Flightline 36 - October 6, 2025

EDITOR’S NOTE: Just a quick note of appreciation for all the work done by aeroroutes.com each and every day. Around a quarter of our update route information comes from that site; I’m going to add links to more of their posts.

Starlux Airlines (JX) will begin daily Airbus A321neo flights from Taipei (TPE) to Manila (MNL) on December 16.

Southwest Airlines (WN) will open a new station in Anchorage, Alaska (ANC) next May. The Dallas-based carrier will begin with daily flights to Denver (DEN) and Las Vegas (LAS). With this, Southwest will servce 43 of the 50 U.S. states.

American Airlines (AA) will add daily flights from Phoenix to Anchorage on May 21. This route will be operated by Airbus A321neo equipment.

EgyptAir (MS) has applied with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to begin service from Cairo (CAI) to Chicago O’Hare (ORD) in June and Los Angeles (LAX) in May. As Enilria.com points out, both routes are likely to be operated by incoming Airbus A350-900 equipment.

Porter Airlines Canada (PD) is adding three new trans-border routes early next year:

IndiGo (6E) plans to add daily service from Kolkata (CCU) to Guangzhou, China (CAN) on October 26. These Airbus A320neo flights would be the first between India and China in five years.

Norwegian (D8) is set to add weekly flights from Stockholm (ARN) to Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt (SSH) from October 27 through April 13. This route will see a Boeing 737 MAX 8 rostered.

IndiGo (6E) is adding 4x weekly service from Delhi (DEL) to Manchester, England (MAN) on Novemer 15. This route is to be operated by Boeing 787-9 equipment. Flights look to be for the winter season only at this point.

Air Canada (AC) has begun 3x weekly flights from Montreal Trudeau (YUL) to Guatemala City (GUA). This Airbus A330-300 route will conclude in late April.

HiSky (H4) is tipped to pause flights from Bucharest (OTP) to New York Kennedy (JFK) for all of May.

U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screeners processed 71,947,622 passengers in September, just half a percent more than September 2024. For the first nine months of 2025, TSA has screened 677,544,959 passengers, which is just a tenth of one percent lower than last year.

In a dramatic escalation of drone-related disruptions in Europe, Munich (MUC) was forced to suspend operations twice in under 24 hours following fresh drone sightings this week. Both of Munich’s runways were shut down as a precaution, leading to flight cancellations, diversions, and thousands of stranded travelers.  These incidents echo similar shutdowns at other European airfields - Copenhagen (CPH) and Oslo (OSL) - where unauthorized drones recently ground flights for several hours. In Denmark, police described the drone operator as “capable,” citing deliberate maneuvers and advanced control. Though authorities in Munich deployed helicopters, ground searches, and emergency protocols, no drones have yet been captured. The recurring pattern has fueled speculation about hybrid warfare tactics or strategic pressure against critical infrastructure, especially amid rising tensions across Europe. Governments and airport authorities now face mounting pressure to fast-track counter-drone defenses and coordinated response plans.

Irish discounter Ryanair (FR) flew 19.4 million passengers in September, a slight two percent uptick from one year ago. Ryanair enjoyed a 94 percent system-wide load factor for the month. For the past 12 months, Ryanair has flown 203.9 million passengers.

Avelo Airlines (XP) will launch Avelo PLUS, a new membership program that for $49 a year provides exclusive fares, free priority boarding, special year-round deals, and a $50 renewal bonus — with benefits that extend to up to nine companions.

Dallas Love Field (DAL) will soon add airline lounges, addressing a long-standing gap at the busy airport. Officials confirmed that work is underway on new club spaces, though specific carriers and operators have not yet been announced. The facilities are expected to provide dedicated seating, work areas, and upgraded amenities for travelers, similar to offerings at other major U.S. airports. Opening timelines and design details are scheduled to be released later this year.

Spirit Airlines (NK) has asked a U.S. bankruptcy court to cancel leases on 87 of its 214 aircraft, aiming to eliminate high‐cost, underutilized jets as part of its Chapter 11 restructuring plan.  In its court filing, Spirit labeled these planes “excess equipment,” saying many are already grounded or in storage and no longer fit its revised route or network strategy.  If approved, the move could result in hundreds of millions in annual lease cost savings, helping the airline shed financial burdens and better align capacity with remaining profitable routes.

