What Do You Think Is Causing The Recent Rise In US Aviation Incidents And Accidents?

The Airbus A380 has become a mainstay on several high-capacity routes across the globe. It’s a powerhouse on routes from the likes of Dubai, Singapore, and London Heathrow.

With the aircraft likely to fly into the 2040s, it could feature on additional flights in the coming years. If so, which new routes would the aircraft fit best on? Let us know what you think below!

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The CF34 has proven itself to be a highly reliable series of engines, being the workhorse of the regional jet market, powering all CRJ and first-generation Embraer E-Jets, and with dispatch reliability rates ranging from 99.95% in the past to 99.97% in the CF34-8 series as of last year (an increase over the previous figure), and all the way up to 99.99% in the case of the CF34-3B1.

Early in the previous decade, General Electric mentioned the NG34 technology program, which was slated for an efficiency increase of at least 15%, all the way up to 20%, over the CF34-10E (the most efficient CF34 variant). Additionally, the P&W Geared Turbofan, despite having a 99.98% dispatch reliability rate, has conclusively proven itself to be much less durable and reliable in other ways than any CF34 ever was.

Is it time for GE Aviation to introduce the successor to the CF34? Share your t

(Merry Christmas 🎄)

The Boeing 777X is undoubtedly an impressive aircraft, combining cutting-edge technology with enhanced efficiency. However, the delays in its production and certification have caused some uncertainty in the market. While there’s strong interest from major airlines, particularly in the Middle East and Asia, the ongoing global economic shifts may slow down the volume of orders.

Personally, I believe the 777X will still play a key role in shaping the future of long-haul aviation, but its success will depend on how quickly Boeing can address the delays and regain confidence among carriers.

What are your thoughts on the 777X and its future in aviation? Let me know in the comments!

The Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner are the newest widebodies in operation currently. Both aircraft types have similarities, but also have major differences. Have you flown on both? If so, which is your favorite and why? How do the aircraft perform differently, or similarly, and what is the cabin experience like?

Aerolineas Argentinas has launched a new nonstop service from Rosario to the tourist resort of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, operated on a Boeing 737 MAX 8. It is the carrier’s new longest narrowbody service by distance and time, at 3,107 nautical miles with a block time of 8 hours and 10 minutes.

The airline offers two seating classes on this aircraft: business and economy. The business class is akin to US domestic first class, with two reclining seats on either side of the aisle and a total of 8 seats over two rows. The economy class is all 3-3 configuration over the remaining 27 rows. 

This is now the world’s second-longest Boeing 737 service, though not by much. The longest is GOL’s service from Brasilia to Orlando, also operating on a 737 MAX 8, which has a block time that is 10 minutes longer. GOL offers a single-class service on this aircraft: all economy seats in a 3-3 configuration. 

In both cases, the advantage is that they are nonstop flights, which reduces the ov

Many airlines have a standard livery for their aircraft, but then some also have a selection of special liveries to raise awareness for brands, events, and more. This can range from a full head to tail design, to just sticking a small decal on the aircraft. My favourite aircraft livery is found on the Airbus A380. I think the blue Emirates Expo 2020 livery is the coolest of all time. However, the ANA A380 (pictured here when I attended it’s delivery ceremony) is a close second!

With Boeing’s 717 facing rapid retirement, how do you think they will stand up against the Airbus A220? I think that they might try to take the X-66 program and turn it into a commercial airliner. Since it already has a 717 body, it’d really only need an efficient engine. Is this plausible? Can we even predict a realistic timeline given their issues on existing production aircraft?

This week, eight China Southern pilots completed the first of the airline’s COMAC C919 training. The aircraft is set to be delivered to the carrier in August this year. While the aircraft is set to remain a staple in China, could we see the jet in the fleets of Western airlines? Ryanair’s CEO did share that the manufacturing of the jet is good for the West as it “will weaken the order books of both Airbus and Boeing” and create competition. However, in terms of actual non-Asian orders, it may take a long time to be certified in Europe and the US. So, I can’t imagine there will be many orders anytime soon. What do you think? Let us know below!

I prefer Boeing for many reasons.

Though I sometimes have no alternative, I still like to say, “If it ain’t Boeing, I ain’t going.”

I choose, whenever possible, to fly with airlines that predominantly use Boeing planes.

They’ve gotten bad publicity, but a lot of the fault is on the carriers’ poor maintenance.

Disclaimer: The following is a statement shared by one of our readers and does not necessarily reflect the views or ideas of our publication.

Last week, it was revealed that Boeing is planning to build the highly anticipated 797 in Washington. There has been much speculation about what to expect from the proposed New Midsize Aircraft (NMA). What do you expect from the aircraft? Which markets will it serve best? Let us know what you think below!

