Flightline 22 - August 18, 2025

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Allegiant Air (G4) is adding five new routes and opening a new station in Huntsville, Ala. (HSV) in the coming months.

• Huntsville to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) on November 19, St. Petersburg, Fla. (PIE) on March 5, and Orlando Sanford (SFB) on February 12.

• Orlando (MCO) to Appleton, Wisc. (ATW) on January 16.

• Sarasota, Fla. (SRQ) to Rochester, N.Y. (ROC) on February 13.

Allegiant is also evidently smelling blood in the water at Atlantic City, N.J. (ACY), with the carrier set to move in on Spirit Airlines (NK) old turf with upcoming routes to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando Sanford, Punta Gorda, Fla. (PGD), and St. Petersburg. Services will commence in stages from December onwards.

BermudAir (2T) is set to add two new stations and three new routes in the coming months: twice weekly flights from Bermuda (BDA) to Newark, N.J. (EWR) and New York LaGuardia (LGA) being on October 29 and 29, respectively.

China Eastern Airlines (MU) will resume twice weekly flights from Shanghai Pudong (PVG) to Vancouver (YVR) on September 25. This route will be operated by Airbus A350-900 equipment.

AeroMexico (AM) will begin 4x weekly flights from Mexico City (MEX) to San Juan, P.R. (SJU) on October 29. This route, previously run by the original Mexicana, will be operated by Boeing 737 MAX 8 equipment.

Avelo Airlines (XP) is adding several new routes:

• Concord, N.C. (USA) to San Juan, P.R. (SJU), twice weekly from October 22; Albany, N.Y. (ALB) and Palm Beach, Fla. (PBI), 4x weekly from October 23.

• Key West, Fla. (EYW) to New Haven, Conn. (HVN), twice weekly from November 19.

• Wilmington, N.C. (ILM) to Palm Beach, Fla. (PBI) and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ), twice weekly from November 20 and December 24, respectively. This brings Avelo to 17 destinations from Wilmington.

Singapore Airlines’ (SQ) low-cost subsidiary Scoot (TR) is adding a trio of new non-stop routes from Singapore (SIN): 3x weekly to Okinawa, Japan (OKA) from December 15, 5x weekly to Chiang Rai, Thailand (CEI) from January 1, and daily to Tokyo Haneda (HND) from March 1.

JetBlue Airways (B6) will begin daily flights from Boston (BOS) and New York Kennedy (JFK) to Daytona Beach, Fla. (DAB) and Vero Beach, Fla. (VRB) on December 4 and 11, respectively. Additionally, JetBlue will add daily flights from Tampa, Fla. (TPA) to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on December 18.

Southwest Airlines (WN) will open a new station at Knoxville, Tenn. (TYS) on March 5, with daily flights to Baltimore (BWI), Dallas Love Field (DAL), Nashville (BNA), and Orlando. Southwest will also bulk up its network from San Diego (SAN), with five cities set to get daily routes on March 7: Eugene, Ore. (EUG), Maui (OGG), Portland, Ore. (PDX), Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (PVR), and Seattle (SEA). Southwest will also add Saturday turns from San Diego to Bozeman, Mont. (BZN) and Spokane, Wash. (GEG). Finally, the Dallas-based major adds twice daily runs from Chicago Midway (MDW) to Des Moines, Iowa (DSM); Dallas Love Field to Oklahoma City (OKC); and Tulsa, Okla. (TUL) to Wichita, Kan. (ICT) on March 5.

AeroMexico is adding daily seasonal flights from Cancun (CUN) to Raleigh, N.C. (RDU). This Boeing 737 MAX 8 route will operate from December 19 until the end of April.

JetBlue has also penciled in some seasonal routes:

• Fort Lauderdale to Santiago, Dominican Republic (STI), daily from December 13 through January 19.

• Tampa to New York Islip (ISP), 4x weekly from December 19 through April 29.

• Fort Myers, Fla. (RSW) to New York Islip, 3x weekly from December 18 through April 28.

BermudAir is set to close a trio of station in the near term: Fort Lauderdale will not return, Hartford, Conn. (BDL) closes on September 7, and Westchester, N.Y. (HPN) turns the lights out on October 24.

IndiGo (6E) is dropping two international routes from Bhubaneswar (BBI) in late October: Dubai (DXB) and Singapore.

JetBlue is throwing in the towel on its San Juan, P.R. (SJU) to Cancun (CUN) sector, with the last weekly flight now scheduled for August 30.

A 27‑year‑old woman, identified as Maria Paula Morais‑Sousa, was arrested on August 9, 2025, at Miami (MIA) after entering a restricted Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint exit lane despite multiple warnings. The incident occurred shortly after 10 p.m. at TSA Checkpoint 3 in Concourse D. Security staff ordered her to go through proper screening, but she claimed she had only five minutes to catch her flight and continued into the secure area. Deputies detained her after she was briefly out of sight. At the airport station she received a Miranda warning, gave a written statement, and was transported without incident to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. 

