Passengers who frequent Memphis International Airport have been singing the blues due to plummeting passenger boarding numbers that saw it it top a list of declining US airports.

In a report by Upgraded Points.com that shows why some US airports soar while others falter,  Memphis International Airport (MEM) saw enplanements (boardings) fall by 60.09 percent.

The  Upgraded Points study uses Federal Aviation Administration data to define the top ten fastest falling and growing US airports between 2007 and 2017.

The problem for Memphis started when Delta Air Lines merged with Northwest.

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Delta eviscerated Northwest’s popular Memphis hub and enplanements plummeted as connecting flights moved en masse to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Many flyers accustomed to direct flights from Memphis now had to join half of the human race and change planes in Atlanta.

Other airports to make to top 10 fastest falling airports were:

• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International (CVG), down 50.93 percent. Cincinnati is yet another casualty of Delta’s hub reallocation.
• Ontario International (ONT) at minus 35.29 percent. The report says: “Airlines have reduced service to small and mid-sized airports, especially in markets where a large metro hub is nearby” like Los Angeles.
• Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ), down 25.53 percent. Once upon a time, if you wanted to fly from Dallas Love Field to almost any other airport in the western U.S. you had to buy two tickets: one to ABQ and the other onward from ABQ to your final destination. This was the result of The Wright Amendment, a piece of legislation that boxed Dallas Love Field in when it comes to air service. That law is now dead, and there’s’ no need for Dallas flyers to stop in ABQ to change planes any longer.
• Cleveland-Hopkins International (CLE), down 20.19percent. Ostensibly, CLE is a hub for United. However, over the past decade, that role has been diminishing.
• Luis Munoz Marin International (SJU), at -19.14 percent. Hurricane Maria lashed the island, even as rains washed away critical infrastructure.
• Jacksonville International (JAX), down 13.90 percent. Airline mergers have hit JAX. Where full-sized aircraft once flew regional jets now reign.
• Pittsburgh International (PIT) at minus 11.25 percent. Once, Pittsburgh was a booming hub for US Air. Mergers and competition whittled away at US Air’s once fortress hub.
• Palm Beach International (PBI), down 10.5 percent. Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International (FLL) and Miami International compete against PBI with low-fare JetBlue, Southwest and Spirit offering cheap seats. Miami International may have the glamor, but FLL fields the cheap seats.
• Oakland International (OAK), at minus 10.22 percent. When the economy tanked back in 2008 and 2009 OAK was hit hard. Recent gains have almost made up for that.

U.S. Airports that registered at least 25 percent growth over the past ten years made it to Upgraded Points Top Ten list.

• Topping that list is Dallas Love Field (DAL)  with growth of 90.39 percent. For decades DAL was saddled was the Wright Amendment. Born in the late 1970s of a perceived need to protect Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) from ruinous competition, the amendment walled off DAL from most of the rest of the world. Carriers were permitted to offer nonstop flights to Texas and the contiguous states. Later, a handful of other states were added to the roster. In 2014 the Wright walls came tumbling down. Airlines serving DAL (predominately Southwest) were able to fly from the airport to anywhere in 48 continental U.S. The catch: the airport’s new terminal could have just 20 gates, effectively limiting the number of flights the airport can field. Dallas Love rode the top of the list for a while, but it’s inability to field more flights all but guarantees significant growth at the airport is a thing of the past.
• Austin-Bergstrom International (AUS) +62.92 percent.  No longer a sleepy college and government town, Austin’s growth over the past ten years has been “phenomenal” says Upgraded Points. Consider, in the past couple of years alone AUS has witnessed nonstop service to London, Frankfurt and legions of lesser domestic cities.
• Louis Armstrong New Orleans International (MSY) +59.73 percent. Post-Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans was all but brought to its knees. Years later, it’s back—especially the airport. A new terminal building is in the works and British Airways has launched nonstop 787 flights to London. The new terminal should open in 2019, paving the tarmac for more growth to feed ‘The Big Easy’s tourist-dependent economy.
• San Francisco International (SFO) +55.67 percent. The airport by the bay served a fulsome 55.8 million flyers in 2017 and has seen enplanements grow steadily for 14 years. This is, in large part, because SFO is United’s bustling transpacific hub.
• William P. Hobby (HOU) +54.24 percent. Hobby is Houston’s ‘other’ airport. For decades it’s chugged along, overshadowed by United’s Bush Houston Intercontinental hub. Then, in 2014,  Southwest decided to launch a significant share of-of its international flights from HOU. International passenger boardings alone soared by 76,400 in 2015.
• Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) +46.83 percent. Buoyed by the ground-breaking for a new international arrivals facility and new nonstop routes to London, Mexico City and Dublin among others SeaTac also benefitted by a hub war between hometown Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines.
• Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International (FL) +42.76 percent. Upgraded Points notes that “Growth from these low-cost carriers accounts for two-thirds of all passenger traffic out of FLL.”
• Nashville International (BNA) +41.22 percent. If you’re in search of a great place to visit or live, Nashville is an alluring option. To meet the demand for cheap seats to ‘Music City,’ Southwest continues to grow BNA at a steady, robust clip.
• Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) +36.92 percent. The second busiest airport in the country, LAX remains a lure for both leisure and business flyers alike. The airport’s greatest problem has been its ground access. That issue is being addressed by construction of a rail link between LAX and LA. International arrivals continue to fuel LAX’s enplanement numbers.
• Boston Logan International (BOS) +36.10 percent.  It appears Delta and JetBlue can get along nicely at the same airport. The former has a hub at Logan, the latter a focus city. International traffic is on the grow. Since 2006 the number of international departures from Logan has doubled.

