intercept Russian Aircraft: On August 13, two Italian Air Force F35A fighters were scrambled as a part of NATO's Baltic Air Policing Mission to intercept Russian Su-24 and Su-27 aircraft. These aircraft were operating near NATO airspace without transponders or flight plans. This was the first ever F35 interception operated by Italy for NATO, highlighting their preparedness. Indigo Tail-Strike: An Indigo Aircraft VT-NCJ suffered a tail strike while operating Indigo Flight 6E1060 from Bangkok (BKK / VTBS).  The tail strike occurred while it was executing a go-around ami...

  Air India Express Flight Suffers Bird Strike at Pune Airport: Air India Express Flight IX1098 was taking off at Pune Airport (PNQ / VAPO) on a scheduled flight to Bhubaneswar (BBI / VEBS) when it suffered a bird strike during takeoff. One engine was damaged, and all 140 passengers were evacuated safely. It occurred during takeoff and the engine in question caught fire. This was before V1 (point of no return), so the pilot could abandon takeoff and halt the plane in time. Pune Airport has a history of bird strikes, and the numbers keep increasing. Just last month, a DEL-PNQ flight faced a similar accident. Cathay Pacific Massive Delay: Cathay Pacific Flight CX883 bound from Las Vegas (LAX / KLAX) to Hong Kong (HKG / VHHH) encountered massive delays. The 13-hour flight turned into 28 on August 4. Due to a storm, the 777 diverted to Taiwan (TPE / RCTP). Instead of disembarking, the passengers were made to sit on the flight. On August 5th, the aircraft took off and made it to Hong Ko...

  Passenger Sues Delta over Crash: A Delta Airlines Flight Attendant who was a passenger on Endeavor (a Delta Subsidiary) Air Flight 4819 has sued the company. She was deadheading to Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ / CYYZ) when the flight crash landed- skidding and coming to a halt upside down on February 17, 2025. All 80 passengers survived and 18 of them were transferred to local hospitals. Vassena Miles (the passenger in question) claims that she has sustained major injuries due to Delta's negligence, stating that they appointed inexperienced pilots. F-35 Crash: A US navy F-35 fighter crashed in California near the Naval Air Station Lemoore. Its pilot ejected and made it to the ground safely. Several F35s have had accidents and crashed recently and each costs approximately 85,000,000 USD exclusive of maintenance and fuel costs. Emirates' New Daily Service: Emirates has introduced a new daily service to Hangzhou, China. Its inaugural flight, EK130 landed at Hangzho...