Concorde last flew over two decades ago. Like the Airbus A380, it never reached its intended potential. This was partially due to its sonic boom. Now, a company called Boom is working to bring back supersonic flight. Do you think we will see supersonic flight once more? Let us know in the comments below!

With the Boeing 777X now undergoing certification testing, it seems as though the first delivery could finally be drawing near after several planned entries into service dates have passed. Several airlines, including Lufthansa, Emirates, and Qatar Airways have previously signalled that they wish to be the first to get the next generation Boeing widebody. Who do you think will take delivery of the first Boeing 777X? Let us know in the comments below! (Photo: Tom Boon – Simple Flying)

My longest flight was on a Boeing 787-9, Hong Kong (HKG) to London Heathrow. (LHR) At 5980 miles and nearly 13 hours long, this route is classified as a long-haul flight, though ultra- long-haul flights spent over 16 hours in the air! I’ve also spent 5hrs sitting inside a 777 on the tarmac in Denver on a flight to France, which wasn’t pleasant. What was your longest flight?

Have you ever flown on a quadjet aircraft? If so, which one have you flown on?

I have flown once on the Boeing 747-400 with British Airways from London to Chicago, and more times than I can count on the Airbus A380. My favourite A380 flight was Etihad’s re-inaugural flight after COVID. I would love to fly on Lufthansa’s A340-600 before they are retired to experience the downstairs toilets!

Aviation has changed immeasurably in just a few decades. If you were lucky enough to take a flight in the 1970s or before, chances are you experienced the tail end of the ‘Golden Age,’ when flying was considered a luxury and people dressed for the occasion.

My first long-haul flight was with Virgin Atlantic on its iconic Boeing 747 to New York in about 1996. I remember the seats were really well padded and the flight attendants looked amazing in their bright red uniforms. There was a tiny TV screen in the back of the seat in front, terrible quality and with hardly anything to watch, but at the time we thought it was the epitome of technological advancements! In the arm rest was a telephone handset – it looked very much like the ones you had on the wall with a long curly lead. You could swipe your credit card and make a call, or if you turned it over, it became a controller for the pixelated games on the tiny TV screen.

As we all know, today those chunky padded seats are gone, replace

The Boeing 797 is expected to be in service by 2030, potentially filling the gap between narrowbody and widebody aircraft. What are your thoughts on how this new model could impact airline fleets and the passenger experience?

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The first Airbus A321XLR flights are due to take off with launch customer Iberia in November. Boston will initially be launched, joined by Washington Dulles. Air Canada previously called the type a “double win”, revealing that the smaller capacity will allow it to serve long-haul routes year round where seasonality used to mean they could not fill a widebody. What impact do you think the A321XLR will have on aviation? Let us know down below! (Photo: Tom Boon | Simple Flying)

The 737 Original variants were low-capacity and very popular at their time. These were powered by Pratt & Whitney JT8D turbofan engines. This engine has a fan tip diameter of 49 inches, which gave it quite a lot of ground clearance.

Boeing moved onto the 737 Classic and NG variants to achieve greater range and passenger capacity. These used the same wing and fuselage of the 737 Originals, but the CFM 56 engine family was used for these variants.

They had a diameter of 69 inches, which decreased the aircraft’s ground clearance significantly. CFM & Boeing introduced the Hamster Pouch, (A flattened part of the engine to reduce its total diameter towards the ground) and a taller landing gear to ensure safety.

This same procedure was followed on the MAX, which was surprising as the 737’s fuselage was not built to accommodate such engines, and the public was hoping for a complete redesign of the fuselage. Now the ground clearance of the 737 MAX’s CFM LEAP 1B engines is just 43 inches, whi

In the eyes of many, widebody aircraft are synonymous with long-haul flying, with these twin-aisle planes having both the range and the capacity to make the economics of such sectors make operational sense. However, just as narrowbodies can be deployed on long-haul flights if the numbers add up, there are also instances in which airlines use widebodies on shorter sectors.

While these are relatively rare in Europe, I have managed to enjoy such a phenomenon on several occasions. Two of these (LATAM from Madrid to Frankfurt and Norse Atlantic from London to Oslo) were second legs of long-haul Boeing 787 flights from further afield (Santiago de Chile and New York respectively), while another (a Lufthansa Airbus A330 from Dublin to Frankfurt) was to accommodate high summer holiday demand.

Most recently, I flew on a Finnair Airbus A350 from Helsinki to London. While the Finnish flag carrier primarily deploys its flagship on daytime short-haul routes to offer increased cargo capacity and fi

Former Qatar Airways CEO, Akbar Al Baker, once called the Airbus A380 his biggest mistake. Airbus canceled the program without ever breaking even, but has recently suggested there is a tiny chance production could be restarted one day.