International departures, low-fare airlines and the dynamics of hub consolidation—all are shaping the future of U.S. airports. The trends—at least so far—show no sign of fading.

The first A330-800 development aircraft to fly, MSN1888, has landed at Toulouse-Blagnac, France at 2:35 pm local time after successfully completing its first flight which lasted four hours and four minutes.

The aircraft, the second member of the A330neo Family, is powered by the latest technology Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 turbofans.

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The crew in the cockpit comprised: Experimental Test Pilots Malcolm Ridley and François Barre and Test-Flight Engineer Ludovic Girard. Meanwhile, monitoring the aircraft systems and performance in real-time at the flight-test engineers (FTE) station were Catherine Schneider and Jose Corugedo Bermejo.

“Today’s first flight of the A330-800 is the latest addition to our efficient Widebody family,” said Guillaume Faury, President Airbus Commercial Aircraft. “The A330-800 is an exceptionally versatile ‘route-opener’, offering unbeatable economics for airlines – encompassing everything from short to very-long haul widebody missions.” He added: “We look forward to the successful flight-test campaign, leading to certification next year.”

The A330-800’s development programme will include around 300 flight-test hours, paving the way for certification in 2019.

The larger A330-900 family member recently completed its development testing and certification programme which validated the A330neo Family’s common engines, systems, cabin and, flight & ground operations.

The A330neo comprises two versions: the A330-800 and A330-900. Both of these widebody aircraft incorporate new Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, nacelle, titanium pylon, new wings and offer the new Airspace by Airbus passenger experience.

The larger A330-900 will accommodate up to 287 seats in a typical three-class layout, while the A330-800 typically will seat 257 passengers in three classes.

At the end of September 2018, Airbus’ order book includes 13 customers who have placed orders for a total of 224 A330neos.

Iran Air still eyes western built aircraft and a Tehran Sydney non-stop service as US sanctions toughen.

Coinciding with what US President Donald Trump calls the “toughest sanctions of all times” being imposed on Iran, it emerges that state airline Iran Air still nurtures hopes to receive more Western aircraft.

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A high-ranking source not wanting to be named tells Airlineratings.com that Iran Air expects to receive seven more ATR-72-600s from an order placed in 2016 for a total of 20 regional aircraft.

So far the airline received 13 ATRs. More couldn’t be delivered before the deadline on August 7 when the embargo for aircraft exports came into effect.

Iran Air also had ordered 100 Airbus aircraft in December 2016, of which only two A330-200s and one A321 have been delivered. The current status of the Airbus order is not known and the source Airlineratings.com talked to wouldn’t elaborate.

The European Union is currently looking for ways to enable European companies to fulfill existing contracts with Iran despite the US-led embargo.

Iran Air also wanted a similar number of Boeing. The order was for 50 737 MAX 8s, 15 777-300ERs and, 15 777-9Xs. Also, Iran Aseman Airlines ordered 30 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

The source also tells Airlineratings.com that the previously discussed flights from Tehran to Sydney are still on the agenda and are now supposed to be non-stop.

At the IATA AGM in Sydney in June, it was still intended to start them in the current European winter schedule, which didn’t materialize.

Iran Air eyes the substantial Iranian expat population in Australia with this route. Currently the only aircraft in the fleet up to the task of flying the route would be the two A330s, however, it would be very close to their range limit and would incur weight penalties depending on weather and direction.

The distance from Tehran to Sydney is about 12,900 km, while the typical range of the A330-200 carrying about 250 passengers is in the region of 13,400 km under the best of circumstances.