by Elsie Clark | Sep 29, 2025 | Connectivity, Flight Ops IT
An incident at Nice Côte d’Azur Airport is under investigation after two aircraft came within three metres of each other on the runway, narrowly avoiding a crash.
The near-accident occurred on Sunday 21 September at around 21.30 local time during stormy, foggy conditions. A Nouvelair A320 from Tunis Carthage Airport came into land and flew metres above an easyJet flight on the runway, bound for Nantes.
Eyewitnesses said that the easyJet aircraft shook as the Nouvelair plane passed overhead. The flight to Nantes was subsequently cancelled, and the easyJet pilot was reported to have left the craft in distress. The Nouvelair plane was forced to go-around and landed safely shortly after.
The French Minister of Transport, Philippe Tabaro, has opened an investigation into the near-collision through the Bureau d’enquêtes et d’analyses (BEA).
Stormy conditions emphasise limitations of available positioning tech
The situation at Nice Airport was complicated by the poor weather conditions that forced many flights to be delayed, diverted, or cancelled. In an amusing high-profile incident, Formula One drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc ended up driving a van back to Monaco from Italy after their plane to Nice was unexpectedly diverted on the evening of 21 September.
Possibly, the incident between the easyJet and Nouvelair planes would have occurred if visibility had been better. Yet the near-accident also highlights the shortcomings of air traffic control and the inability of aircraft to position themselves safely in relation to each other.
Recently, Aerospace Tech Review also reported on Honeywell’s testing new SURF-A technology, which the company claims will improve pilots’ situational awareness and prevent runway incidents. The test recreated two famous near-collisions at American airports and demonstrated how real-time alerts could have been used to prevent them.
Yet technology can be fallible too. The drama that unfolded at Nice last week only highlights once again the importance of ongoing safety improvements and multiple backups to guarantee the safety of passengers and crew.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where we’ll be discussing the latest innovations in avionics and flight ops that are improving safety in aviation.
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 24, 2025 | Flight Ops IT, Innovation
Optimising flight operations is an increasingly popular topic as the aviation industry tries to reduce emissions and make processes as efficient as possible. But how can data be used to effect meaningful change?
With disruption costing the industry as much as 8% of its revenue, effective flight planning is key to remaining competitive. At Aerospace Tech Week 2025, we sat down with Murray Skelton, Vice President of Business Development at FLYHT Aerospace Solutions, an FTG company, to discuss the future of flight ops.
Most aircraft receive weather updates that are 15 minutes out of date, which can result in delays when flying in unexpected conditions. Skelton discusses how real-time weather updates onboard are essential for ensuring flights operate in the best possible conditions at all times.
We should have, as a community, almost a mandate that says all aircraft that are flying should effectively be flying weather stations.
Weather stations such as the UK Met Office are investing in powerful supercomputers to make forecasts as accurate as possible. But Skelton argues that these computers are only as powerful as the data they provide.
They need more data, and the best place and actually the cheapest place to get the data is to turn aircraft into weather stations.
The conversation also covers the urgent need for aviation to modernise its connectivity infrastructure. With volumes of aircraft expected to double by 2042, leveraging data will be key reducing operational strain.
Right now, ACARS is still the number one communications tool of an airplane. It’s something from 1958, equivalent to very early texting with cellular phones. IP systems are out there, but uptake is quite slow.
Skelton nevertheless remains optimistic about the future, anticipating different ways in which superior data and transmission will enhance flight ops.
The data is getting cheaper. The transmission of data is getting cheaper. And that’s all going to help – but we’re not there yet.
🎥 Watch the full interview to hear Murray Skelton’s full interview on data in aerospace.
Questions asked include:
- How can effective flight planning minimise disruption?
- The number of aircraft in operation is set to double by 2042. How important is it for airlines to leverage data to navigate this transition successfully?
- How do you maintain data quality and ensure all information is reliable and accurate?
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 18, 2025 | AI & ML, Flight Ops IT, Innovation
Korean Air and Boeing will partner on predictive analytics for proactive fleet maintenance, they announced at the MRO Asia-Pacific 2025 conference in Singapore.
The South Korean national carrier has established an early lead in predictive maintenance, setting up a dedicated team in 2023 that has since developed an in-house MRO solution. The partnership with Boeing will focus on advancing data-driven maintenance from this foundation to optimise fleet availability.
Chan Woo Jung, Senior Vice President and Head of Maintenance and Engineering at Korean Air, said:
We have made substantial progress in enhancing fleet reliability through our Smart MRO strategy, specifically by leveraging predictive maintenance. This strategic collaboration with Boeing will build on that success, taking our capabilities to the next level.
As we continue to expand our fleet, this partnership is key to enhancing our maintenance operations.
The announcement comes after Korean Air signed the largest-ever single aircraft order in history in late August 2025. 103 new Boeing airliners of different types are set to replenish and expand the airline’s fleet as they merge with Asiana Airlines.
The new predictive maintenance partnership with Boeing will support the US$36 billion investment, ensuring that Korean Air get the most out of their new aircraft while minimising passenger disruption.
