Episodes

On this week’s episode of AvTalk, Seth Miller joins the show to fill us in on what happened at this week’s IATA Annual General Meeting, countries and airlines continue to roll out vaccine mandates. And British Airways is bringing back its A380s sooner than it planned. IATA Annual General Meeting Friend of the show, and aerospace journalist, Seth Miller joins us once again to fill us in on what happened this week at the International Air Transport Association Annual General Meeting. We get an o...

On this episode of AvTalk, we’re back at our desks, HNA is going to combine all its airlines, eVTOL orders to be interested in, and pigs!—but not the flying kind. HNA Group to merge its airline portfolio HNA Group will merge up to 10 of the carriers in its portfolio with flagship Hainan Airlines as part of its bankruptcy restructuring. We break down the financial aspects of the deal and see which airlines will be folded in. Qatar Airways to reactivate at least 5 A380s Qatar Airways will reac...

On this episode of AvTalk, we join the Airbus Summit in Toulouse to see the status of sustainable aviation, including Sustainable Aviation Fuel, Hydrogen, and electric propulsion. But first, we have to get there. Getting to Toulouse Ian and Gabriel made it to Toulouse after rough travels—for very different reasons. The Airbus Summit Airbus hosted its first Summit entitled ‘Pioneering Sustainable Aerospace’. We discuss the new products the company unveiled and whether this week’s gathering in...

On this episode of AvTalk, we get ready for a busy week of travel and the final report on Air India Express flight 1344 leaves us incredulous. Plus, there’s a new freighter in town. ‘Boeing’s Fatal Flaw’ Documentary PBS and the New York Times have collaborated on a documentary looking at the development of the 737 MAX. We discuss the outline of the film and what to watch for. Air India Express final report Indian investigators released their final report regarding the runway overrun of Air I...

On this episode of AvTalk, the Raccoon returns! Plus, the FAA is keeping Virgin Galactic grounded, and the list of places the MAX can fly gets longer. Welcome back Mr. Porter Porter Airlines restarted flights this week after an 18 month hiatus. And not to miss out on the party, Air Canada also brought back flights to Toronto City Billy Bishop Airport, the city’s downtown airport. FAA grounds Virgin Galactic During its trip to space in July, Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity strayed outside of its ...

On this episode of AvTalk, the Kabul Airlift ends and the last US military aircraft leaves Afghanistan after a 20 year war Emirates brings forward its final A380 delivery. And Eastern Airlines is getting into the boxes business. Kabul Airlift ends The Kabul Airlift has ended with the final withdrawal of United States troops from the Kabul Airport, marking the end of the 20 year war in Afghanistan. We tally the final numbers from the airlift, discuss some of the curious flights and discuss what...

On this episode of AvTalk, we discuss the ongoing Kabul Airlift, the activation of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet by the US Department of Defense and the other commercial airlines supporting evacuation efforts. The Kabul Airlift The United States and its coalition partners are engaged in a massive airlift out of Kabul. In addition to the military assets employed, dozens of airlines from all over the world are also helping move Afghan evacuees to safer locations. The US has even activated the Civi...

On this episode of AvTalk, we discuss the rapidly devolving situation in Kabul, Afghanistan. And Ned Russell joins us to discuss his reporting on how airlines feel about the 737 MAX some eight months after its return to revenue service. Chaos in Kabul The rapidly devolving situation in Afghanistan created chaos at the Kabul airport over the past week. We discuss what’s happened at the Kabul airport and the effects on commercial air traffic in Afghanistan. How airlines learned to stop worrying...

On this episode of AvTalk, the 737 MAX begins recertification flights in China, US airlines weigh vaccine mandates, and the law of unintended consequences hits airlines in the nose. Airlines weighing vaccine mandates Airlines are split on whether to require employees get vaccinated and what happens if they choose not to. We discuss which major airlines have already made it mandatory and which have said they’ll go a different route. 737 MAX recertification flights in China The 737 MAX test ai...

On this episode of AvTalk, we welcome back Steve Giordano of Jet Test and Transport to talk about his new YouTube series Cockpit Casual, which showcases the bizarre world of test and ferry pilots. Spirit’s operational meltdown We look at Spirit’s terrible week and what’s to come as they try and dig out from under a mountain of cancellations. Miami Air 293 final report The NTSB released its final report on the runway overrun of Miami Air 293 in Jacksonville. Read the full report. British Air...

On this episode of AvTalk, we sit down with Elan Head, editorial director of eVTOL.com to get a primer on the world of electric vertical take off and landing aircraft. Plus, Jason previews the new seaplane service from New York to Boston. Jason’s Tailwind Tour After our discussion last week about forthcoming seaplane service from New York to Boston, Jason took a quick demo flight with Tailwind Air in the Cessna 208EX around Manhattan. A330 days of the Condor Condor will replace its ageing fl...

On this episode of AvTalk, the industry recovery is expanding as we pass 100,000 commercial flights for the first time in over a year, the operator of the Transair flight that crashed in Hawaii is grounded by the FAA, and British Airways is quickly fixing its uncovered holes. Passing 100,000 flights For the first time since 13 March 2020, Flightradar24 tracked more than 100,000 commercial flights. We break down the numbers to see where recovery is taking hold and which regions are more precari...

