World's first runway sauna opens in Helsinki
Helsinki Airport has opened the world’s first runway sauna, giving travellers a warm and unique welcome to Finnish culture. With over 3.2 million saunas in Finland, this special experience celebrated the country’s strong connection to relaxation and happiness. “Most airports have transit zones–some even have saunas. Only Helsinki offers a transit to Finnish happiness,” says Anna Tuomi, Finavia’s Head of Marketing. The one-day sauna event showed Finland’s values of calm, trust, and well-being. Sauna is a big part of Finnish life, known for helping tired muscles and relieving stress–an ideal way to start a trip. Helsinki Airport, aiming to be more than just a stopover but a peaceful start to travellers’ Finnish journey, has three saunas in the terminal and many more nearby. Passenger eVTOL aircraft tested in UAE With the support of Smart and Autonomous Systems Council (SASC), Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), in collaboration with EHang and Multi Level Group (MLG), has hosted a landmark test flight of a passenger electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as part of a public demonstration in the emirate. Abu Dhabi is setting a precedent by testing the technology in real urban conditions and fostering a collaborative ecosystem where government and industry align to accelerate innovation and enable commercialisation of such modes of mobility. The autonomous mission validated critical technologies, including hot-weather performance in Abu Dhabi’s climate alongside airspace coordination, route planning and vertiport operations. Conducted under the oversight of the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the flight provided live proof of the regulatory, operational and infrastructure frameworks essential for safely scaling this new mode of transport. Middle East sees 28 surge in connectivity Airports Council International Asia-Pacific & Middle East recently released its 2024 Air Connectivity Ranking, revealing a 28 per cent year-on-year connectivity surge across the Middle East–surpassing all post-COVID forecasts. Both intra-regional and intercontinental connectivity have exceeded pre-pandemic levels by 18 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively, underscoring the region's accelerated recovery. In Asia-Pacific, connectivity rose by 13 per cent, with intra-regional travel nearing pre-pandemic levels and intercontinental routes steadily increasing. Dubai kept its position as the most connected airport in the region, while other Gulf airports helped boost travel to Europe, Africa, and Asia-Pacific. Developed with PwC, the ranking assesses airport performance based on network scale, economic impact, and connection efficiency. Turkish Airlines, Icelandair expand codeshare Turkish Airlines and Icelandair have announced a major expansion of their codeshare agreement, strengthening their growing partnership. The news was shared during the 81st International Air Transport Association (IATA) Annual General Meeting, held recently in New Delhi, India. The two airlines first launched their codeshare partnership in June 2023. This expanded agreement introduces a key milestone: the launch of direct flights between Reykjavik and Istanbul. Icelandair will begin operating the new non-stop service from September 5, 2025, with flights running twice weekly during the winter season. The route will offer travellers a convenient and long-awaited direct link between Iceland and Türkiye, enhancing global connectivity.