TSA is offering a “Buy One Get One” (BOGO) offer for PreCheck: For a limited time, enroll in TSA PreCheck and get $15 off the second enrollment when two people sign up together through authorized enrollment providers, CLEAR and IDEMIA.

Abu Dhabi (AUH) enjoyed a 13 percent increase in annual passenger traffic in the first half of 2025, with over 15.5 million passengers. 82 miles to the north, Sharjah (SHJ) welcomed 9,110,397 passengers in the first half, which was a 10 percent annual bump. Sharjah’s cargo volume for the first half of 2025 was up over six percent as well to 102.4 thousand tons.

In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (JED), the annual rise was nearly seven percent, with 25.5 million passengers. Those passengers flew over 150,000 flights and brought 29.4 million pieces of luggage with them. Jakarta, Indonesia (CGK) posted a result of 25,977,400 passengers in the first half of the year.

In July 2025, India’s domestic aviation sector carried 13.87 million passengers, up 5.1 percent year-on-year from 13.21 million in July 2024, though slightly down 1.3 percent from June 2025 levels. The industry operated about 95,939 departures, 4.9 percent higher than a year earlier but 2.6 percent fewer than the prior month, with an estimated passenger load factor (PLF) of 85.2 percent, compared to 85.0 percent in July 2024 and 83.9 percent in June 2025. For the April–June 2025 quarter (Q1 FY2026), domestic passenger traffic reached 42.23 million, also reflecting 5.1 percent year-on-year growth.

Boeing delivered 48 aircraft in July 2025, marking a 20 percent decrease from June's 60 deliveries. Despite this drop, the deliveries represent the company's best July performance since 2017. Here's the breakdown of Boeing's July deliveries: 37 737 MAX, eight 787s, two 777/Fs, and one 767/F.

The Japan Airlines Group flew 3,696,178 passengers in June, filling slightly over 83 percent of all available revenue seats, domestic and international, across the system during the month. Slightly over 99 percent of the Group’s 25,531 flights were completed, with an on-time performance of 87 percent. A total of 192 planned flights were canceled, representing 0.008 percent of all operations.

Rival All Nippon Group flew 4,117,213 June passengers, seating passengers in just under 76 percent of all system-wide available revenue seats.

Mexico’s Viva (VB) rode a nearly eight percent annual uptick in July traffic to a total of 2.740 million passengers. System-wide load factor for the month was 88.6 percent.

U.S. scheduled-service passenger airlines employed 551,287 workers in June 2025, or 54 percent  of the industry-wide total. Passenger airlines gained 1,356 employees in June 2025. Delta Air Lines (DL) led scheduled passenger carriers, adding 731 employees; Southwest Airlines added 530, and United Airlines (UA) added 378.

UPDATE: American teen pilot and social media influencer Ethan Guo is stuck in Antarctica after landing his Cessna 182Q aircraft at the Lieutenant Rodolfo Marsh Base on King George Island without authorization. Guo claims he diverted to Antarctica due to bad weather, instrument failures, and heavy icing that posed an imminent crash risk, while Chilean prosecutors allege he intentionally sought to land there, submitting false information to air traffic control. The charges against him were dropped under an agreement requiring a $30,000 donation to a children's cancer foundation, departure from Chile as soon as possible, and a three-year ban from the country. Guo's aircraft, not suited for polar regions, may need to be dismantled and shipped out due to technical concerns. He's been raising money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through his seven-continent flight challenge, having already raised over $100,000.

A Breeze Airways (MX) flight from Norfolk, Va. (ORF) to Los Angeles (LAX) was diverted to Grand Junction, Colorado after an intoxicated passenger began shouting racist slurs at the crew while waving a skateboard mid‑flight. He had to be restrained twice but broke free both times, before eventually being seated for good by a 6’6” former football player. Despite the chaotic situation, no serious injuries were reported. Upon landing, law enforcement apprehended the 46‑year‑old Los Angeles resident, identified as David Leroy Carter Jr., and he was taken into custody pending further investigation. Authorities and the airline emphasized that passenger safety remained a top priority, and affected travelers were ultimately transported safely to their destination.

A veteran British Airways (BA) cabin crew member, Jennifer Clifford, who served nearly 40 years without any significant time off, successfully won a discrimination claim after being dismissed in late 2022 for her anxiety and depression that developed during the COVID‑19 furlough period. Although she had been reassigned to a ground role and proposed a phased return to work, the airline proceeded with termination. A tribunal ruled in her favor, finding that the dismissal amounted to disability discrimination and unfair treatment. The tribunal emphasized that a reasonable employer should have offered a more supportive phased return and considered a suitable ground‑based position before letting her go.

Etihad Airways (EY) flew two million passengers last month, which was a big 19 percent jump from July 2024. System-wide load factor for the month was 90 percent. In the first seven months of 2025, Etihad’s passenger traffic is up 17 percent to 12.2 million. Etihad currently operates a fleet of 11 aircraft to 81 destinations.

