AVIATION NEWS BRIEFS

*SUN COUNTRY AIRLINES announced Friday the confirmation of its plan of reorganization which allows the company to exit bankruptcy. The plan was confirmed by a judge during a court hearing in Minneapolis and was overwhelmingly approved by the creditors eligible to vote. The president of Sun Country said: "The plan’s confirmation highlights the successful turnaround of Sun Country Airlines which will emerge as a profitable and debt-free company. Going forward, Sun Country is well positioned for growth and success as The Hometown Airline.” Sun Country entered into bankruptcy in October 2008. Sun Country, based in Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota, flies to 13 cities, including New York, Boston, Washington, Anchorage, San Francisco, Orlando, Phoenix and Cancun.

*AIR ZIMBABWE has now said that striking Pilots who defied a 24-hour deadline to return to work should consider themselves fired. The Pilots and cabin crew walked out of work on Wednesday, demanding payment of allowances that were cut off in February. The cash-strapped national Airline says it cannot meet the Pilots' demands. During the strike, the national carrier has had to hire planes and Pilots from South African private Airline QUARIES to fly the regional and local routes. The Air Zimbabwe chairman said late yesterday that they are not going to entertain the Pilots' demands, and the Pilots should consider themselves fired. He said in actual fact, they fired themselves by embarking on an illegal protest. The Air Zimbabwe board will meet again on Tuesday to decide on their next step.

*CATHAY PACIFIC Flight 256, on International Boeing 747 Service from London Heathrow to Hong Kong, had to make an emergency return, yesterday, September 11. The crew halted their climb out of LHR at 9000 feet, reporting that the passenger cabin would not pressurize due to a stuck outflow valve. The 747 landed back at Heathrow without incident and was removed from service for repairs.

*TRANSAVIA Flight 6654, on International Boeing 737 Service from Malaga, Spain, to Eindhoven, Netherlands, with 140 passengers and 6 crew members onboard, reported problems with their flaps, while on approach to Eindhoven, yesterday, September 11. Despite attempts to resolve the problem, the crew had to make a landing at a higher than normal speed. The 737 was later removed from service for inspection and repairs.

*DELTA AIRLINES Flight 1721, on Domestic A320 Service from Detroit, Michigan, to Tampa, Florida, with 138 passengers and 5 crew members onboard, had to return to Detroit due to an unruly passenger, on Friday, September 10. While climbing thru 20000 feet, the crew requested return due to a disruptive female passenger. The A320 landed back in Detroit about 35 minutes after their original departure and the woman was removed from the aircraft. Without going into details, the FBI said the woman's behaviour concerened the crew, but she was not a threat. She was not arrested, however Delta would not allow her to re-board the aircraft before its departure for Tampa.

*KATEKAVIA Flight 57, on Domestic Antonov AN24 Service from Krasnojarsk Cheremshanka to Igarka, Russia, with 22 passengers and 4 crew members onboard, suffered a bird strike while on approach to Igarka, on Thursday, September 9. The crew landed the Antonov without incident. Post flight inspection revealed a crack in 1 of the wings, thus the aircraft was removed from service for repairs.