Flight International

3 days ago | flightglobal.com | Dominic Perry

Loss-making Cranfield Aerospace Solutions (CAeS) continues to strike an upbeat tone in its latest accounts, predicting a “significant volume of incremental business” in the future from the modular hydrogen fuel cell propulsion system it is developing. But in the short-term, losses have continued, standing at £4.3 million ($5.85 million) after tax for the 12 months ended 30 September 2024, roughly in line with the £4.2 million loss recorded a year earlier.

5 days ago | flightglobal.com | Alfred Chua

Hainan Airlines has taken delivery of its first Airbus A321neo, becoming the type’s newest operator in China. The aircraft, registered B-32LY, arrived at Hainan’s Haikou Meilan international airport hub on 19 June from Airbus’ Hamburg facility. Source: Hainan AirlinesHainan Airlines received the first of two A321neos The CFM International Leap-1A-powered jet is configured to seat 204 passengers in a two-class setting: eight seats in business class and 196 in economy class.

1 week ago | flightglobal.com | Dominic Perry

Safran Aircraft Engines’ goal for the T-Rex enhancement for its Dassault Aviation Rafale-powering M88 engine is to “deliver more thrust with minimal changes” to the design, according to the company’s chief executive. Unveiled at the Paris air show on 17 June, the M88 T-Rex will equip the future F5-standard Rafale, which is set to enter service in the early 2030s. It will raise the thrust available from the afterburning engine by 20% to 19,840lb (88kN) over the current 16,500lb.

1 week ago | flightglobal.com | Ryan Finnerty

A former general who oversaw the US Air Force’s fleet of tanker and transport aircraft is warning recent battlefield success in the Middle East against Iran may be creating a false sense of security. Mike Minihan, who retired from the USAF in 2024 as the head of Air Mobility Command (AMC), says the current build-up of US air power to backstop Israel’s ongoing campaign against Iran is being carried out with methods unlikely to be successful in the future.

1 week ago | flightglobal.com | Dominic Perry

Elysian Aircraft will later this year unveil an updated design for its E9X battery-powered airliner and has in the meantime contracted Spanish aerostructures supplier Aernnova to begin initial wing development studies. Speaking to FlightGlobal at the Paris air show, co-chief executive Daniel Rosen Jacobson says the second iteration of the E9X design is “nearly finished” and is currently undergoing review.