Top airline news stories for August 12, 2026 (click the link for the full details):
Another airline commits to serve Western Sydney Airport
Iberia operates a Solar Eclipse flight
Operational troubles at Air Botswana
Copa Airlines announces a new route to Venezuela
New aircraft order for Lufthansa
United Airlines resumes a route to Venezuela
Virgin Australia suspends a route
Volaris drops a group of domestic routes
American Airlines, in collaboration with Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), is launching its annual campaign to raise funds for innovative and lifesaving cancer research โ and is calling for support from customers.
The six-week campaign, โLetโs Go Further, Together,โ launches Aug. 13 and features award-winning actress Lily Collins, SU2C researchers and Americanโs team members โ each with their own meaningful cancer story โ in a critical public service announcement about coming together to end cancer once and for all.
From Aug. 13. to Sept. 30, 2026, donors who give $25 or more to SU2C online at SU2C.org/AmericanAirlines will earn 25 AAdvantageยฎ bonus miles for every dollar donated. And thanks to the generous support of Mastercard, those who use their AAdvantageยฎ Mastercardยฎ credit card to donate between $25 and $10,000 online will receive 50 bonus miles for every dollar donated until Sept. 30, 2026, or when total qualifying donations reach $5 million, whichever comes first.*
SU2C, established in 2008, enables scientific breakthroughs by funding collaborative, multidisciplinary, multi-institutional scientific cancer research teams and investigators. Since joining forces with SU2C in 2016, American has raised more than $34 million in support of the mission.
In 2019, American unveiled a specially designed Airbus A321 aircraft featuring SU2C livery and the names of loved ones honored by customers and team members impacted by the disease. This powerful tribute is still flying today and serves as a constant reminder of those who inspire this mission every day.
โIโm incredibly grateful and proud to be part of this campaign with Stand Up To Cancer and American Airlines,โ said award-winning actress Lily Collins. โCancer has touched so many lives, and itโs inspiring to come together in support of the researchers, patients, families and communities working toward a future without this disease. Every conversation, every donation and every act of generosity brings us one step closer to making a meaningful difference. Itโs an honor to lend my voice to a cause that gives so many people hope.โ
Learn more about how to donate at SU2C.org/AmericanAirlines.
*Terms and conditions apply
Top airline news stories for August 12, 2026 (click the link for the full details):
Air Canada reports its Q2 financial results
Air France targets the retirement date for the remaining Airbus A318s
The clock is ticking for Asiana Airlines, final merger date set
New plan for Cabo Verde Airlines
Neos plans to resume an international route
Nok Air to resume international operations
FedEx announced:
On August 11, 2026, the Memphis community and FedEx team members worldwide came together to honor the legacy of the late FedEx founder Frederick W. Smith. In a dual tribute, the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority celebrated the renaming of the Memphis International Airport in his honor, coinciding with the inaugural FedEx FWS Day of Service.
The renaming serves as a lasting tribute to Smith, who passed away in June 2025, and recognizes his unparalleled contributions to the aviation industry, the global economy, and the city of Memphis. Simultaneously, the day of service honors his profound civic pride and philosophy of community leadership by committing to do good in the communities where team members live and work.
A U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Smith chose Memphis as the home for Federal Express in 1973, citing its strategic geographic location and reliable weather. Over the subsequent five decades, Smith deeply invested in the cityโs future, ensuring the partnership between the airport, the city of Memphis, and FedEx helped shape the region into a critical hub for global commerce and economic development. As a visible tribute to this shared history, FedEx today unveiled a new mural along Plough Boulevard. The artwork features a portrait of Smith composed of the iconic FedEx purple aircraft tails โ a fitting gateway image for travelers arriving and departing the city he helped champion.
โMoving forward, every plane, person, and package that passes through Frederick W. Smith International Airport will carry the spirit of our visionary founder and the pride of a city that connects the world,โ said Raj Subramaniam, president and chief executive officer of FedEx Corporation.
Memphis was more than just a headquarters to Smith; it was his hometown, and he fiercely championed its civic and economic prosperity. Today, FedEx delivers over 18 million packages a day around the world. Of those, the Memphis World Hub โ located at the newly dedicated airport โ sorts more than 2.4 million packages daily.
The event concluded with a ceremonial landing of Flight 1944, a FedEx 777F (N864FD) (above) painted in the companyโs original 1972 purple and orange livery. The flight number honors the year Smith was born. It made the first ceremonial landing at the newly renamed Frederick W. Smith Airport. The aircraft is named Rosie after one of Smithโs granddaughters who was born shortly before his passing. This naming continues the longstanding tradition of naming aircraft after employeesโ children.
