Flybe has announced a number of new routes from London City Airport starting in October.

New routes include Belfast City, Dublin, Edinburgh, Exeter and Inverness.

Flybe chief executive Saad Hammad said: “Today’s announcement is a significant landmark in the re-birth of Flybe. We are delighted to re-enter the London market at London’s most convenient airport following a rigorous profitability analysis utilising our strict route assessment model.”

Read about my behind the scenes tour of London City Airport here.

(c) Air Arabia

Air Arabia will begin flying from Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) from 6 May using Airbus A320 aircraft.

The airline will take up where failed RAK Airways left off.

In February 2014, Air Arabia and the Ras Al Khaimah Department of Civil Aviation entered into a long-term strategic partnership to significantly increase the number of destinations accessible to the residents of Ras Al Khaimah and to bring more tourists within reach of the emirate. From its hub at RAK International Airport, Air Arabia will follow exactly the same value-for-money business model as it does from its primary base in Sharjah.

Two new Airbus A320 aircraft will initially be based at RAK International Airport to service regular routes to Jeddah in Saudi; Cairo in Egypt; Muscat in Oman; Islamabad, Lahore and Peshawar in Pakistan; Dhaka in Bangladesh; and Calicut in India, which will be added shortly after launch.

It seems the days of being able to fly on a Boeing 707 are finally over, with Saha Air in Iran grounding their fleet in favour of modern types. So the next best thing is to at least get inside one of the classic jets.

Here are 12 Boeing 707s around the world that are open to the public*

55-3139 KC-135 Stratotanker USAF
Castle Air Museum, Atwater, CA
A former US Air Force tanker, 55-3139 is now preserved and occasionally open to the public to explore the interior.

55-3139 (c) Chris Kennedy

008 – 4X-JYD 707-131
Israeli Air Force Museum, Hatzerim AFB, Israel
Originally flown by TWA, this Israeli Air Force museum is preserved and often very dusty!

4X-JYD (c) Pieter v Marion

VH-XBA 707-138B QANTAS
Qantas Founders Museum, Longreach, Australia
This aircraft was part of the original QANTAS order for Boeing 707s. It was restored to flying condition from storage at Southend, UK, and ferried around the world to this amazing museum in Australia.

VH-XBA (c) Qantas Founders Museum

G-APFJ 707-436 BOAC (forward fuselage only)
National Museum of Flight, East Fortune, Scotland
This aircraft was preserved in one piece at the RAF Cosford museum, but sadly scrapped in 2006. The forward fuselage is now open to the public at the National Museum of Flight near Edinburgh.

(c) Kim Traynor

58-6970 C-137B Air Force One
Museum of Flight, Seattle Boeing Field, WA
Air Force One during the presidencies of Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon is now preserved at the Museum of Flight in Seattle.

Air Force One in Seattle (c) Matt Falcus

62-6000 VC-137C Air Force One
National Museum of the US Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH
The aircraft used on the day of John F Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas 50 years ago, and on which President Lyndon B Johnson was sworn in.

Air Force One 62-6000

EP-IRJ 707-321B Air Restaurant
nr Tehran Mehrabad Airport, Iran
Originally a Pan Am machine, this aircraft is now open as a restaurant close to Tehran Mehrabad Airport.

Inside EP-IRJ near Tehran (c) Sam Chui/SamChuiPhotos.com

AF-621 707-344C South African Air Force (forward fuselage only)
South African Air Force Museum, Waterkloof AFB, South Africa
Forward section of former Air France and South African Air Force 707 is open to the public at the Waterkloof museum.

(c) Warrant Officer Class II Alan Taylor

72-7000 VC-137C Air Force One
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, CA
The aircraft used by President Ronald Reagan is now lovingly restored at his final resting place and Presidential Library. See how the aircraft looked when in use as Air Force One.

707 at the Reagan Presidential Library

HK-749 720-030B Avianca
Parque Saltire Magico, Bogota, Colombia
A former Lufthansa and Avianca aircraft is now in the large Saltire Park in Bogota, along with a Boeing 727, and often open to the public.

HK-749 (c) Renato Krause

* Opening times are subject to the individual organisations displaying these aircraft.

Air Malta has painted its Airbus A320 9H-AEI in a retro livery, showing the airline’s 1970s and 80s colours.

It made its debut in a flypast at Malta Airport, with many spotters ready to take pictures.

Picture (c) Air Malta

CH Aviation has reported that two aircraft types are to be retired from the fleets of two airlines in the USA.

American Airlines will retire its last Boeing 767-200 on 7 May, after flying the type for over 30 years.

Then, on 18 August this year, US Airways is to retire its last Boeing 737-400 as it further aligns its operations with parent American Airlines.

Find out more about the history of some of America’s most significant airlines in our new book, Airlines of the USA. Available on Amazon here

Ryanair has announced it is to open new bases in Cologne/Bonn, Gdansk, and Warsaw-Modlin from Winter 2014.

The new bases will each see aircraft being based at the airports, and new routes being opened to a variety of destinations.

