29Aviation

EasyJet Airbus A320-214 at Bristol Airport having just arrived from Paris CDG with the Severn Estuary visible in the background as she makes her way to the terminal along Taxiway Golf. Over the past 20 years the airline has carried over 72 million passengers to/ from Bristol, where it is currently the largest airline, with routes to over 70 destinations.

Delta Air Lines Airbus A330-941 about to touch down on Runway 09L at Heathrow Airport after operating the daily DL186 from Los Angeles. Delta is currently the largest operator of the A339 with 21 aircraft in the fleet and one of only three airlines regularly operating the aircraft into London Heathrow alongside Virgin Atlantic and Air Mauritius.

Luxair DeHavilland Canada Dash 8-400 climbing into the early evening skies at London City Airport while operating one of the multiple daily flights to Luxembourg with the Lyle’s Golden Syrup factory in the background. Alongside BA CityFlyer, Luxair is the only airline to operate flights to more than 1 country at London City with regular flights to both Luxembourg and Antwerp (Belgium). While there are not many airlines left in Europe operating the Dash 8, Luxair’s fleet of 11 aircraft have been seen operating flights from Luxembourg to places as far away as Tunisia. This is still 150 miles less than Keflavik - Oslo, which Air Iceland Connect/ Icelandair operated several times earlier this year on the Dash8-400 due to aircraft availability issues with the mainline fleet.

SWISS International Airlines Airbus A320-214 climbing away from Runway 16 at Zurich Airport while operating the short 30 minute hop to Geneva. The airline has recently retired it’s oldest aircraft, a 27 year old Airbus A321, which it is using to investigate how much of the aircraft it can re-use or recycle. While metals and alloys will be recycled, other parts will be used as aircraft spares as well as in the Lufthansa Group’s cabin simulators etc as it attempts to reduce the amount of waste created from retired aircraft.

Vietnam Airlines Boeing 787-9 climbing away from Runway 09R at London Heathrow Airport at the start of her 12 hour journey back to Hanoi. With the airline losing existing slots it held at Heathrow, Vietnam Airlines is currently leasing several pairs, including some from Pakistan International Airways in order to ensure it can maintain flights from both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City during the summer season.

Air Malta Airbus A320-251N seen positioning into Guernsey Airport from Malta in order to take the 60 members of Team Gozo back home from the International Island Games. Due to the extremely light load, the A320NEO was able to make the 1,275 mile journey back home to Malta non-stop from Guernsey’s 1463m runway. The gold star award however goes to Atlantic Airways who cancelled their refuelling stop in Exeter and managed to carry 165 passengers (plus sports equipment) 900 miles back to Vagar in the Faroe Islands non-stop on one of their A320CEO aircraft.

Aurigny Air Services ATR72-600 climbing away from Runway 33 at Birmingham Airport while operating the daily flight to Guernsey in the Channel Islands. Following a return to profit in 2022, the airline has recently announced the next set of city breaks for Winter 2023 with flights to Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, Porto, Prague and Berlin planned for October and November along with a return to Edinburgh and Dublin over Christmas and New Year.

Icelandair Boeing 737 MAX 9 about to touch down at Heathrow Airport while operating the morning flight from Keflavik, Iceland earlier in the year. The arrival of A321LR aircraft in 2025 will mark the first time that Icelandair will have operated a joint Boeing/Airbus fleet as the airline looks to retire the ageing Boeing 757 fleet, the oldest of which will be over 30 years old.

Singapore Airlines Airbus A350-941XWB making a smokey touchdown on Runway 23L at Manchester Airport for her 2 hour stopover on the Houston - Singapore route. SIA was recently named as the World’s Best Airline for 2023 by Skytrax for the fifth time, reclaiming the title for the first time since 2018 from Qatar Airways, with ANA, Emirates and Japan Airlines rounding out the top 5.

Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-332(ER) preparing for departure at Edinburgh Airport for her flight to Boston Logan Airport. Delta has increased their network from Edinburgh in 2023 by offering direct flights to Atlanta alongside their existing services to New York JFK and Boston. Delta still operates 66 Boeing 767s (x45 -300ERs and x21 -400ERs, but only has x34 Airbus widebody aircraft on order meaning that another order in the not too distant future is possible as the airline continues to modernise its fleet.

Air Belgium Airbus A340-313 climbing away from Runway 09R at Heathrow Airport while operating a flight to Cairo on behalf of British Airways. British Airways leased the A340 in order to cover for the late delivery of its Dreamliner Fleet in 2018/ 2019. More recently the airline has leased an A330-900 from Air Belgium in order to operate on the daily services between London Heathrow and Chicago O’Hare over the summer months replacing the Boeing 777-300ER due to aircraft shortages.

SWISS International Airlines Boeing 777-3DE(ER) climbing away from Runway 16 at Zurich Airport as she begins her 11 hour voyage on one of her most regular routes to San Francisco. The 12 Boeing 777 aircraft are the only non-Airbus birds currently operating for SWISS and are also the only Boeing 777-300 aircraft operating for any of the Lufthansa Group airlines. From 2025, SWISS will be adding 5 A350-900XWB aircraft, 4 to replace the A340-300s and an additional aircraft which will be used to expand the airline’s international network.