The FWS Day of Service also is a part of Purple Week, the companyโs global, enterprise-wide celebration grounded in its โPeople-Service-Profitโ (PSP) culture values. The week recognizes not just what the FedEx team achieves, but how they make it happen together. This week, there are more than 120 FedEx Cares volunteer and community impact events happening around the world, part of the companyโs global community engagement program. Moving forward, this annual day of service will honor the late founderโs legacy by ensuring FedEx continues to take care of its communities and each other for generations to come.
Top airline news stories for August 11, 2026 (click the link for the full details):
Breeze Airways expands internationally
Pegasus Airlines expands in Europe with a major acquisition
American Airlines restores a seasonal route to South America
ValueJet on August 7, 2026 announced the following:
We’re proud to welcome the first of three Boeing 737NG aircraft to the ValueJet family, a defining milestone in our growth journey.
Its arrival marks the beginning of a new phase for ValueJet, strengthening our capacity, expanding our network, and creating even more opportunities to connect people and places.
As we continue to invest in our future, one thing remains unchanged: our commitment to delivering safe, reliable, and value-driven air travel.
ValueJet was founded as an airline in 2018.ย
The airline operates to and from the following cities: Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Yola, Benin, Asaba, Kano and Jos.ย
American Airlines announced:
Following the successful debut of Pecan Lodgeโs barbecue platter and smoked brisket sandwich, American Airlines is expanding its partnership with the award-winning Texas barbecue restaurant. The popular First Class meal option will be available on all eligible domestic flights departing from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) beginning Sept. 9.
Customers can select Pecan Lodge’s smoked brisket sandwich for lunch or the barbecue platter for dinner when available for preorder on eligible flights departing from DFW.
Pecan Lodge’s smoked brisket sandwich
Pecan Lodge’s barbecue platter
But bringing an iconic Texas barbecue experience on board takes more than simply adding a menu item. It starts at Pecan Lodge’s restaurant in Dallas, where meats are seasoned and slow-smoked using the same techniques that have earned the restaurant national acclaim. The barbecue is then carefully packaged to preserve its flavor and quality, while American’s catering partners prepare each preordered entree for service in the air, ensuring customers can enjoy an authentic taste of Texas at 35,000 feet.
The expanded offering builds on American’s commitment to showcasing beloved regional brands and elevating the onboard dining experience. Pecan Lodge, nationally recognized for its Central Texas-style barbecue, has earned acclaim from The New York Times, Food Network, Travel + Leisure and more.
Beyond menu enhancements, American continues to invest in the entire inflight dining experience, offering the most elevated champagne selection among U.S. carriers, new California wines in premium cabins, premium Lavazza coffee on all mainline flights and an expanded selection of snacks available for purchase in Main Cabin.
More airline news:
American Airlines and Infinium today announced its first delivery of electro sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF) to a commercial airport for use in a commercial passenger flight, marking a major milestone in the decarbonization of aviation. The eSAF was allocated to an American flight that departed Corpus Christi International Airport (CRP) and landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), demonstrating the real-world deployment of next-generation, drop-in sustainable aviation fuel.
The eSAF used for the flight was part of a batch produced and blended at Infiniumโs Pathfinder facility in Corpus Christi, Texas โ the worldโs first commercial-scale power-to-liquids eFuels production site, which has been operating since 2023. The eSAF batch was blended with conventional jet fuel and tested to meet the ASTM International specification for JetA, certifying its use in todayโs aircraft engines and fueling infrastructure without further modification. It was then delivered to the common jet fuel tanks at CRP before being allocated to Americanโs flight to DFW โ the first delivery of SAF made without biobased feedstocks to a commercial airport in the U.S. The flight demonstrates the compatibility of eSAF with existing aviation jet fuel supply chains.
Infiniumโs eSAF is made using waste COโ and renewable electricity, delivering a meaningful reduction in lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to conventional jet fuel. Infiniumโs eSAF can reduce lifecycle GHG emissions by over 90% compared to conventional petroleum-based jet fuel.
American Airlines, a leader in advancing sustainable aviation fuel adoption, is working across the value chain to accelerate deployment of low-carbon aviation solutions. The airline has an offtake agreement for commercial volumes of eSAF from Infiniumโs Project Roadrunner, supported in part by a separate agreement with Citi to enable Scope 3 emissions reductions from employee travel. These partnerships reinforce the collaboration needed to scale next-generation fuels. Project Roadrunner, financed by Breakthrough Energy Catalyst and Brookfield Asset Management, with nonrecourse project debt from HSBC, is currently under construction and expected to begin eSAF production and deliveries in 2027. Once it reaches full capacity, Project Roadrunner is expected to produce over 5 million gallons of eSAF annually.
