Air France to wet-lease A320 from SmartLynx Estonia

Air France-KLM orders four A350-1000(F)s for Martinair

Air France-KLM has ordered four incremental A350-1000(F)s for its cargo subsidiary, Martinair (MP, Amsterdam Schiphol), operating as KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Cargo, to replace the Dutch carrier's four B747 freighters.

The quartet of A350s is scheduled to deliver in the second half of 2026, concurrently with the other four A350-1000(F)s previously ordered by Air France-KLM for Air France (AF, Paris CDG). This will put both airlines among the first operators of the variant globally.

"We want to emit less CO2 because of the climate and reduce noise for local residents. The A350F reduces CO2 by over 40% and noise by 50% compared to their predecessors. That is why we decided to place this order earlier than originally planned. Instead of in 2027, we will replace the freighters from autumn 2026. We are accelerating KLM's sustainability efforts with this," KLM CEO Marjan Rintel said.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that Martinair currently operates one B747-400(BCF) and three B747-400ERFs.

Following the retirement of the last B747-400(M)...

Air France, KLM cargo cartel fine annulled

The Swiss Federal Administrative Court has annulled a EUR3.9 million euro (USD4.26 million dollar) fine imposed on Air France, Air France-KLM, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in relation to a decades-old alleged cargo cartel that has ensnared multiple airlines and their subsidiaries.

A January 18 statement issued by Air France's legal team, Linklaters, said the court annulled the Swiss Competition Commission-issued fine in a December 20 judgement. "The Federal Administrative Court accepted Air France's arguments, particularly regarding the lack of jurisdiction for certain practices," the statement read.

Notably, the matter concerned only the three entities, with Martinair, British Airways, Air Canada, JAL - Japan Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, LATAM Airlines, and Cargolux not being party to the proceedings. The case stemmed from alleged cargo cartel activity between 1999 and 2006 among the carriers. In 2010, the European Commission began issuing a series of fines to the airlines for the alleged fixing of air cargo charges, many of which have been successfully overturned...

S. Africa's Airlink resumes Madagascar ops after ban lifted

Airlink (South Africa) (4Z, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo) will restart scheduled services between Johannesburg O.R. Tambo and Antananarivo from January 30 following a decision by Madagascar to lift an effective three-year ban on commercial flights to/from South Africa.

Madagascar removed all Covid-19 travel restrictions on March 3, 2022, but continued to block all flights to/from South Africa, a ban extended on October 15, 2022, particularly affecting Airlink, the only scheduled operator on the route.

As confirmed by Madagascar's Council of Ministers on July 13, 2022, the reason was a dispute between Antananarivo and Pretoria over 73.5 kilograms of smuggled gold and USD20,000 seized at Johannesburg OR Tambo International Airport on December 31, 2020, from three passengers who had arrived from Madagascar on a chartered flight.

The Malagasy government demanded the return of the treasure and the extradition of its nationals, now jailed in South Africa. The route to South Africa stayed closed pending the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two nations to combat the smuggling of national resources.

Lufthansa submits offer to Rome for stake in ITA Airways