Australian Aviation

Qantas has boosted cargo capacity between Australia, Hong Kong and New Zealand with its converted Airbus freighters. The Flying Kangaroo now has three weekly A330-200 P2F (passenger-to-freight) services between Australia and Hong Kong, as well as five weekly Sydney-Christchurch-Auckland services as of late August, four of which are operated by A321P2F aircraft. https://bit.ly/4dKtOua

It’s results season, and Qantas, Air New Zealand and Alliance have all posted profits – though the narrative around them is very different. Qantas is slightly down on last year, but still above pre-COVID profits, while Air New Zealand has seen its own profit slashed in half due to economic headwinds – and while Alliance posted the smallest profit in absolute terms, the record high has it celebrating a successful year. Adam and Jake cut through the spin and discuss what the year’s results say about how the airlines are really doing. Plus, there’s been a lot of buzz in recent weeks about “Koala Airlines” – but are we genuinely going to see a new domestic carrier any time soon? https://bit.ly/3XgzLIt

A Qantas 787-9 Dreamliner damaged on take-off from Rome last month may return to service as early as next week. Australian Aviation understands that VH-ZNC (pictured), which saw a tyre tread separation as it took off for Perth on 24 August, damaging the underside of the right-hand wing, is awaiting the arrival of parts before it can resume operations. https://bit.ly/3z9m2Ll

Virgin Australia has had a stay application against the reinstatement of a dismissed cabin crew member refused. Virgin cabin crew member Dylan Macnish’s employment had been terminated by the airline giant on the basis of “mystifying” allegations made against him. https://bit.ly/3MvtpQf

Adelaide Airport will begin works on upgrading its central security screening point this weekend. The airport is installing body scanners and 3D x-ray bag scanners across all of its screening lanes, which will eliminate the need for passengers to remove items such as laptops, tablets and aerosols from their bags. https://bit.ly/4eaitna

The Royal Australian Air Force has sent combat aircraft to India in support of a multinational exercise for the first time. Three EA-18G Growler aircraft will attend Exercise Tarang Shakti 24, which is being held at Air Force Station Jodhpur from 30 August to 13 September 2024. https://bit.ly/4e6tR3e

Contested Ground, a new podcast investigating the complex and murky world of grey zone warfare as nations compete on the global stage, has been launched by award-winning media and market intelligence business Momentum Media. The new weekly podcast lifts the veil on how state and non-state actors compete for influence below the threshold of armed conflict, informing business and public sector leaders on how malicious actors exploit Australia’s financial and social systems for their gain. https://bit.ly/3XsqsGn

Qantas Group is replacing Jetstar on Melbourne-Honolulu with mainline Qantas services. The twice-weekly Jetstar 787-8 service will end on 30 April, to be supplanted in May by Qantas A330s, which will operate three times per week. Qantas says it will operate 40,000 seats on Melbourne-Honolulu per year, replacing 335 Jetstar seats per flight. https://bit.ly/4cQnaRX

Industry has expressed concern over the New Zealand Government’s plan to increase the country’s International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy (IVL). The IVL – paid when visitors request an NZeTA (New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority) or apply for a visa – is set to increase from NZ$35 (around AU$32) to NZ$100 (around AU$92) from 1 October. Visitors on Australian and NZ passports are exempt from the fee. https://bit.ly/3Z4LLzd

A Brisbane air traffic controller was found lying asleep across two chairs while on duty in December 2022. An ATSB investigation into the incident concluded that the employee had worked multiple night shifts in a row with “reduced extended rest periods”, which likely reduced their ability to “obtain restorative sleep”. https://bit.ly/3ZaPNWS