Flight 56
December 29, 2025
London, England

What’s Inside: As always, the final briefing of the year is packed with global fleet movements and network shifts. In this edition, we dive into a major investigative scoop regarding the future of the U.S. government's domestic flight operations and look ahead to a massive summer of routes for 2026.

  • Exclusive: Flightline tracks seven former Southwest 737s destined for the DHS "ICE Air" fleet transition.
  • Unruly Passenger Alert: New 2025 data reveals 1,567 incidents reported as of late December.
  • Retro Revival: Cathay Pacific brings back the iconic "Lettuce Leaf" livery for its 80th anniversary.
  • Congonhas Goes Global: São Paulo’s downtown hub cleared for international flights for the first time since 1985.
  • Ryanair’s Record Fine: Italy slaps the carrier with a €256M penalty for travel agency booking blocks.
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🌎    Route Intelligence Report

New and Proposed Routes

Level (LL) will begin a 3x weekly sector from Barcelona (BCN) to Lima, Peru (LIM) on June 3. This route will be served by Airbus A330-200 equipment.

Air Europa (UX) will begin 3x weekly flights from Madrid (MAD) to Johannesburg (JNB) on June 24. A Boeing 787-8 is rostered on this route.

TAP Air Portugal (TP) will resume 5x weekly flights from Lisbon (LIS) to Tel Aviv, Israel (TLV) on March 29. This route was last flown in October 2023.

Royal Air Maroc (AT) has added several new routes to its schedule next year from Casablanca (CMN):

  • Casablanca to Beirut, Lebanon (BEY), 3x weekly 737-800/MAX 8 from April 3. (Last served until 2020)

  • Casablanca to Bilbao, Spain (BIO), 3x weekly Embraer E190 from April 1.

  • Casablanca to Lille, France (LIL), 2x weekly 737-800/MAX 8 from July 3.

  • Casablanca to Tripoli Mitiga, Libya (MJI), 2x weekly 737-800 from March 31.

  • Casablanca to Pointe-Noire, Republic of the Congo (PNR), 2x weekly 737-800/MAX 8 from July 5. (Last served until March 2019)

  • Casablanca to Verona, Italy (VRN), 3x weekly 737-800 from June 21.

Saudi low-cost carrier flynas (XY) plans to begin a 3x weekly run from Jeddah (JED) to Entebbe, Uganda (EBB) on March 24. This route will be flown by Airbus A320 equipment.

Turkish Airlines (TK) will add 3x daily flights from Istanbul (IST) to Tirana, Albania (TIA) on January 23 and daily flights to Yerevan, Armenia (EVN) on March 11.

SalamAir (OV) is set to add 3x weekly flights from Muscat, Oman (MCT) to Vienna, Austria (VIE) on June 24.

Air India (AI) will resume flights from Delhi (DEL) to Rome (FCO) on March 25. This 3x weekly route will be operated by Boeing 787-8 equipment.

IndiGo (6E) will begin 5x weekly service from Delhi to London Heathrow (LHR) on February 2. This route will be operated by wet-leased Norse Atlantic Airways (N0) Boeing 787 equipment.

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Seasonal Routes ☀️

Vueling (VY) has scheduled a slew of additional summer seasonal routes for 2026:

  • Alicante (ALC) to Constantine, Algeria (CZL), 2x weekly A320 from March 26 (3x weekly June 17 – September 13).

  • Alicante to Tangier, Morocco (TNG), 2x weekly A320 from May 2.

  • Barcelona to Fez, Morocco (FEZ), 2x weekly A320 from June 2 – September 19.

  • Barcelona to Nador, Morocco (NDR), 2x weekly A320 from March 28 (3x weekly A320/321 June 16 – September 12).

  • Santiago de Compostela (SCQ) to Marrakech, Morocco (RAK), 1x weekly A320 from March 27 (No service April 19 – May 29, 2x weekly from May 30, 1x weekly from September 14).

  • A Coruña (LCG) to London Heathrow, 1 daily A320 from April 23 – May 27.

  • Bilbao to Edinburgh, Scotland (EDI), 2x weekly A320 from March 28 (No service June 14 – September 15).

  • Bilbao to Split, Croatia (SPU), 2x weekly A320 from June 16 – September 13.

  • Gran Canaria/Las Palmas (LPA) to Paris Orly (ORY), 1 daily A320 from March 29.

  • Palma de Mallorca (PMI) to Brussels, Belgium (BRU), 4x weekly A320 from March 26 (Additional flights scheduled March 29 – April 7).

  • Santander (SDR) to Paris Orly, 2x weekly A320 from March 31.

