A state-backed hijack, and one drops out of the supersonic race

Published: June 1, 2021, 6:24 a.m.

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Our top story this week revolved around the state-backed \\u2018hijacking\\u2019 of a Ryanair flight that was forced to land in Minsk, escorted by a Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jet no less, in order for authorities to arrest a wanted political reporter.

In this episode of the World of Aviation Podcast, host Adam Thorn and reporter Hannah Dowling discuss the global fallout of the Belarus hijacking, and what the next stages of the investigation could look like.

The crew also discuss IATA\\u2019s discreet optimism towards global air travel recovery that appeared to see the association change its forecast for recovery back to 2023 from 2024, as well as a UK-based start-up looking to see the return of the blimp in 2025.

Finally, after a very near-miss, the team delves into Boeing-backed Aerion\\u2019s exit from the race to become the first supersonic passenger jet to hit the market in over five decades, as funding dried up.

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