Hong Kong continues to take stiff measures to control the spread of the omicron coronavirus variant, temporarily banning passenger flights from eight countries.

Operators of certain Engine Alliance-powered Airbus A380s must conduct more frequent inspections of engine fan hubs and add a new check after regulators mandated manufacturer-recommended revisions.

AT&T and Verizon have agreed to delay deploying 5G wireless services using C-band spectrum for two weeks beyond the scheduled Jan. 5 start date, giving the FAA more time to prevent airspace system disruptions arising from the potential of interference with aircraft radio altimeters.

Korean Air has demonstrated the visual inspection of an aircraft using multiple drones simultaneously.

European travel regulations for air passengers—and others—have continued to change at a dizzying speed, with new measures and restrictions introduced in several countries immediately prior to, or during, the holiday period. 

Cathay Pacific said it will fly a “skeleton passenger flight schedule” in January and has cancelled all cargo flights through at least Jan. 6 due to new regulations in Hong Kong.

Technical cooperation in aviation affairs between the European Union (EU) and the Republic of Korea (ROK) will be strengthened following the signing of an agreement between the two sides. 

Behind the scenes of the aviation and telecommunications industries’ clash over 5G wireless transmissions, aviation standards organization RTCA is developing performance specifications for a new generation of radio altimeters that would be hardened against 5G interference.