  • Santiago de Compostela to Ibiza, Spain (IBZ), 2x weekly A320 from June 18 – September 13.

  • Santiago de Compostela to Jerez de la Frontera, Spain (XRY), 2x weekly A320 from June 3 – September 12.

Wizz Air (W6) continues to fill out its 2026 summer schedule, adding additional routes:

  • London Luton (LTN) to Alicante, Spain, 5x weekly from June 12.

  • London Luton to Yerevan, Armenia, 2x weekly from June 12.

  • London Luton to Corfu, Greece (CFU), 2x weekly from June 13.

  • London Luton to Faro, Portugal (FAO), 4x weekly from June 13.

  • London Luton to Lyon, France (LYS), 3x weekly from June 13.

  • London Luton to Turin, Italy (TRN), 3x weekly from June 13.

  • Rome Fiumicino to Chania, Greece (CHQ), 2x weekly from June 29.

  • Tirana to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, 2x weekly from June 23.

  • Tirana to Alghero, Italy (AHO), 2x weekly from June 24.

  • Tirana to Warsaw Radom, Poland (RDO), 2x weekly from June 25.

  • Tirana to Tallinn, Estonia (TLL), 3x weekly from June 22.

Spirit Airlines (NK) is adding a pair of spring break runs from Boston (BOS) in mid-February: Saturdays to Cancun (CUN) through April 25 and daily to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ) through April 28. Both routes will be flown by Airbus A320 equipment.

Condor has switched up its refueling stop on the Frankfurt (FRA) to Papeete, Tahiti (PPT) charter route, with the Airbus A330-900neo now set to refill its tanks in Portland, Ore. (PDX) rather than Seattle (SEA). This route operated on January 8 and again on February 4, with return flights the following day.

TAP Air Portugal will add a 4x weekly summer service from Porto (OPO) to Terceira (TER) on March 29. This route sees an Airbus A320neo rostered.

Xiamen Airlines (MF) will begin daily seasonal flights from Tianjin, China (TSN) to Bangkok (BKK) on February 7. This route will be operated by Boeing 737-800 equipment and run until the end of February.

Suspended & Dropped Routes

Republic Airways (YX) is ending its American Eagle branded flights from New York Kennedy (JFK) to Toronto Pearson (YYZ) on May 20. This route presently sees 2x daily Embraer E175 service.

Etihad Airways (EY) is dropping three routes from Abu Dhabi (AUH): Algiers (ALG), Almaty, Kazakhstan (ALA), and Yerevan, Armenia. Additionally, Etihad will suspend flights from Abu Dhabi to Shanghai Pudong (PVG) from March 29 through September 30.

Air Cote d’Ivoire (HF) has pulled flights from Abidjan (ABJ) to Beirut, Lebanon from its schedule. This route had been planned to commence on January 4.

Condor will not begin daily flights from Frankfurt to Düsseldorf (DUS) as planned on May 1. Additionally, flights to Panama City, Panama (PTY) will end on April 19.

ZIPAIR Tokyo (ZG) will end flights from Tokyo Narita (NRT) to Manila (MNL) on March 29.

✈️    Fleet Updates

Latest Aircraft Deliveries

🇲🇾 9M-MNO, an Airbus A330-941, was delivered to Malaysia Airlines (MH) on December 20, 2025.

🇦🇪 A6-EXO, an Airbus A350-941, was delivered to Emirates (EK) on December 24, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-32LJ, an Airbus A319-153neo, was delivered to Tibet Airlines (TV) on December 23, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-32MM, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to China Southern Airlines (CZ) on December 24, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-32QS, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Hainan Airlines (HU) on December 27, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-659J, a Comac C919-100ER, was delivered to Air China (CA) on December 23, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-65A0, a COMAC C919-100STD, was delivered to China Eastern Airlines (MU) on December 26, 2025.

🇨🇳 B-65A1, a COMAC ARJ21-700, was delivered to China Eastern Airlines on December 27, 2025.

🇨🇦 C-GKYV, an Embraer E195-E2 (ERJ 190-400 STD), was delivered to Porter Airlines Canada (PD) on December 23, 2025.

🇨🇦 C-GKYW, an Embraer E195-E2 (ERJ 190-400 STD), was delivered to Porter Airlines Canada on December 23, 2025.

🇩🇪 D-ABPU, a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, was delivered to Lufthansa (LH) on December 22, 2025.

🇫🇷 F-HOZB, an Airbus A220-300 (BD-500-1A11), was delivered to Air France (AF) on December 28, 2025.

🇬🇧 G-TUPC, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to TUI Airways (BY) on December 22, 2025.

🇬🇧 G-TUPD, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to TUI Airways on December 22, 2025.

