AAV News in Brief 01 September 2025

RECARO Aircraft Seating adds premium seats for LATAM: RECARO Aircraft Seating (RECARO), a global leader in premium aircraft seating solutions, announced its retrofit collaboration with LATAM Airlines Group (LATAM) for their new premium comfort cabin to outfit Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft in 2027. The programme includes 41 shipsets of the PL3530 long-range premium class seat, with the first shipset delivery scheduled for the first half of 2027. The PL3530 enables higher comfort and more privacy for long-haul flights, matching the RECARO vision “driving comfort in the sky”. Tailored to provide a more refined travel experience, the PL3530 premium class seat offers an increased width, industry-leading 40-inch seat pitch, privacy wings, and a generous 8-inch recline, perfect for passengers seeking extra living space to relax or work. The seats come with a Panasonic Astrova in-flight entertainment system, featuring 16-inch 4K screens, Bluetooth audio pairing, USB-C fast charging, and AC power outlets, ensuring passengers remain connected and entertained throughout their flight. “Premium Comfort reflects our deep understanding of our customers’ evolving needs and our commitment to providing more options so every passenger can travel the way they want. It is a product that combines comfort, space, and high-level service with exceptional value, and it also represents a statement of how we envision the future of flying from South America to the world: a journey where privacy, design, and the warmth of our region come together to create a unique experience,” said Paulo Miranda, Vice President of Customers at LATAM Airlines Group. Embry-Riddle develops AI system to decode aviation speak: Pilots and air traffic controllers have long faced challenges with radio communications — whether from high cockpit noise, weak transmissions or misinterpreted aviation jargon. To help them communicate more clearly and accurately, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University researchers have developed a system that uses artificial intelligence to transcribe and translate aviation radio communications. While other areas of aviation have undergone automation and technological advancements, radio communication has largely remained unchanged, said Andrew Schneider, an assistant professor in the College of Aviation who directs the university’s Speech and Language AI Lab. The system uses automatic speech recognition to convert spoken radio transmissions into text. Natural language processing interprets and refines that text by standardizing terminology, formatting spoken numbers and call signs, removing filler words and flagging potential errors. Allowing for a large-scale analysis of pilot-controller communications, the system could reveal patterns, phraseology errors and safety concerns that were previously difficult to study, Schneider said. “We see an opportunity here,” he said, “for another leap forward to help controllers and pilots have safer radio communication.” In the future, the system could also be used to provide immediate feedback to student pilots and help instructors better target communication issues. Hahnair welcomes 20 new partners in 2025: Ticketing specialist Hahnair said it has integrated 20 new partner airlines into its global network of more than 350 airline partners by the end of July of this year. With its extensive technology infrastructure, Hahnair enables partner carriers to sell tickets through more than 100,000 travel agencies in 190 markets. “We are proud to offer airlines of any size and business model tailor-made solutions for all their distribution needs”, says Adriana C. Carrelli, Vice President Airline Business. “By forming an interline agreement with Hahnair, airlines can unlock secondary markets for indirect ticket sales. Airlines without GDS connections can outsource their entire indirect distribution and make their flights available under the codes H1 or X1 in all major GDSs. And finally, airlines that are looking for a truly global distribution strategy can combine the Hahnair solutions, thereby strategically closing distribution gaps with H1-Air and X1-Air, while building on the potential of primary and secondary markets with HR-169.” Atlas Air, Etihad Cargo sign new partnership: Atlas Air, Inc., a subsidiary of Atlas Air Worldwide, announced a new long-term partnership with Etihad Cargo, the cargo and logistics arm of Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates. Under the agreement, Atlas Air will provide Etihad Cargo with dedicated freighter capacity through the operation of a newly delivered Boeing 777 freighter. Beginning in August, the aircraft will initially serve routes connecting Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi and Madrid. The partnership comes at a time of growing demand for general air cargo, e-commerce, automotive, pharmaceuticals and perishable products across Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The 777F offers state-of-the-art, efficient capacity to support Etihad Cargo’s growth and customer product offering. The agreement reflects the strength of the longstanding relationship between Atlas Air and Etihad Cargo, dating back to 2012 when Atlas Air first began providing flight services over a multi-year period. “We are pleased to again partner with Etihad Cargo, one of the industry’s most respected carriers,” said Michael Steen, Chief Executive Officer, Atlas Air Worldwide. “This partnership reflects our strong value proposition and the trust we’ve built with customers over time. We are pleased to tailor this long-term dedicated capacity solution to help Etihad capture growth opportunities. With our global scale and flexible, agile network, Atlas Air is enabling Etihad to expand their operations and serve their customers with confidence. With our industry-leading fleet of widebody freighters and deep operating expertise, Atlas Air is proud to be a trusted partner of choice, and we look forward to supporting Etihad’s continued success.” For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Matt Driskill at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Head of Sales Kay Rolland at [email protected]