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The Airbus A319 that always flies Maduro touched down in Santa Elena de Uairén, right on the Venezuela-Brazil frontier. No official confirmation he's on board or that he's requested asylum in Brazil, but the timing is screaming "I'm out." Brazilian authorities say they haven't been contacted yet. If Maduro actually bolts, 26 years of Chavismo might die overnight The military splits: some will celebrate, some will try a last stand The opposition (Edmundo González, María Corina) instantly becomes the legitimate government in the eyes of the world Cuba loses its oil lifeline and implodes within months, while the U.S. bombing...

A British Airways jet carrying 75 passengers was forced to perform an emergency landing at Heathrow today with smoke and flames pouring from one engine. Eye-witnesses reported seeing a fire in the right-hand engine of the Airbus 319 as it was forced to land just minutes after it took off at 8.17am bound for Norway’s capital Oslo. Residents on the Heathrow flight path said there was an "almighty blow-out" from the aircraft as it flew at just a few thousand feet above them. BA said the jet, which is now being examined by investigators, had developed a "technical fault". Suggestions...

Farnborough: UK prime minister rumoured to have tour of Airbus Corporate Jetliner for government jet UK prime minister Tony Blair is to take an evaluation tour of the Airbus A319 Corporate Jetliner (ACJ) today at the Farnborough air show, speculation has it. The UK head of government is addressing the air show today at around 15:00 on the importance of aerospace to the UK economy. After this, he is understood to be offered a chance to look around a corporate interior version of the ACJ. Airbus does not have an ACJ on the static display at the show, where security...

EADS proposes maritime variant of Airbus A319 with bomb bay doors for India By Brendan Sobie in Singapore Airbus, Boeing, IAI, Ilyushin and Lockheed Martin bid for reconnaissance aircraft deal EADS plans to develop a new variant of the Airbus A319/A320 to compete with the Boeing P-8A Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft (MMA) on offer to India. Industry sources say the Indian navy is evaluating a proposal, led by EADS Casa and based on the A319, for its eight-aircraft maritime reconnaissance requirement. Other proposals received by India include an export variant of the US Navy’s P-8A, dubbed the P-8I, from Boeing; a...