Garuda Indonesia says it will begin expanding flights to European points in February, earlier than its previous plan to do so in 2012. Services to London, Paris, Frankfurt and Rome will strongly increase the carrier's presence in the European market, adding to the Jakarta-Amsterdam flight that it resumed on June 1. The company also said it plans to serve Los Angeles from 2013.

BEIJING — A Long March 2D rocket successfully launched a Chinese scientific research satellite from the Jiuquan base in the country’s northwest on June 15, Xinhua news agency says. The satellite, Shijian 12, “was designed for carrying out scientific and technological experiments,” Xinhua says, adding that its equipment includes a space environment probe. There were no details as to the spacecraft’s precise function. The Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, part of the China Aerospace Science & Technology Corp., developed the satellite.

Singapore Airlines deployed more passenger and cargo capacity in May than a year earlier, the first such annual expansion since September 2008. Additional frequencies from Singapore to New York, Houston, Perth, Beijing, Shanghai, Mumbai and Sri Lanka generated the extra capacity, says Singapore Airlines, noting the improved economic environment. It also launched a Singapore-Munich-Manchester flight in March.