Czech news in brief for July 6: Monday's top afternoon headlines

The first of two Embraer C-390 Millennium transport aircraft for the Czech Army landed at Prague-Ruzyně Airport on Monday, arriving directly from the manufacturer's plant in Brazil. The aircraft brings new capabilities to the Czech Air Force, including in-flight refueling, medical evacuation from crisis areas, and firefighting support. The second aircraft is due for delivery in December 2027.

Price tag: The Ministry of Defense will pay CZK 11.3 billion (excluding VAT) for both aircraft, covering crew training, logistical support, and industrial cooperation with Czech firms including Aero Vodochody.

A memorial to Wing Commander Alois Vašátko, a senior Czech RAF officer whose Spitfire crashed into the sea off Start Point, Devon, in June 1942, was unveiled more than 80 years after his death. Vašátko commanded three Czech fighter squadrons within the RAF and had earned the Distinguished Flying Cross before he was lost during a bomber escort mission over the English Channel.

Wartime record: His squadrons defended the Plymouth and Portland naval bases and flew escort and offensive missions over occupied France; his body was never recovered.

Researchers from Charles University in Prague and the University of Wrocław used a mathematical model to argue that cannibalism's near-universal taboo status stems less from revulsion than from its role in spreading disease. Their findings suggest infection risk rises sharply when cannibals eat other cannibals, since pathogens face little resistance in a genetically similar host – a pattern that may have contributed to historic population collapses.

One example: The prion disease kuru, once common among Papua New Guinea's Fore people, who ritually consumed deceased relatives, shows how such practices can spread fatal neurological illness even after cooking.

The koruna fell 3.4 percent against the US dollar and 0.4 percent against the euro during the first half of 2026, while strengthening 1.6 percent against the Polish zloty, according to Purple Trading analyst Petr Lajšek. The declines follow a strong 2025, when the koruna gained 15.2 percent against the dollar and 3.7 percent against the euro.

Worth knowing: In destinations with high inflation, such as Turkey and Egypt, the currency used to pay matters as much as the koruna's exchange rate – paying directly in euros or dollars can sometimes work out better for travelers.

Entertainment Weekly's new ranking of the 25 best stop-motion films ever made includes five Czech productions, more than any country besides the UK and the US. The list spans work by Jiří Trnka, Jan Švankmajer, and Jiří Barta, with the magazine praising Czech animation's blend of craftsmanship, folklore, and darker storytelling.

The lineup: The honored titles are Švankmajer's Alice (1988) and Faust (1994), Trnka's The Good Soldier Švejk (1954), and Barta's The Pied Piper (1986) and Toys in the Attic (2009).