Bloomberg
• Henrique Almeida
Portugal will enter another round of negotiations with Deutsche Lufthansa and Air France-KLM over the sale of a minority stake in TAP Air Portugal, seeking to improve the offers submitted by both airline groups before selecting a strategic partner for the flag carrier.
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LATAM Airlines Colombia has opened a new operating base at Medellín, expanding the carrier’s presence in Colombia. The move is expected to support its local operations and network strategy, although the available report does not provide details on routes, fleet allocation or capacity growth.
Portugal will enter another round of negotiations with Deutsche Lufthansa and Air France-KLM over the sale of a minority stake in TAP Air Portugal, seeking to improve the offers submitted by both airline groups before selecting a strategic partner for the flag carrier.
Poland’s LOT is set to acquire two Boeing 787-9 aircraft from Virgin Atlantic, adding to its long-haul fleet through a secondary-market transaction. The deal highlights LOT’s fleet expansion and the continued repositioning of widebody aircraft among European operators.
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Air France-KLM has appointed group chief operating officer Oltion Carkaxhija as CEO of low-cost subsidiary Transavia, effective Sept. 4. Carkaxhija will focus on reinforcing Transavia’s position in the intra-European market as part of a broader management reshuffle at the group.
Lawmaker Namal Rajapaksa, son of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, was arrested and remanded until Sept. 18 in a corruption investigation tied to SriLankan Airlines’ 2013 Airbus aircraft purchase. The probe follows allegations of kickbacks and earlier findings that Airbus agreed to pay bribes in Sri Lanka.
Southwest Airlines’ on-time performance has deteriorated sharply in 2026 under AirInsight’s zero-grace-period standard, leaving the carrier well behind the broader industry. The decline puts operational reliability at the center of scrutiny as Southwest contends with a widening performance gap.
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A behind-the-scenes account follows the small team tasked with dismantling Spirit Airlines, tracing how an airline’s operations, assets and corporate structure are unwound after its failure. The episode offers a rare view of the practical mechanics—and consequences—of airline liquidation.
Escalating US-Iran hostilities are driving jet fuel prices sharply higher, weakening investor appetite for airline bonds and increasing financing costs. The pressure is particularly acute for smaller US carriers, whose thinner liquidity and higher borrowing needs could constrain fleet, capacity and growth plans.
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