Aviation currently consumes nearly 100 billion gallons of jet fuel annually, with global air travel exceeding 4 billion passengers per year. Despite growing momentum, sustainable aviation fuel accounts for less than 1% of total jet fuel use worldwide. Scalable, drop-in fuels like eSAF offer one of the most near-term and practical solutions for reducing aviation emissions. Scaling eSAF also strengthens energy security by diversifying aviation fuel supply, helping create a more resilient system.
Todayโs flight marks a transition from innovation to implementation, signaling a new phase in scaling viable, low-carbon alternatives to conventional jet fuel and advancing the future of sustainable flight.
The seventh 777-9 takes off on its first flight. (Marian Lockhart photo)
The 777-9 thatย Boeingย willย use to conduct extendedย operations (ETOPS)ย andย functionย and reliabilityย testing flew for the first timeย Friday, completing anย approximatelyย three-hourย profile overย Washington State,ย Idahoย and Oregon.
Capt.ย Dan Mangelย andย Capt.ย Jake Millerย completed a standard first-flight profile that tested the airplaneโs systems and structures,ย which were monitored onboard by systems operators Scott Brihn and Zachary Lewis; flight analystsย Seth Town, John Theeringer and Michael Deutsch; instrumentation specialist Lauren Meyer; and propulsion analyst Kinsey Bilyeu. The airplane landed at Paine Field in Everett, Wash., atย 5:35ย p.m. PT.ย
Why it matters:ย Regulatory approval forย ETOPSย willย allow operators to fly the airplane extended distances from an airport suitable for landing, opening more direct routes that save time and fuel. Following extensive analysis, labย testsย and engine tests, as well as validation of the maintenance program,ย ETOPS testingย will includeย proving flights toย demonstrateย the 777-9 can safely and reliablyย conduct trans-oceanic routes andย support extended diversions.ย ย
Function and reliability testingย willย simulateย routineย operationsย in a variety of conditions toย demonstrateย the airplaneย canย operateย safelyย and reliablyย in service.ย
Preparing for flight:ย Teams rolled the airplane out of the Everett factory, applied a white livery, fueled the airplane, completed engineย runsย and conducted a taxi testย in the weeks and daysย before flight.ย ย
Continuing a legacy:ย The 777-9 will continue the 777 familyโs history of long-haul, twin-engine efficiency:ย The original 777 entered service with ETOPS approval. Its first revenue flight 31 years ago,ย between London and Washington, D.C., was an ETOPS flight.ย
Testing, certification, delivery:ย Theย 777-9ย program has logged more than 4,800 flight test hours across the 777-9 test fleet. In addition to the dedicated test airplanes, production-configuredย airplanes โ like this seventh 777-9 to fly โ are supporting certification work ahead of first delivery in 2027, the company said.ย
About the family:โฏThe 777X family โ the 777-9, the 777-8 Freighter and the 777-8 passenger airplane โ are the newest members of Boeingโs market-leading widebody family.ย Boeing teammates designedย themย to maximize efficiency and environmental performance, drawing on technologies proven on the 777 and 787 Dreamliner and new innovations, according to the company.ย
SAS has been named Europe’s most punctual airline in Cirium’s On-Time Performance report for July 2026, achieving an on-time arrival rate of 84.32 percent.ย
The result comes during the peak summer season, one of the busiest and most operationally demanding periods of the year for aviation, highlighting SAS’ continued focus on delivering a reliable travel experience.
“July puts every part of an airline’s operation to the test, with high passenger volumes, congested airports and very little margin for disruption. Being named Europe’s most punctual airline during this period is something we’re incredibly proud of. It reflects the dedication, professionalism, and teamwork of the thousands of colleagues across SAS who work every day to keep our operation moving and our customers on their way โ even when the operational environment is challenging. As we celebrate our 80th anniversary this year, this recognition reflects the values that have guided SAS for eight decades – connecting people through reliable, dependable travel,” says Anko van der Werff, President & CEO of SAS.
The July result continues a strong operational performance for SAS. Earlier this year, the airline ranked as the world’s most punctual airline in both March and April.ย
Over the past two years, SAS has achieved seven number-one rankings in Europe and four number-one rankings globally, demonstrating the consistency of its operational performance.
Cirium’s On-Time Performance rankingsย are among the aviation industry’s most widely recognized benchmarks for operational reliability, measuring the percentage of flights arriving within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time.
SAS aircraft photo gallery:
