Author: FlyMarshall Newsroom

Air Canada has announced cuts to its flight schedule in response to the increase in the cost of jet fuel caused by the war in Iran and the conflict in the Middle East. On April 17, 2026, Air Canada said it had identified several routes that were “no longer economically feasible” against the current financial backdrop. “As we regularly do, we monitor and review our network to ensure that routes are meeting profitability targets. Jet fuel prices have doubled since the start of the Iran conflict, affecting some lower profitability routes and flights which now are no longer economically feasible,”…

Commentary By Scott Hamilton April 19, 2026, © Leeham News: News broke on Friday that US ultra low cost carrier (ULCC) Spirit Airlines wants a few hundred million dollars from the federal government to save it from liquidation. The reason: the price of jet fuel more than doubled since Feb. 28 when Donald Trump directed the military to bomb Iran. Trump didn’t ask Congress for authority to commence this war. Israel simultaneously undertook its own bombing. Iran responded by bombing Israel and just about every other country in the Middle East, and by attacking a US aircraft carrier and unarmed…

While I’ve questioned the carrier’s prospects of success since before launch, it’s not surprising that recent events are causing this. Beond Airlines will stop flying its network this summerBeond Airlines launched operations in 2023, and it brands itself as the world’s first premium leisure airline. The company is headquartered in Dubai, but primarily operates flights to and from the Maldives. I reviewed the airline in 2024, and the onboard product was super pleasant. The airline currently has a fleet of two aircraft, including one A319 and one A321.Beond Airlines has a fleet of two aircraftAnyway, the company has just announced an update to its summer…

I travel solo quite a bit, and I always struggle to decide what to do when it comes to dining in these situations, assuming I’m not meeting anyone for meals. So that brings me to a topic where I’m curious to get the thoughts of OMAAT readers… Dining alone when traveling can be intimidating “Just a table for one?” There’s an inherent bias against solo diners. If you’ve dined alone, you’ve probably been asked that question when you walked into a restaurant, which almost makes you want to get defensive. Why is dining alone a “just” situation, while that’s not…

Bell Textron said on April 17, 2026, that it has formed a subsidiary in Ukraine and plans to open a dedicated office there as part of a longer-term industrial cooperation effort with the country. The new entity, Bell Textron Ukraine, will serve as the hub for the company’s activities in Ukraine, Bell said. The subsidiary will support planned and future work focused on helicopter assembly, maintenance and repair. Bell did not name a permanent office location in its announcement. The move follows letters of intent Bell signed in October 2025 with Ukrainian counterparts. In those earlier announcements, Bell said it…

I hope everyone is having a nice weekend so far! I just embarked on a trip to Asia, which I’ll be sharing the details of shortly. The planning ended up being so last minute (between changes to my itinerary due to the Lufthansa strike, plus the Middle East situation), but I’m excited! Posts might be timed a little differently than usual over the coming week, but then again, I don’t really sleep much when I travel internationally. On the points & travel front, goodness, it was quite the week. Reports suggest that Spirt is nearing liquidation, we learned that United…

U.S. CENTCOM released some interesting photos of the AH-64 gunships patrolling the Strait just as Iran moved to restrict traffic through the narrow waterway once again. Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) gunboats reportedly fired on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, according to an advisory released by the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), on Saturday Apr. 18, 2026. The warning said the organization had received a direct notification from the ship’s master, who reported being approached by two IRGC gunboats some 20 nautical miles off the coast of Oman. No radio warning was said to have been…

The U.S. Air Force announced a test of the Family of Affordable Mass Munitions-Lugged, with photos showing the weapon was a Rusty Dagger low-cost cruise missile. The U.S. Air Force announced that it completed in March 2026 a series of integration trials of one of the Extended Range Attack Munition (ERAM) weapons, the Rusty Dagger low-cost air-launched surface-strike cruise missile developed by Zone 5 Technologies. The weapon was released by an F-16 Fighting Falcon jet from Eglin AFB, Florida. The Apr. 13 press release said the test campaign included a series of captive carry and release trials, including “fit and…

Sierra Nevada Corporation announced that two Contractor-Owned Contractor-Operated ATHENA-S jets finished testing and are now operational in support of the U.S. Army’s Aerial-ISR mission. Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) has announced on Apr. 15, 2026, that both contractor and government testing of the Army Theater level High Altitude Expeditionary Next Airborne ISR-Signals Intelligence (ATHENA-S) jets has been completed. The aircraft are now ready for Contractor-Owned Contractor-Operated (COCO) service in support of the U.S. Army’s Airborne-Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (A-ISR) mission. The ATHENA-S milestone validates the Bombardier Global 6500 Rapid Configurable to Any Mission-X (RAPCON-X) aircraft’s design, mission systems integration and operational…

04.17.26: Microair SkySuite, Spirit SE-1 Grabs Attention, Tarragon Tandem Speedster The U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, have announced the commanding officer for the 2027 and 2028 seasons at the Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola. “It’s an incredible honor to take on this role and represent the men and women of this team. Every day, I’m focused on leading in a way that reflects that responsibility, and making sure we continue to perform at the highest level,” said Commander Logan Peck. We’ve been flying different versions of the Bristell two-seat cruiser for over a decade.…