Australia and New Zealand Aviation Media Awards 2010

As a prelude to the award presentations guests were again entertained by NAPC president Steve Creedy of The Australian and Australian Aviation/ Air Transport World/The West Australian’s Geoffrey Thomas with their ‘The Year That Was’ comedy sketch.

Like almost no other year, from the Qantas QF32 incident to the retirement of the F-111, the duo had a rich seam of material to draw upon.

2010 again saw a high quality field of 101 entries across the awards categories, providing the judges with a tough task in selecting the deserving winners.

2010 Aviation Journalist of the Year

The 2010 Aviation Journalist of the Year was presented to the journalist whom the judging panel considered had contributed most in his field over the past year, based on the overall quality of work, standard of writing and understanding of industry issues – Andrew McLaughlin, deputy editor of Australian Aviation.

McLaughlin, who has covered the breadth and depth of the aerospace industry since seeing the light and giving up a hotels career for the much more interesting challenge of aviation journalism, was also a runner-up and a category winner on the night.

He was presented with the Airservices Australia and Cathay Pacific Journalist of the Year trophy, $4000 cash, and two return business class tickets to Hong Kong, courtesy of Cathay Pacific Airways, and on to Asia courtesy of Dragonair, by Rob Walker, Manager of Corporate Communications, Airservices Australia, and Dane Cheng, General Manager South West Pacific, Cathay Pacific.

The cash prize of $1500 for runner-up in the Aviation Journalist of the Year category went to Ben Sandilands, whose Plane Talking blog is published on crikey. com. au.

Sandilands has previously taken out the title and has just celebrated 50 years of hard-hitting journalism.

The other finalists, in alphabetical order were: Emma Kelly, Flight International; Matt O’Sullivan, Sydney Morning Herald; Nigel Pittaway, Asia Pacific Defence Reporter; Geoffrey Thomas, Australian Aviation, Air Transport World & The West Australian; and Roeland van den Bergh of The Dominion Post.

It should also be noted that one of the most prolific aviation reporters, Steve Creedy, as the NAPC president, again disqualified himself from these awards.

Journalists in the running for the award had demonstrated their ability to break stories and to convey complex industry issues to a broad readership, maintaining the high standard of Australian and New Zealand aviation journalism.

2010 Aviation News Story of the Year

The aviation industry is never short on news.

Perceptions about whether it is good news or bad news may vary, but the industry never fails to provide rich fodder for local aviation journalists. And 2010 was no different.

Entrants in the news section of this year’s Aviation Media Awards covered a wide range of topics from industry regulation and costs, to airline restructures, defence programs, environmental initiatives and a number of safetyrelated issues.

The 20 entries in this category from journalists across Australia and New Zealand were judged on their news-breaking capacity, overall credibility and accuracy, the importance of the issues discussed, level of understanding and writing style.

The winner of $1500 and the Airbus trophy for the 2010 Aviation News Story of the Year, presented by Justin Dubon, Director, Airbus Media Relations, was Matt O’Sullivan from The Sydney Morning Herald. O’Sullivan’s story ‘Safety at Jetstar Pacific slammed’ was one of the first news stories revealing details of a Civil Aviation Safety Authority report into the airline’s Vietnam operations.

The cash prize of $750 for runner-up in this category went to Andrew McLaughlin, whose Australian Aviation Defence Update ‘A vicious circle’ provided a detailed Australian perspective on the issues surrounding the JSF program.

Highly commended were: • Geoffrey Thomas in Air Transport World for ‘Virgin Blue’s restructuring to be more extensive than previously revealed’; • Emma Kelly writing in Flight International for ‘A380 turbulence prompts review’; • Ben Sandilands in Plane Talking for ‘Jetstar misrepresents adverse ATSB report’; and • Glenda Korporaal writing in The Deal magazine for ‘Aerial combat’.

2010 Aviation Technical Story of the Year

The Aviation Technical Story of the Year is a specialised category focusing on developments in aviation technology, and commercial aerospace, including aircraft, avionics and air traffic management.

