Miguel Praga

✈ Madrid air traffic controllers managed two simultaneous emergencies. On the same day, Transavia's Airbus A320, flying from Agadir to Paris, was diverted to Barajas Airport due to a passenger's potential heart issue, requiring urgent medical attention. The controllers prioritized descent and landing on runway 32L. Concurrently, a Titan Airways A320 bound for Zurich returned to Barajas shortly after takeoff due to a technical warning.

🛩 Ryanair, April 2024, Serbia and EU: Ryanair demands EU intervention during a 40-day air traffic control strike in Belgrade, causing 99 flight delays and affecting 17,800 EU passengers. Despite Ryanair's appeal to President Ursula von der Leyen, Serbia isn't in the EU, limiting Brussels' jurisdiction. Communications director Jade Kirwan highlights the impact on passengers merely overflying Serbian airspace. Ryanair urges action to safeguard EU flights from such disruptions.

🛑 Exploring East Asia and Romania early in the day reveals tourist-free attractions. ???? Early morning visits to locations like Vlad Tepes' castle ensure peaceful experiences before buses arrive around 9 AM. Tour operators are now studying tourist flows to redistribute crowds, potentially leading to earlier or later visits. This shift may disrupt residents, making popular sites continuously crowded. Night visits to places like the Louvre could become a reality, catering to international audiences via live streams.

✈ Lufthansa operates 22 A340 aircraft, the most in any airline, using them on routes to the United States. Flights to Boston and Detroit exclusively use A340s, while 70% of Dallas flights, 50% of Chicago flights, and fewer flights to Los Angeles and Washington operate with them. Lufthansa and its subsidiary Edelweiss are the only European operators of this inefficient model until their new Airbus A350s arrive. Mahan Air in Iran is another notable user.

🛫 China is finalizing a commercial deal with Boeing to purchase 500 aircraft, according to Simple Flying and Bloomberg. Despite tense relations between China and the U.S., the agreement is in its final stages. Issues like the delivery schedule are being resolved. Boeing's stock has risen, though the company hasn't provided details. Airbus is currently the leading aircraft manufacturer in China, with Boeing second, while Comac has yet to deliver ten planes.

🛩 Air traffic controllers shared a video on August 21, 2025, showing an Iberia A321XLR that collided with a vulture during takeoff from Madrid Barajas. The impact caused significant damage, prompting an emergency return. The radome was destroyed, a crack appeared in the pressure bulkhead, and the left engine was severely damaged. The incident highlights the hazards large birds pose to aviation safety.