“Ryanair is delighted to announce that we will be opening a new base at Cologne this winter, offering 8 exciting routes, including 5 new routes to Dublin, London Stansted, Madrid, Riga and Rome Ciampino, which will deliver over 700,000 passengers annually”

“Ryanair is[also] delighted to announce that we will be opening a new base at Gdansk this winter, offering 10 exciting routes, including 3 new winter routes to Birmingham, Leeds Bradford and Warsaw Modlin”

And finally: “Ryanair is delighted to announce that we will be opening a new base at Warsaw Modlin this winter, offering 20 exciting routes, including 4 new winter routes to Gdansk, Madrid, Shannon and Wroclaw, which will deliver some 1.9m passengers annually”

Two of the new stretched Boeing 787-9 aircraft have been unveiled in their airline colours at Seattle in the past week.

Air New Zealand’s first aircraft was unveiled on 6 April wearing a smart all black livery (similar to that seen on the airline’s Airbus A320s).

Air New Zealand Chief Flight Operations and Safety Officer Captain David Morgan, who was in Seattle for the unveiling, says it’s exciting to see the 787-9 in Air New Zealand colours for the first time.

“It’s great to see the Koru and the beautiful New Zealand fern emblazoned on this aircraft. This will soon be the first 787-9 aircraft anywhere in the world to operate commercially and I think it will instil a sense of pride in Kiwis and turn heads when it touches down at airports throughout Asia and the Pacific.”

Then, yesterday United Airlines’ first 787-9 was rolled out of the hanger fully painted.

Over the next several months, the aircraft will move to the next phase of completion, which includes final cabin configuration and painting. United’s 787-9 will be configured with 252 seats. United’s first 787-9 will also be one of five aircraft used by Boeing in a flight test program to certify the aircraft.

Delta will add Boeing 717 service to a number of destinations not previously served by the type.

From Atlanta, destinations include:
Abilene (commenced)
Augusta (commenced)
Dallas Love Field (from 31 October)
Fayetteville (commenced)
Gainesville (commenced)
Grand Rapids (commenced)
Houston Intercontinental (commenced)
Lexington (commenced)
Memphis (commenced)
Mobile (commenced)
Myrtle Beach (commenced)
Tri Cities (from 5 June)
Wichita (from 7 June)

From Detroit Wayne, destinations include:
Austin (from 2 May)
Buffalo (from 5 June)
Chicago Midway (commenced)
Green Bay (from 8 April)
Houston Intercontinental (from 9 April)
Indianapolis (from 5 June)
Kansas City (commenced)
Nashville (from 5 June)
New York JFK (from 2 September)
New York LaGuardia (from 2 September)
Philadelphia (from 8 April)
Traverse City (from 2 May)

From New York JFK, destinations include:
Boston (from 2 September)
Tampa (from 2 September)

From New York LaGuardia, destinations include:
Miami (from 2 September)
Tampa (from 2 September)

From Los Angeles, the only destination is:
Austin (from 6 June)

Credit to worldairlinenews.com

Kenya Airways has taken delivery of its first Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

The aircraft, 5Y-KZA , departed Paine Field in Everett for a 7,800 nautical mile (14,456 km) nonstop flight to Kenya Airways’ home base in Nairobi at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

The 787 will form the backbone of the airline’s future long-haul fleet, providing greater range, improved efficiencies and outstanding passenger comfort.

“The delivery of our first ever 787 Dreamliner not only opens a new chapter for our airline, but also for Kenya,” said Dr. Titus Naikuni, chief executive officer, Kenya Airways. “The 787 will enable Kenya Airways to explore new markets, improve its economic performance, provide passengers with revolutionary comfort, while continuing to contribute towards the sustainable development of Africa.”

Kenya Airways’ first 787 is scheduled to begin flying regionally within Africa in the coming weeks, before beginning long-haul service to Paris in early June. Currently the “Pride of Africa” serves destinations across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.  To date, more than 130 Dreamliners have been delivered to 17 customers worldwide.

See our Boeing 787 Routes Page for more information on where Kenya Airways will fly its Dreamliners.

It’s not one that’s on many peoples’ radars, but a short domestic route in South Korea is actually the world’s busiest passenger route, and is the subject of this Greatest Flights.

The route is Seoul to Jeju, and island to the south of the country. It is operated by no fewer than seven airlines, namely Air Busan, Asiana Airlines, Eastar Jet, Jeju Air, Jin Air, Korean Air, and T’way.

Flights take off between Seoul’s Gimpo Airport and Jeju as often as every five minutes during the day, with over 69,000 flights between the two every year.

Whilst most flights are operated by regular Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 medium haul jets, the 280 mile trip is sometimes flown by Boeing 747-400 and 767-300s at peak times.

Previous Greatest Flights:
World’s Shortest Route – Westray to Papa Westray
World’s Longest Route – Sydney to Dallas Ft Worth
DC-3 Scheduled Flight – Yellowknife to Hay River
Singapore to Sydney in an A380
Winair to St Barths