MILAN - Italy would have to drop the 75-year-old Alitalia brand if it wants the European Commission to approve plans to relaunch the airline, according to a letter published by L'Espresso magazine. Loss-making Alitalia has endured 11 years of turbulent private management and three failed restructuring attempts.

BUENOS AIRES - The German airline Lufthansa has asked the Argentine government for permission to overfly its country en route to the Falklands, Argentina said on Thursday, adding that the request implies recognition of Falklands "as part of Argentine territory," the Foreign Ministry said.

OSLO - Norway backed Norwegian Air's survival plan on Thursday as Industry Minister Iselin Nyboe said that the government had no intention of being a shareholder but would stump up cash if private investors did too. The heavily indebted budget carrier asked the government for help last week.

LONDON - Britain's airlines, airports and aviation manufacturers pleaded for immediate financial support from the government to "protect companies" and a longer-term recovery plan after the most recent Covid-19 outbreak stopped travel and new testing requirements dashed bounce-back hopes.

MADRID - British Airways and Iberia owner International Airlines Group has agreed to buy Spain’s Air Europa for 500 million euros ($606.7 million) under an amended deal, the companies said in a statement. The transaction will be completed in the second half of 2021 with payments deferred for six more years.

ATLANTA - Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian expects 2021 to be "the year of recovery" for the airline after the coronavirus pandemic cut operating revenue by 64 percent and prompted its first annual loss in 11 years. The airline predicts business travel to pick up in the second half of this year.

LONDON - Virgin Atlantic and Easyjet teams - spanning cabin crew, pilots, ground and office-based teams - are set to work with the NHS over the coming months to assist with rollout the Covid-19 vaccine. Cabin crew with medical training will become "fully qualified to in administering the vaccine".

DUBAI - "A good hard look at themselves": The head of one of Boeing's biggest customers, Emirates, wants the planemaker to demonstrate fundamental changes after producing a flawed 737 MAX jet and has urged it to recognize "culpability and accountability" from the very top.

STOCKHOLM - Rickard Gustafson will step down from his position as chief executive of the Scandinavian airline group SAS in the first half of the year to take the helm at the Swedish bearings maker SKF, the companies said on Monday. Gustafson will replace Alrik Danielson, who is stepping down this year after six years as chief executive.

LONDON - The boss of Wizz Air said stripping voting rights from the majority of his investors was a sustainable way to meet post-Brexit rules, even as a leading sector analyst said it may not be enough unless there was a regulatory change. Most Wizz Air shareholders are non-EU residents.

SEATTLE - Boeing will pay more than $2.5 billion in fines and compensation after reaching a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over two plane crashes that killed a total of 346 people and led to the grounding of its 737 MAX jetliner. The firing of former CEO Dennis Muilenburg helped Boeing curb the fine.

LISBON - Portugal is confident the European Commission will approve its plan to rescue ailing flag carrier TAP, Finance Minister Joao Leao said in an interview, adding that he expected that green light by the end of March. The government unveiled its overhaul plan last month, proposing 2,000 job cuts by 2022 and pay cuts of up to 25%.

MONTREAL - Canada did not extend a ban on flights from Britain after it expired on Wednesday because new measures to fight the coronavirus have made it unnecessary, Transport Minister Marc Garneau told reporters. Passengers still have to produce a recent negative Covid-19 test certificate to fly to Canada.

RIYADH - Breakthrough: Saudi Arabia will reopen its airspace and land and sea border to Qatar as of Monday, Kuwait's foreign minister said in televised comments, citing a deal towards resolving a political dispute that led Riyadh and its allies to impose a boycott on Qatar.

CHICAGO - The Boeing 737 MAX resumed passenger flights in the United States for the first time on Tuesday after a 20-month safety ban was lifted last month. American Airlines Flight 718 landed at New York's LaGuardia Airport around 1:08 p.m after departing Miami about two-and-a-half hours earlier.

PARIS - Brexit worries - even with a deal: Spain, Ireland and Hungary have tried and failed to loosen EU airline ownership rules in a draft aviation deal with the UK, two people with knowledge of the matter said, out of concern about Brexit's impact on British Airways owner IAG, Ryanair and Wizz Air.

DUBLIN - Ryanair Holdings cancelled 12 international and domestic United Kingdom routes on Monday due to what it called a sudden change of Brexit-related policy by the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), a charge the regulator rejected. The spat concerns registration of foreign aircraft for operation within the UK.

NEW YORK - British Airways, Delta Air Lines and Virgin Atlantic said on Monday they will allow only passengers who test negative for the coronavirus to fly to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. The United States keep their borders open to British travellers amid the discovery of a new coronavirus strain.

LONDON - Britain's European neighbours began closing their doors to travellers from the United Kingdom on Sunday amid alarm about a rapidly spreading strain of coronavirus that has caused cases to soar there. Canada and several South American countries also stopped flights to and from the UK.

AMSTERDAM - The Netherlands will ban flights carrying passengers from the UK from Sunday as Britain detected a new coronavirus strain. A travel ban will remain in place until Jan. 1, the government said in a statement Sunday, adding that it is monitoring developments and is considering additional measures.