🇵🇦 HP-9816CMP, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to Copa Airlines (CM) on December 23, 2025.

🇹🇭 HS-TOA, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to Thai Airways (TG) on December 24, 2025.

🇸🇦 HZ-FBS, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to flyadeal (F3) on December 24, 2025.

🇯🇵 JA31MC, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Starflyer (7G) on December 22, 2025.

🇺🇸 N14565, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to United Airlines (UA) on December 23, 2025.

🇺🇸 N17431, a Boeing 737-9 MAX, was delivered to United Airlines on December 23, 2025.

🇺🇸 N27419, a Boeing 737-9 MAX, was delivered to United Airlines on December 23, 2025.

🇺🇸 N430FR, an Airbus A320-271neo, was delivered to Frontier Airlines (F9) on December 23, 2025.

🇺🇸 N603DN, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to Delta Air Lines (DL) on December 23, 2025.

🇺🇸 N8986Q, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to Southwest Airlines (WN) on December 23, 2025.

🇨🇴 N909AV, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Avianca Colombia (AV) on December 23, 2025.

🇧🇷 PS-FGE, an Embraer E195-E2, was delivered to Azul (AD) on December 26, 2025.

🇧🇷 PS-LBQ, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to LATAM Airlines Brasil (LA) on December 23, 2025.

🇷🇺 RA-64038, a Tupolev Tu-204-300, was delivered to Aviastar-TU Airlines (4B) on December 22, 2025.

🇵🇱 SP-LYA, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to LOT Polish Airlines (LO) on December 22, 2025.

🇹🇷 TC-LHJ, an Airbus A350-941, was delivered to Turkish Airlines on December 24, 2025.

🇨🇮 TU-TRH, an Airbus A330-941, was delivered to Air Côte d'Ivoire on December 23, 2025.

🇦🇺 VH-A2N, an Embraer ERJ-190, was delivered to Alliance Airlines (QQ) on December 24, 2025.

🇻🇳 VN-A286, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to Sun PhuQuoc Airways (9G) on December 27, 2025.

🇮🇳 VT-IOJ, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to IndiGo on December 24, 2025.

🇮🇳 VT-NHN, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to IndiGo on December 23, 2025.

🇮🇳 VT-RNT, a Boeing 737-8 MAX, was delivered to Air India Express (IX) on December 26, 2025.

Latest Aircraft Retirements

🇪🇸 EC-IEG, an Airbus A320-214 with Iberia (IB), was withdrawn from use (wfu) and ferried on December 23 to Caude, Spain (CDT) for part-out and scrap.

🇺🇸 N468UA, an Airbus A320-232 with United Airlines, was wfu and ferried on December 20 to Victorville, Calif. (VCV) for part-out and scrap. This frame was delivered new to United in December 2000 and had 78,107 hours and 32,619 cycles as of November 26. A solid 25-year career which will end in the scrapyard, as most aircraft do.

Flightline Feature
Stamp
Collection
Flightline Stamp
Unruly passenger graphic
Unruly Passengers in 2025: 1,567
As of December 21, 2025
📖 Read Commercial Aviation 101 by Greg Gayden
📖 Read Behind the Cockpit Door by Nigel Everton
🗞️    Aviation Industry News

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that airline fares decreased 5.4 percent for the one-year period ending in November 2025.

Pakistan has finalized the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines (PK), selling a 75 percent stake to a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group for about $482 million, following a public auction in Islamabad. The deal allows the consortium to acquire the remaining 25 percent within 90 days, requires staged payments over the next year, and includes a one-year no layoff clause protecting roughly 6,500 employees and their benefits. Most legacy liabilities were carved out into a state holding company, enabling the new owners to focus on core flight operations as PIA works to rebuild its international network, including restored service to Europe and longer term ambitions to resume flights to the United States.

Cathay Pacific Airways (CX) is celebrating its 80th anniversary in 2026 by bringing back its much-loved retro “Lettuce Leaf Sandwich” livery on three aircraft, giving a nostalgic nod to one of the airline’s most iconic looks from the 1970s and 1980s. Enthusiasts have already spotted an Airbus A350-900 in Xiamen wearing the classic Brunswick green-and-white scheme, complete with a bold “80” on the fuselage, and reports indicate that a Boeing 777-300ER and a Boeing 747-8F freighter will also receive the special paint as part of the anniversary rollout. The design originally served Cathay from 1971 until 1994 and evokes memories of the airline’s rapid growth era and memorable approaches into Kai Tak Airport, making the revival a standout moment for fans of heritage liveries.