Air Cargo 📦️ 

U.S. cargo airlines employed 465,930 workers in June 2025, or 46 percent of the industry-wide total. Cargo carriers gained 7,584 employees in June. FedEx (FX), the leading air cargo employer, increased employment by 7,691 jobs.

Nippon Cargo Airlines (KZ) is returning to Frankfurt (FRA) for the first time since 2009 with twice weekly Boeing 747-8 freighter service starting on September 4.  The routing will be Tokyo Narita (NRT) - Anchorage, Alaska (ANC) - Amsterdam (AMS) - Frankfurt - Tokyo Narita, with the second flight dropping the Amsterdam stop.

Saudia Cargo (SV) has entered into a wet-lease agreement with ASL Aviation Holdings to add two converted Airbus A330-300P2F freighters to its fleet. The first aircraftcompleted its passenger-to-freighter conversion, was painted in Saudia livery, and will begin operations with ASL Airlines Ireland (5H) in September 2025 before being formally delivered to Saudia in the fourth quarter. The second aircraft is scheduled to follow later in the year.

Salman Iftikhar, a 37-year-old first-class passenger on a Virgin Atlantic (VS) flight from London Heathrow (LHR) to Lahore (LHE), began binge drinking champagne shortly after takeoff and then launched into a racist and violent tirade against veteran flight attendant Angie Walsh. He threatened to gang rape her, set her on fire, and bomb the hotel floor where she was scheduled to stay. His behavior was witnessed by his distraught wife and children. Despite the severity of the incident, he was not arrested upon landing but was later detained in England. In August 2025 he was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Walsh, who had served for 37 years, was deeply traumatized and forced to take 14 months off work.

A 28-year-old Indonesian man was sentenced to nearly four months in jail and fined S$1,667.76 ($1,230) for using stolen KrisFlyer miles to make retail purchases in Singapore. He had purchased access to compromised KrisFlyer accounts online, converting the miles into KrisPay rewards to buy items such as a Samsung phone, phone case, pastries, cameras, shoes, and clothes. Singapore Airlines detected the unauthorized transactions and filed a police report, leading to the man's detention at Changi Airport when he returned to Singapore. The man pleaded guilty to unauthorized modification of computer content under the Computer Misuse Act.

A 20-year-old prisoner named John Nino, being transported by Washington State Department of Corrections officers, escaped custody while passing through the fourth-floor parking garage at Seattle (SEA) just before 8 p.m. He fled across a pedestrian bridge and was last seen heading toward Highway 99 wearing a red coat and gray sweatpants. Nino, standing 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 154 pounds, had been on community supervision for second-degree robbery and had an outstanding warrant for failing to report to his corrections officer. Authorities are actively searching for him and have urged the public not to approach him but to report any sightings. This marks the second escape at the airport this year, following a similar incident in May.

🇶🇦 A7-AOE, an Airbus A350-1041, was delivered to Qatar Airways (QR) on August 13.

🇨🇳 B-225X, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was delivered to Hainan Airlines (HU) on August 14.

🇨🇳 B-32MF, an Airbus A319-153neo, was delivered to West Air (PN) on August 9.

🇨🇳 B-32MT, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to Hainan Airlines on August 9.

🇨🇳 B-32MZ, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered to China Eastern Airlines (MU) on August 9.

🇨🇳 B-32N2, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to China Southern Airlines (CZ) on August 9.

🇯🇴 JY-RAI, an Airbus A320-271neo, was delivered to Royal Jordanian Airlines (RJ) on August 13.

🇺🇸 N14546, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to United Airlines on August 13.

🇧🇷 PS-LHE, an Airbus A320-271neo, was delivered to LATAM Airlines Brasil (JJ) on August 14.

🇹🇷 TC-LBO, an Airbus A320-271neo, was delivered to AJet (VF) on August 15.

🇦🇺 VH-8IK, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was delivered to Virgin Australia (VA) on August 13.

🇮🇳 VT-NCT, an Airbus A321-251neo, was delivered on August 14 to IndiGo.

🇫🇷 F-GUGR, an Airbus A318-111 with Air France (AF), was withdrawn from use (wfu) and ferried on August 14 to Bydgoszcz, Poland (BZG) for part-out and scrap.

🇮🇳 VT-IMP, an Airbus A320-232 with Air India Express (IX), was wfu and ferried on August 15 to Glamorgan, Wales (DGX) for part-out and scrap.

$AAL ( ▼ 1.8% )  $ALGT ( ▼ 0.07% )  $ALK ( ▼ 1.81% )  $BA ( ▼ 0.51% )  $DAL ( ▼ 2.05% )  $FLYY ( ▼ 1.34% )  $JBLU ( ▼ 1.17% )  $LUV ( ▼ 0.35% )  $MESA ( ▼ 0.85% )  $RJET ( 0.0% )  $SNCY ( ▼ 2.02% )  $UAL ( ▼ 2.66% )  $ULCC ( ▼ 2.58% )  

Did You Know❓️ 

Since the U.S. Census began recording this in 1948, only 7.8 percent of Americans moved, the lowest amount on note. 2024 wasn’t much different.

Postscript

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