U.S. scheduled service airlines used 1.677 billion gallons of fuel in August 4.7 percent less fuel than in July 2025 (1.760 billion gallons) and 0.5 percent less fuel than August 2024 (1.686 billion gallons). The average price per gallon? $2.30.

Late Saturday night into early Sunday, up to 25 small hot-air balloons carrying smuggled cigarettes entered Lithuanian airspace and forced Vilnius, Lithuania (VNO) to suspend operations for several hours. The disruption affected about 30 flights and stranded roughly 6,000 passengers. Authorities later recovered several of the balloons, along with thousands of packs of cigarettes. Smugglers from Belarus are using hot air balloons to smuggle cigarettes into the European Union (EU).

Russia’s flag carrier Aeroflot (SU) is reportedly acquiring eight Boeing cargo aircraft, six 737-800BCFs and two 747-400s, from Volga-Dnepr to dismantle them for spare parts, a move aimed at keeping its passenger fleet flying amid sanctions-induced parts shortages. This would mark a rare case of a major airline obtaining aircraft not to operate them, but solely to harvest components. With Western suppliers largely cut off, Russian carriers are increasingly turning to “cannibalization” strategies to maintain operations. But the risks are high: parts stripped from donor planes often lack manufacturer warranties or verified maintenance histories, which could further strain reliability and safety if used long term.

In a remarkable feat of aircraft maintenance, Delta Air Lines (DL) has successfully returned an Endeavor Air (9E) CRJ-900 (N302PQ) regional jet to service after it suffered significant damage in a collision with an Airbus A350 at Atlanta (ATL) following a September 10, 2024 run in with a company Airbus A350. The incident saw the A350's wing slice through the tail section of the CRJ-900, shearing the tail clean off the CRJ (N302PQ).The smaller jet was taxiing for departure to Lafayette, La. (LFT) when the collision occurred. Despite the severity of the damage, no serious injuries were reported among the 56 passengers and crew members on board. The A350, which was bound for Tokyo Haneda (HND), suffered minor damage and was able to taxi back to the gate under its own power.

In a separate incident, a pair of Delta Connection (Endeavor Air) CRJ regional jets suffered a ground collision while taxiing at New York LaGuardia (LGA) on October 2, 2025. One aircraft had just landed from Charlotte (CLT) and was taxiing to its parking stand when it was struck by another Endeavor CRJ which was preparing to depart for Roanoke, Va. (ROA). The collision caused significant damage to both aircraft - severed portions of the wing assembly of one and major damage to the forward fuselage of the other - and injured one cabin crew member, who received minor medical treatment.

Avianca Cargo (AV) has commenced twice weekly Airbus A330 freighter service from Quito, Ecuador (UIO) through Miami and on to Maastricht, Netherlands (MST) and Zaragoza, Spain (ZAZ).

🇲🇹 9H-XLB, an Airbus A321-271neo XLR, was delivered to Wizz Air Malta (W4) on October 2.

🇸🇬 9V-TNJ, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to Scoot (TR) on October 4.

🇦🇪 A6-ARB, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Air Arabia (G9) on October 2.

🇨🇦 C-FHNB, an Airbus A220-300, was delivered to Air Canada (AC) on October 1.

🇨🇦 C-GKYS, an Embraer E195/E2, was delivered to Porter Airlines Canada on October 3.

🇮🇪 EI-ILK, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was delivered to Ryanair on October 3.

🇫🇷 F-HXSU, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Transavia France (TO) on October 3.

🇺🇸 N670FR, an Airbus A321-271neo, was delivered to Frontier Airlines (F9) on Ocotber 2.

🇺🇸 N8972S, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was delivered to Southwest Airlines (WN) on October 3.

🇲🇽 N959AM, a Boeing 737 MAX 9, was delivered to AeroMexico (AM) on October 2.

🇸🇪 SE-RZC, an Airbus A320-251neo, was delivered to Scandinavian Airlines (SK) on October 2.