Brazil’s National Secretariat of Civil Aviation approved a request from Aena Brasil to internationalize São Paulo Congonhas (CGH), clearing the way for the return of regular international flights focused on short and medium haul routes within South America starting in 2028. The decision aligns with Brazil’s National Civil Aviation Policy and National Aviation Plan and is tied to a broader expansion and modernization program, including a new passenger terminal scheduled for 2028, additional boarding bridges, new aprons and hangars, and the installation of customs, immigration, health, and agricultural control facilities. Congonhas last handled international services in 1985 and, despite capacity and safety constraints following the 2007 TAM 3054 accident, has remained Brazil’s second busiest airport, handling 23.1 million passengers in 2024.

Italy’s competition authority has fined Ryanair (FR) €256 million for abusing its dominant market position by restricting travel agencies’ access to its booking system, one of the largest penalties ever imposed on a European airline. Regulators found that between April 2023 and at least April 2024, the carrier deliberately complicated agency bookings through measures such as facial recognition checks and blocking payments from online travel agencies, preventing them from selling Ryanair flights or bundling them with other services. The authority concluded these practices reduced competition, limited consumer choice, and had an amplified impact given Ryanair’s roughly 38 to 40 percent share of traffic to and from Italy. Ryanair has rejected the ruling as legally flawed, arguing its direct distribution model benefits consumers through lower fares and greater transparency, and has confirmed it will appeal the decision.

American Airlines (AA) is running its largest winter schedule in its history at Miami (MIA), with up to 430 daily flights.

ICE Air: Flightline recently reported that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has purchased at least six Boeing 737 aircraft, presumably for its deportation flights. These aircraft have been tied to Valkyrie Aviation Holdings Group LLC, 1616 Fort Myer Drive, Suite 1501, Arlington, VA 22209-3110.

Flightline has since conducted additional research on the topic. Based on online records of N-number registrations, it appears Valkyrie is acquiring seven aircraft, having reserved N473US through N479US. Several observers have questioned where the aircraft for the DHS contract are being sourced. The answer appears to be Southwest Airlines.

By matching Mode S codes in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) N-number registry with their corresponding ICAO hex codes, we find that these aircraft are all approximately 20-year-old Boeing 737-7H4s that are still presently active in Southwest’s fleet. Flightline expects these aircraft to be withdrawn in the first quarter or two of 2026 before joining the so-called “ICE Air” fleet. Whether they need extensive modifications or even heavy checks before taking on their new assignments is unknown.

The one outlier in the group is N471US, a Boeing 737 MAX 8. This aircraft appears in a one-off livery that closely resembles President Trump’s desired livery for Air Force One. Built in 2018, the aircraft appears only sparingly in publicly available photos. Public images do show a large DHS seal inside the cabin, and given its Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) configuration, one can reasonably infer that this aircraft is intended primarily for VIP or executive transport. Some sites list it with Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The aircraft flew on December 14 to Crete, Greece and then on to Amman, Jordan (ADJ) and Abu Dhabi’s on December 16. No reports appear for N471US on the FAA Service Difficulty Report (SDR) page, so how many hours and cycles it has clocked are not publicly available.

Whether the remaining aircraft will receive this livery remains to be seen, or if they will instead be painted in the standard, iconic U.S. government livery that dates back to the Kennedy administration.

   Did You Know?

🍻 Let’s throw a non-aviation item in, as I found this interesting. For the past 15 years, no country has exported more beer that Mexico. (Raise your hand if you would have put money on the table on Germany taking that crown.) Mexico exports nearly $7 billion a year in beer, more than the next four countries - combined. The average Mexican puts away 65 liters of beer as well each year, with the Noche Bueno of the holiday season certainly part of that!

📈 Flightline Financials 🏦

Airline & Airport Operator Stock Prices
(Previous Day Closing Price)
AAL
American
$15.44
AERO
AeroMexico
$22.91
ALGT
Allegiant
$84.66
ALK
Alaska
$51.49
BA
Boeing
$216.44
CPA
Copa
$121.53
DAL
Delta
$70.85
EMBJ
Embraer
$64.37
JBLU
JetBlue
$4.69
LTM
LATAM
$54.00
LUV
Southwest
$41.28
RJET
Republic
$19.73
RYAAY
Ryanair
$73.72
SNCY
Sun Country
$14.58
SKYW
SkyWest
$102.75
UAL
United
$114.04
ULCC
Frontier
$4.71
VLRS
Volaris
$9.22
OIL
Per Barrel
$57.26
ASR
Asur
$330.30
OMAB
OMA
$112.83
PAC
GAP
$272.36
CAAP
Corp America
$26.15

🇺🇸    Daily Passenger Counts at U.S. Airports, 2025 vs. 2024

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