Flight International, December 2024

The cover choice for our year-end issue highlights FlightGlobal’s 2025 World Air Forces directory. Our comprehensive report details the in-service assets of 161 nations, and tells you how to read and download a free copy of our full fleet listing, produced in association with Embraer.

We assess the heightened tension between Russia and Kyiv’s western supporters as the war in Ukraine passes the 1,000-day mark, and the challenge facing Airbus as it strives to meet its revised commercial delivery target for 2024.

Elsewhere, we look at the major financial challenge facing multiple air taxi developers, the UK’s options around buying more Lockheed Martin F-35s, and why investigators probing the loss of an EgyptAir Airbus A320 in 2016 cannot agree on the likely cause. Plus, we report from the Bahrain International Airshow and European Rotors events.

Also this issue: can you gain coveted ‘Total Aviation Person’ status by scoring highly enough in Uncle Roger’s fiendish festive quiz?

Use the links below to access our latest issue’s content in web-optimised format, and subscribers can view our “page-turner” digital replica of the magazine and download a pdf version at the foot of the page. Subscribers can also access our archived issues by clicking on the filing cabinet drawer symbol next to the search icon.

Flight International cover Dec 2024

Cover story

USAF F-35A

How the global military fleet shapes up in our 2025 World Air Forces review

By

Our annual World Air Forces directory – published in association with Embraer – details the military aircraft fleets of 161 nations, and analyses the main events of the last 12 months.

Lead stories

A330 assembly-c-Airbus

Airbus chief insists airframer not ‘doomed’ to backloaded deliveries

2024-10-31T10:21:00+00:00By

Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury acknowledges that the airframer is again having to cope with a heavily-backloaded fourth quarter, but views it as a consequence of trying to ramp-up production while addressing unexpected disruptive events.

Storm Shadow on RAF Typhoon

NATO vouches continual support for Ukraine after 1,000 days of conflict

2024-11-20T15:09:00+00:00By

The war in Ukraine entered a new phase in mid-November, as Kyiv’s forces began to engage military targets inside Russian territory using long-range weapons donated by the USA and its other western allies.

Analysis

Spirit Airlines

Spirit ‘still flying’ at outset of financial restructuring as liquidation warnings arise

By

As Spirit Airlines executes a long-foreshadowed decision to undergo financial restructuring, some analysts foresee short-term turbulence ahead for Spirit – and even the potential liquidation of its fleet

Trio of Joby aircraft

Cash positions increasingly critical for US electric air taxi developers

By

Amid a drier landscape for investment capital, US air taxi developers face a critical phase. 

VX4 Phase 2 - 1-c-Vertical Aerospace

‘No more delays’ pledges Vertical chief Simpson following ‘bottom-up’ VX4 review

By

Vertical Aerospace’s chief executive says the decision to delay the service entry of its VX4 by two years came after a deep engineering-led review of the electric air taxi’s progress, but he insists there will be no further timeline slippage.

RAF F-35B hover

UK to take first TR-3-standard F-35, as Lockheed targets full 138-unit commitment

By

The UK is poised to receive its first Lockheed Martin F-35B produced in the stealth fighter’s new Technical Refresh 3 (TR-3) standard, while the airframer steps up its campaign to secure a follow-on production order from the nation.

EL9 Manhattan HIGH RE S

Start-up Electra reveals nine-seat ‘EL9 Ultra Short’ aircraft design

By

After months of flight-testing a prototype capable of taking off and landing with 46m (150ft) of runway, US aircraft developer Electra has revealed the design for its proposed production aircraft – the EL9 Ultra Short.

EgyptAir SU-GCC-c-Firat Cimenli Creative Commons

EgyptAir A320 crash: Circumstances of oxygen leak and ignition source remain unclear

By

While French investigators believe an intense oxygen-fuelled cockpit fire brought down an EgyptAir Airbus A320 eight years ago, they have yet to determine fully the reasons for the oxygen leak and pinpoint the source of ignition.

HeliTeam-c-Heli-Team_NSIA

Inquiry calls for action on powerlines after Norwegian near-catastrophe

By

Norwegian accident investigators have urged the country’s civil aviation regulator to review its policy on the marking of overhead powerlines after a light helicopter narrowly avoided a crash after flying into an unmarked cable.

AW169-c-Avincis

Avincis spins up global growth plan

By

Emergency services provider Avincis is charting an aggressive growth path, targeting global expansion where “nothing is off the table”.

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World Air Forces

USAF F-35A

How the global military fleet shapes up in our 2025 World Air Forces review

2024-11-21T14:00:00+00:00By

Our annual World Air Forces directory – published in association with Embraer – details the military aircraft fleets of 161 nations, and analyses the main events of the last 12 months.

South Korean F-4s

Which types left use during our latest World Air Forces review?

2024-11-25T13:26:00+00:00By

We detail some of the most notable national fleet retirements recorded in the 12 months since we published our last World Air Forces directory at the end of 2023.

Women in aviation

Former BoA captain Paola Velasco

In depth

Flying 747s at age 23: how Paola Velasco shattered biases in Bolivia’s airline industry

By

Paola Velasco became the first female pilot in command for a Bolivian airline. Currently expecting her first child, she is hoping to overcome a medical condition that has kept her out of the cockpit.