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The Portuguese government announced its intention to sell TAP Air again in 2022. Credit: Petr Podrouzek/Shutterstock

Lufthansa Group is reportedly eyeing a stake in TAP Air Portugal as it looks to build on its successful bid for Italy’s ITA Airways. 

The German company is set to heighten discussions of a 19.9% stake in the airline with the Portuguese government as CEO Carsten Spohr heads to Portugal for talks with the authorities according to reports from the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera. 

Any deal would see Lufthansa take a non-controlling stake in the airline to avoid EU scrutiny of the acquisition according to sources, but would still represent another expansion of the group’s dominant presence in the European aviation market. 

A formal offer for a stake in the airline is expected to be made in the first quarter of 2025 if talks between Portugal and Lufthansa go well and could be worth around €180m-€200m based on TAP Air’s estimated value. 

The Asia Sustainable Aviation Fuel Association (ASAFA) has launched in Singapore, aiming to accelerate Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) adoption across Asia.

ASAFA, supported by members including Korean Air and DHL Group, is seeking to “harmonise policies” and enhance market frameworks for SAF in regions such as Southeast Asia, South Korea, Japan, India, and China.

Its mission is to unite stakeholders in the SAF value chain to address core challenges collaboratively. ASAFA’s initiatives include hosting webinars, workshops, dialogues, and producing industry white papers to promote SAF in Asia.

A Memorandum of Understanding with A*STAR will connect ASAFA members with research institutes for piloting SAF technologies, fostering business networking and strengthening Singapore’s aviation innovation ecosystem.

ASAFA aims to enhance market frameworks supporting SAF development through dynamic working groups comprising industry and government stakeholders.

Aerospace company Embraer has opened its new service centre at Perot Field Alliance Airport in Fort Worth, Texas, US. 

The investment in its maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services in the US is intended to support the increasing number of E-Jets. 

Embraer collaborated with local authorities, including the City of Fort Worth, Denton County, and the State of Texas, as it aims to commence operations in an existing hangar in the second quarter of 2025.  

The construction of an additional hangar is projected to be completed by 2027. These facilities will enhance Embraer’s capacity to serve E-Jets customers in the US by 53%. 

The work will entail an investment of up to $70m and is expected to generate around 250 new aviation jobs in Texas. The new service centre at Fort Worth will join Embraer’s extensive global network, which currently includes 80 authorised centres and 12 owned service centres worldwide.  

Canada’s two biggest airlines, WestJet and Air Canada, have been ordered to hand over information about their operations as part of the Canadian government’s probe into the competitiveness of the country’s airline industry.

Ottowa’s Competition Bureau obtained two court orders requiring the airlines to provide the information as part of its market study, with the companies told to hand in documents detailing their competition analyses, key performance metrics, and analyses of barriers to entry in the industry.

The order is part of the Bureau’s airline market study launched in July, which has set out to explore the competitiveness of the market dominated by its two biggest players after the closure of multiple smaller Canadian airlines such as Lynx Air and Canada Jetlines in recent years.

The Bureau reported that 80% of the domestic market’s capacity was provided by WestJet and Air Canada.

Information provided by WestJet and Air Canada under the new court orders will be used to inform the Bureau’s ‘evidence-based findings’ and recommendations on how to improve the competitiveness of the industry.

Singapore Changi Airport will commence construction of a major new terminal building in the first half of next year according to the country’s prime minister.

The new Terminal 5 building would increase capacity at the airport by 50 million passengers a year and allow airlines to add more than 50 destinations to the airport’s offering by the mid-2030s.

The beginning of construction on the new terminal would mark a significant step forward for the project, which has been in the works since 2013 but has had a slow journey to opening, including a two-year pause on its development during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Singaporean Government had previously said construction would begin in 2025 but the PM’s comments at an anniversary dinner for the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore mark the strongest commitment yet to breaking ground on the project.

Terminal 5 is part of a wider project expanding the airport’s facilities known as Changi East, which includes the development of a three-runway system, new landside and aviation support facilities, and the creation of a smart air cargo hub.