United orders 200 Heart Aerospace electric regional aircraft, Porter finally confirms its E195-E2 order, and Boeing is now dealing with fresh 787 quality issues. Heart Aerospace gets a big order from United United Airlines and regional partner carrier Mesa Airlines ordered 200 Heart Aerospace ES-19 all-electric regional aircraft this week. The aircraft, still in development, is expected to fly with the airline by the end of the decade. We break down the order and investment in Heart Aerospace ...

On this episode of AvTalk, we discuss the ditching of a Transair 737-200 in Hawaii. Delta is headed to the used plane lot and we’re finally ready to launch Richard Branson into space. Transair 810 ditching in Hawaii A Transair 737 operated by Rhoades Aviation ditched in the water near Honolulu after suffering engine trouble. Both crew members of the cargo jet survived and were rescued by the US Coast Guard. We discuss what we know so far and what the 10-member NTSB investigative team is workin...

On this week’s episode, United announces a huge and real aircraft order, the Boeing 777X suffers another setback, and an airline in Alaska seeks to become the Icelandair of the northwest. The big United order Jason attends his first large industry event this week in Newark, as United announces an order for 270 737 MAX and A321neos. And big changes are coming to the cabin as well. Boeing’s 777X problem The FAA sent a letter to Boeing in May that was first reported this week advising the manuf...

On this episode of AvTalk, Southwest Airlines is getting a new CEO, airlines are running into the great training roadblock, and the 737 MAX still isn’t re-certified in China. Southwest Airlines’ CEO changes Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly announced he will step down in February 2022, with Robert Jordan assuming the role. Kelly will remain with Southwest as Executive Chairman through 2026. Crew crunch causing cancellations Crew availability is affecting airlines’ ability to run as many flig...

On this episode of AvTalk, the US and EU close the book on their aviation subsidies fight and turn their attention to China. CFM debuts its new RISE engine platform. And Airbus and Cathay Pacific are working on single pilot operations for the A350 in cruise. The EU and US make nice, turn their attention to China After nearly two decades of acrimony and countless back-and-forth legal challenges the European Union and United States have agreed to halt their fight over commercial aircraft subsidi...

On this episode of AvTalk, we welcome aerospace journalists John Walton and Jon Ostrower to discuss United Airlines’ order for Boom’s Supersonic Overture jet, and the likelihood of the aircraft ever entering service. Our discussion of United’s order for Boom’s proposed supersonic jet covers the challenges Boom, and any airline seeking to fly the supersonic jet, will encounter. Technology BOOM’s Overture aircraft currently lacks a critical component for flight: engines. While Rolls Royce is in...

On this episode of AvTalk, we try to fit in as many Breeze Airways puns as we can as Jason fills us in on the airline’s inaugural flight. We also take stock of the situation in Belarus and see where things stand now. Plus, Airbus is getting ready to ramp up A320 family production in a big way. Jason puts wind in his sails on the Breeze inaugural Jason took the inaugural Breeze Airways flight and it carried him aloft, but it didn’t sweep him off his feet. Update on the situation in Belarus We...

On this episode of AvTalk, we discuss the forcible diversion of a Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius to Minsk, Belarus and the ensuing international response. On 23 May, Ryanair flight 4978 was forcibly diverted by Belarus. Aviation journalist Seth Miller of PaxEx.aero joins us as we discuss what happened, the international reaction, and why all of this matters. Helpful links * Flight data for Ryanair flight 4978 * Where Belarus-based airlines can now fly * Who was flying over Belarus be...

On this episode of AvTalk, a Metroliner and SR22 collide over Denver and everyone walks away safely. A Boutique Air flight loses a door. And Boeing fixes the latest issue with the 737 MAX. Metroliner vs SR22 A Cirrus SR22 and Key Lime Air Swearingen Metroliner collided near Denver’s Centennial Airport last week. Everyone walked away safely. We cover what we know so far. Boutique Air flight loses a door A Boutique Air flight from Minneapolis to Ironwood didn’t get very far last week. On the d...

On this episode of AvTalk, we continue our conversation with NTSB investigator Sean Payne to discuss the NTSB’s most wanted list and their call for crash protected recorders to be installed in all passenger carrying commercial aircraft. More MAX news The FAA issued its airworthiness directive saying some 737 MAX with electrical grounding issues need to be fixed before they can fly again. But Boeing is still working on the service bulletin to tell operators how to do that. Separately, an airwo...

On this episode of AvTalk, we welcome Sean Payne, an investigator with the US National Transportation Safety Board, for the first in a two-part interview. In part one this week, Payne walks us through how the NTSB collects, processes, and uses information from aircraft data recorders to help determine the cause of an accident. First flight on Mars NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter made its first flight this week, achieving the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. The first flight last...

On this episode of AvTalk, the densest version of the 737 MAX is certified, a ketchup packet shortage brings us back to a previous espiode, and we talk with Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren about an important but under-reported portion of Boeing’s history. SJ182 The memory module from the cockpit voice recorder of Sriwijaya Air flight 182 has been recovered. MAX 8-200 The FAA and EASA have certified the 737 MAX 8-200, the high density version of the MAX 8 that can seat over 200 passengers in its denses...