Boeing’s suite of intelligence tools includes the Insight Accelerator, a custom predictive maintenance solution that helps avoid flight delays and minimises aircraft time on ground (AOG). Powered by machine learning (ML) algorithms, it is the first tool of its kind to launch on the MRO market.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where our dedicated MRO IT panels will be discussing the future of predictive maintenance in aviation.
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 17, 2025 | Flight Ops IT, Innovation
Air India has adopted SITA OptiFlight’s advanced climb optimisation solution, OptiClimb, and SITA eWAS for improved operational sustainability. The data-driven insights provided will reduce the airline’s carbon emissions by 35,000 tons each year.
The Indian national carrier has adopted the software as part of is intensive modernisation strategy, which includes retrofitting its current planes and purchasing more aircraft. The SITA technology has now rolled out across its fleet of Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s, with the widebody fleet to be added soon.
The SITA OptiFlight suite helps airlines optimise key phases of flights, especially energy-intense phases. Without compromising safety or performance, the intelligence tools provide custom climb-out schedules for each aircraft, reducing fuel burn.
SITA eWAS, on the other hand, is a complementary programme that provides pilots with weather updates and predictive forecasting. The availability of this real-time data helps the crew avoid turbulence and re-route efficiently.
Sumesh Patel, President, Asia Pacific at SITA, said:
Air India’s deployment of SITA OptiFlight and eWAS is a strong example of how smart digital technologies can cut emissions, save fuel, and unlock real operational value across every flight.
Basil Kwauk, Chief Operations Officer, Air India, added:
Sustainability and efficiency are core to our transformation into a world-class airline. With SITA OptiFlight and SITA eWAS, we’re taking meaningful steps to modernize our operations, reduce our carbon footprint.
Fuel savings across the fleet as a result of SITA’s optimisations are expected to be in the region 11,000 tons. The announcement comes after Air India signed a memorandum of understanding with IndianOil for the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) in August 2025 – a further component of its net-zero emissions strategy.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where our dedicated Flight Ops IT and Sustainability tracks will be exploring how to improve aircraft operational performance while reducing emissions,
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 9, 2025 | Flight Ops IT
Air Peace and Embraer are collaborating on a new maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) centre in Lagos, Nigeria.
The project was initially proposed two years ago, but is now ready for take off. Air Peace and the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer will start construction on the new facility later this month, with operations expected to commence next year.
An Embraer spokesperson said:
[We] will use [our] experience in the commercial MRO industry to provide advice on aspects related to hangar and capacity planning, tooling/GSE needs, technical training avenues, leadership matrix and KPIs, to list a few.
The OEMs expertise will help maintain Air Peace’s Embraer aircraft, as well as other fleet types in their arsenal.
The new centre will not only support Air Peace, but other airlines across Africa. Egyptair, Ethiopian Airlines, and Royal Air Maroc are among the few African airlines who operate MRO centres within the continent. According to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, the country spends US$2.5 billion on offshore aircraft maintenance each year.
This lack of infrastructure is not only expensive, but protracts downtime for African aircraft. It also diverts resources away from a native aviation industry that is experiencing significant growth: according to IATA, Africa’s aviation market is expected to double by 2044. The Air Peace/Embraer MRO centre therefore represents a significant milestone in the development of West African aviation.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where we’ll be discussing the future of MRO, from predictive analytics to digital twins.
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by Jessica Brownlow | Jul 7, 2025 | AI & ML, Flight Ops IT, Video
At Aerospace Tech Week, Rob Galbraith, Director of Flight Operations at United Airlines reflected on the airline’s flight operations progress looking at the technology driving change, opportunities for AI/ML integration, and the greatest challenges to seamless real-world operations.
Galbraith picked out the electronic flight bag (EFB) as one of the most impactful areas of progress due to its more flexible regulatory status. This offers flexibility for airlines and developers to innovate and respond to changing demands.
Acknowledging not every aspect of the industry is keeping pace with desired progress, Galbraith described the greatest challenge to achieving seamless flight ops as:
“Working with our training teams to actually train how we expect the pilot to operate. Right now we do a great job with simulators training how we would like to actually fly the airplane, but not operate the airplane. The next step is that we can use it in the simulator and mirror exactly how the crew would use it on the line flying a real flight. And currently that’s not possible in a lot of cases.”
AI and ML also sit at the heart of the industry’s optimisation strategy. Galbraith shared how the technology is being leveraged to help flight crews make better real-time decisions as well as streamline backend processes like updating manuals and ensuring compliance across global regulations.
To learn more watch the full interview below. To hear live from industry experts join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026 in April!
Questions asked include:
- Which technology do you believe is currently driving the most progress in flight ops?
- Are there any emerging technologies that, although they are still in their infancy, you expect will have a major impact in the future?
- How is United integrating AI & ML into flight ops systems and to what end? Can you share any specific examples?
- What do you understand as the greatest challenge to achieving seamless flight ops, and what’s United’s strategy for overcoming this?
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