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Air India's A350 aircraft enroute to London Heathrow returned to the national capital due to a technical issue on Thursday afternoon after being airborne for nearly seven hours. The same A350-900 aircraft VT-JRF had faced a technical issue on March 15, following which the plane operating the flight from New York to Delhi was diverted to the Irish town of Shannon, sources said. An Air India spokesperson said its flight AI111, operating from Delhi to London on Thursday, made a precautionary air-return to the national capital following a suspected technical issue. "The aircraft landed safely and consistent with Air India's high safety standards, it is currently subject to extensive technical evaluations, which will require additional time to complete," the spokesperson said in a statement. According to the sources, noises were heard in the aircraft following which it was diverted. The spokesperson also regretted the inconvenience caused to the passengers due to the unforeseen situat
Twelve years after Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 vanished with 239 people aboard, a renewed deep-sea search in the southern Indian Ocean has so far failed to locate the missing aircraft, Malaysian authorities said Sunday, as families pressed for the effort to continue. The Air Accident Investigation Bureau said in a statement that a seabed search conducted by marine robotics company Ocean Infinity between March 2025 and January 2026 surveyed thousands of square kilometres of ocean floor but has not produced any confirmed findings of the aircraft wreckage. Malaysia gave the nod to the Texas-based company last year to renew the search for Flight 370 under a "no-find, no-fee" contract at a new 15,000-square-kilometre site in the southern Indian Ocean where it was believed to have crashed. Ocean Infinity will be paid USD 70 million only if wreckage is discovered. The search was carried out for 28 days in two phases - March 2528 last year and Dec 31, 2025, to Jan 23 this year, covering
A glimpse of what the future of flying taxis might look like can be seen in this southeastern Chinese city. In a hangar in Kunshan, more than 60 kilometres (about 37 miles) west of the port of Shanghai, a sort of gigantic drone was preparing for a demonstration. Called the Matrix, it's a 5-ton electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, or eVTOL, considered the largest electric aircraft built so far, at least in China. The Chinese company AutoFlight, founded in 2017, developed the Matrix, which can carry up to 10 passengers. It has a 20-metre (about 66-foot) wingspan, and is 17.1 metres long and 3.3 metres tall. (56 feet long and 11 feet tall). It can travel for an hour without charging. The idea is that eventually it could become a flying taxi, although the industry and experts think it will take some time. On a recent chilly afternoon, AutoFlight conducted a flying demonstration for The Associated Press at its low-altitude flight test facility. Staff moved the Matrix from a .
A two-seater microlite aircraft of the Indian Air Force met with an accident in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Wednesday, defence sources said. Both the pilot and the other crew member who were onboard the aircraft are safe, they said. A microlite aircraft is a small aircraft generally used for training, bird recce and survey purposes. The aircraft met with an accident while it was on a routine sortie. The recovery system was initiated, and "both the crew are safe", they said. The aircraft was recovered from an open area away from the main city, they said. Authorities in Prayagraj have cordoned off the area, and an investigation into the incident is underway, officials in Prayagraj said. The aircraft has crashed near the K P College ground in the George Town area, they said.
France will build a new aircraft carrier with a capacity for 30 fighter jets and 2,000 sailors, French President Emmanuel Macron announced Sunday in what he described as "the display of our nation's power in the service of freedom on the seas and amid the turbulence of our times. In an age of predators, we must be strong in order to be feared, and especially strong at sea. This is why, in line with the last two military programming laws, and after a thorough and careful review, I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier. The decision to launch the construction of this very large-scale program was taken this week, Macron told French troops stationed in Abu Dhabi. The new vessel is planned to be ready in 2038, replacing the ageing Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, which came into service in 2001. It will have a displacement of about 78,000 tons and a length of 310 meters (1,017 feet), compared to 42,000 tons and 261 meters (856 feet) for the Charles de Gaulle. The ne
China has commissioned its latest aircraft carrier after extensive sea trials, state media reported Friday, adding a ship that experts say will help what is already the world's largest navy expand its power farther beyond its own waters. The official Xinhua news agency reported Friday that the Fujian was commissioned in Sanya on Hainan island on Wednesday in a ceremony attended by top leader Xi Jinping. The Fujian is China's third carrier and the first that it both designed and built itself. It is perhaps the most visible example so far of leader Xi Jinping's massive military overhaul and expansion that aims to have a modernized force by 2035 and one that is world class by mid century which most take to mean capable of going toe-to-toe with the United States. With it, Beijing takes another step toward closing the gap with the US Navy and its carrier fleet and network of bases that allow it to maintain a presence around the world. Carriers are key to Chinese leadership's vision of
India will host the Asia-Pacific region's aircraft accident investigators' meeting for the first time in the national capital from October 28-31. Around 90 aircraft accident investigators are expected to participate in the Asia Pacific Accident Investigation Group (APAC-AIG), an official release said on Sunday. The meeting will be hosted by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on behalf of the Civil Aviation Ministry. Representatives of ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) member states in the Asia Pacific region, along with various international organisations, participate in the meeting that is held annually. "India will be hosting the APAC-AIG meeting for the first time. There will be participation of approximately 90 representatives from aircraft accident investigation authorities of Asia Pacific countries, as well as from the ICAO," the release said. The meeting is generally hosted by any one of the ICAO member states in the APAC region. Civil Aviatio
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that the US military is deploying an aircraft carrier to the waters off South America, in the latest escalation and buildup of military forces in the region. The US military has conducted its 10th strike on a suspected drug-running boat, Hegseth said earlier Friday, blaming the Tren de Aragua gang for operating the vessel and leaving six people dead in the Caribbean Sea. In a social media post, Hegseth said the strike occurred overnight, and it marks the second time the Trump administration has tied one of its operations to the gang that originated in a Venezuelan prison. The pace of the strikes has quickened in recent days from one every few weeks when they first began to three this week, killing a total of at least 43 people since September. Two of the most recent strikes were carried out in the eastern Pacific Ocean, expanding the area where the military has launched attacks and shifting to where much of the cocaine from the world'
A cargo aircraft skidded off a Hong Kong runway into the sea when landing early Monday, killing two people. The flight, arriving from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was landing at Hong Kong International Airport around 3.50 am, according to Hong Kong's airport authority. Four crew members on the plane were rescued and taken to hospital. Initial reports from police said two people in an airport ground vehicle were dead. The north runway of Hong Kong's airport, one of Asia's busiest, where the aircraft skidded off runway, has been closed, authorities said. Two other runways at the airport continue to operate. The Boeing 747 freighter is a Turkish air cargo carrier AirACT aircraft flying for Emirates SkyCargo, with the flight number EK9788. It was flying from Al Maktoum International Airport. Hong Kong's Civil Aviation Department said in a statement that it was following up with the airline and other parties involved in the crash.
Mahindra Group on Friday said it has inked a pact with Embraer Defense & Security for introduction of C-390 Millennium military transport aircraft in India. Embraer Defense & Security and Mahindra Group have signed a landmark strategic cooperation agreement (SCA) to advance the C-390 Millennium solution for the Indian Air Force's Medium Transport Aircraft (MTA) programme, the Mumbai-based Mahindra Group said in a statement. This agreement was inked alongside the inauguration of Embraer's national office in Aerocity, New Delhi. The agreement builds upon the memorandum of understanding signed in February 2024 at the Embassy of Brazil in New Delhi, deepening the scope of cooperation to include joint marketing, industrialisation and developing India as a hub for the C-390 Millennium. Since the signing, the C-390 Millennium aircraft has further increased its operator base globally. Embraer and Mahindra Group will work closely with stakeholders in the country and engage with India's