Author: FlyMarshall Newsroom

BETA Technologies announced on March 12, 2026, that it has signed a strategic partnership with Surf Air Mobility, a regional air transportation operator based in the United States.  Surf Air Mobility has placed a firm order for 25 of BETA Technologies’ all-electric CTOL (conventional takeoff and landing) aircraft plus 75 options.  With this agreement, Surf Air Mobility will not only become BETA Technologies’ launch customer for passenger flights, but also the exclusive service center for the company’s aircraft in some designated geographical regions.  The first of these regions will be Hawaii, where Surf Air Mobility operates an extensive inter-island network…

A drone strike hit Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait on March 15, 2026, destroying a remotely piloted Italian aircraft sheltered at the facility but causing no injuries among Italian personnel, according to Italy’s Chief of the Defense General Staff, General Luciano Portolano. The base hosts both Italian and US personnel and capabilities.   No injuries, but a key asset lost  Portolano said the drone struck a shelter housing an aircraft from Italy’s Task Force Air, and that the aircraft was destroyed. He added that all Italian personnel were safe and uninjured at the time of the attack.   ANSA reported that the lost platform was a reconnaissance Predator/Reaper-type aircraft, while…

Operation Epic Fury has now entered the third week, with additional bombers arriving at RAF Fairford and a Marine Expeditionary Unit headed to the Middle East. After being initially expected to last just few days, Operation Epic Fury has now entered its third week. While it is unclear how long the U.S. plans to continue the combat operations, CNN reports that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are planning to continue their own Operation Rising Lion for three more weeks. Meanwhile, the U.S. Air Force has deployed three more B-52 Stratofortress bombers to RAF Fairford, UK, and ten F-35A Lightning II…

SriLankan Airlines has announced an increase in its daily services from Melbourne Airport (MEL) to Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport (CMB) from seven to 10 flights per week. This move comes as travel demand for South Asia continues to soar, with the additional three services set to add more than 92,000 seats annually. The new flights, operating on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, will utilize an Airbus A330-300 aircraft, with a lunchtime arrival in Colombo at 12:15 local time. The increased capacity will provide improved connectivity to Sri Lanka’s increasingly popular tourism destinations and beyond the country to India, the Maldives, and…

The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) have deployed their P-8A Poseidon aircraft to Andersen Air Force Base (UAM) in Guam to participate in Exercise Sea Dragon 2026, a United States Navy-led, multinational anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training activity. The RAAF has sent a P-8A Poseidon aircraft and 50 aviators from the recently reformed No. 12 Squadron to the two-week exercise, where they will test their skills against participating nations in detecting and tracking both simulated and live submarine targets. Squadron Leader Bryce Martin, the Detachment Commander for Exercise Sea Dragon 26, emphasized the…

ANA HOLDINGS (ANA HD) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Swiss industrial drone manufacturer Wingtra AG to evaluate the deployment of wide-area surveying and inspection services across Japan.  The collaboration, which was announced March 16, 2026, aims to leverage Wingtra’s vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) fixed-wing aircraft technology to establish an advanced data observation service, enabling efficient infrastructure inspections and rapid disaster assessments. image The partnership aligns with ANA HD’s Medium-term Corporate Strategy for FY2026-2028, which targets the launch of commercial drone services by 2027.  By combining ANA HD’s extensive aviation safety expertise with Wingtra’s innovative drone technology,…

LATAM Airlines has confirmed it will pass the 400 aircraft mark in 2026.  On March 12, 2026, the Latin American carrier provided an update on its fleet growth plans for the next two years.  If in 2025, LATAM received 26 new aircraft, bringing the total to 371 by the year end. Fleet growth will accelerate in 2026 with the arrival of 41 new aircraft.   The airline is projected to close 2026 with 410 aircraft in its fleet, which would place it among the 12 largest carriers in the world by number of aircraft, neck and neck with Turkish Airlines.  Topping…

A-10s armed with a mixed anti-air and anti-surface armament have been flying attack missions against insurgent groups aligned with the Iranian government in Iraq.  U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) released three images on Mar. 15, 2026, of A-10C Thunderbolt II attack aircraft operating in an unspecified location in support of Operation Epic Fury. These are the first official visuals we have of the A-10 taking part in this operation, though their participation had been confirmed in writing by CENTCOM during the first 48 hours of the conflict.  Now, with images available, we can take a look at the payloads being carried…

Southwest Airlines is pulling out of one of the United States’ busiest airport, and if anything, I’m surprised the airline tried to fly there in the first place. Southwest pulling out of Chicago O’Hare as of June 2026 As of June 4, 2026, Southwest intends to discontinue flights to Chicago O’Hare Airport (ORD), as the airline will instead focus on Chicago Midway Airport (MDW). The airline states that this decision was made as part of an ongoing effort to refine its network, and that “operating at Chicago O’Hare continues to be challenging, and we are confident we can serve Chicagoland through…

It’s an interesting time for Greece’s Aegean Airlines, as the airline has plans to start flying (sort of) long haul. However, unfortunately we’re going to have to wait longer than expected for that to happen at the Star Alliance carrier, though I’m not sure the airline is sharing the full story. Aegean no longer plans to fly Airbus A321XLRs In 2024, Aegean announced plans to acquire four Airbus A321LRs, which is the long range version of the popular A321 aircraft. This is the second longest range A321-family aircraft, as there’s also the A321XLR, with the XLR standing for “extra long…