It requires not only a good grasp of issues often highly technical in nature, but also an ability to clearly communicate those issues to a broad readership.

The 21 entries in this category covered a wide range of subjects spanning reform in aviation regulation, air traffic management initiatives designed to deliver environmental benefits, the use of simulation technology in the defence industry, and the cost of foreign object damage to airlines.

As announced by Andrew Dudgeon, Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Australia, the $1500 and Rolls-Royce Trophy for 2010 Aviation Technical Story of the Year was awarded to Paul Phelan.

Phelan’s winning story ‘To hell with the rules!’ provided a detailed analysis of Australia’s aviation regulations and the seemingly endless quest for reform.

This in-depth feature was a standout entry in the Technical category, demonstrating a thorough understanding of the subject.

The $750 cash prize for runner-up in this category went to John Mulcair, a writer who took us back to the future, revisiting engine technology from the past as an interesting part of the search for cleaner, more efficient and reliable jet engines in his ‘Future power’ story for Flight Safety Australia magazine.

And highly commended were: • Emma Kelly of Flight International for ‘ATM projects seek greener future’; • Paul Sadler for Australian Aviation with ‘Calibration of a nation: Flying with Airservice’s Flight Inspection Service’; and • Owen Zupp in Australian Aviation with ‘A remarkable challenge: Qantas’s pioneering Queenstown operations’.

2010 Aviation Feature of the Year

Each year, competition for the Aviation Feature of the Year is hard fought, and this year was no exception.

With 30 entries from both sides of the Tasman, the category attracted the most entries in this year’s Aviation Media Awards.

Those entries covered the implications of volcanic ash on aviation in the wake of the unpronounceable Icelandic volcano, an epic journey around Australia in a Jabiru, innovation in onboard products, and a number of entries looking at competition and the continuing battle between airlines for a slice of the local market.

Feature writing is quite an art and entries in this category were judged on an ability to present issues of importance to the industry in a thoughtprovoking way, a demonstrated understanding of the issue discussed, and the relevance and accuracy of the issue presented.

The $1500 cheque and Embraer trophy for the 2010 Aviation Feature of the Year was presented by Bill Rossi, Regional Sales Director, Embraer, to Doug Nancarrow of AviationBusiness Asia Pacific.

Nancarrow’s story ‘Australia’s airports: issues and strategies’ provided plenty of food for thought with an expert examination of the challenges facing Australia’s airports and discussion about the extent to which issues are common to all airports.

The cash prize of $750 for runner-up in this category went to Rob Neil of Pacific Wings magazine.

His story ‘Return of the turboprop’ looked at how airlines around the world are re-assessing their fleet mix and plans for the future, with many returning to turboprops as they chase a more sustainable economic model.

Highly commended were: • Nigel Pittaway, in Asia- Pacific Defence Reporter for ‘Air 7000 – ISR for the 21st Century’; • Owen Zupp writing for Australian Aviation with ‘Back from there: Around Australia in a Jabiru for the RFDS’; • Geoffrey Thomas, for ‘Reinventing comfort’ in Air Transport World and ‘Facing off – Joyce v Borghetti in aviation’s new paradigm’ in Australian Aviation; and • Ben Sandilands, for Plane Talking with ‘Give truth, and air safety, a chance’.

2010 Defence Feature of the Year

The high standard of entries in the Defence Feature of the Year category provided quite a challenge for the judges, with just seven points separating the final seven.

2010 was only the third year the NAPC had the Defence Feature category in its awards, and the calibre of entries from the defence trade media again reinforced the inclusion ofthis category.

Entries covered topics as diverse as flight training systems for the Australian Defence Force, the success story of the Nulka anti-shipping missile decoy system, the RAAF VIP fleet, the impact of a tight budget on the Defence industry, and the search for a replacement naval combat helicopter.

The 16 stories in this category were judged on the basis of subject value and importance to the industry, the writer’s demonstrated understanding of defence issues, depth of coverage and style, and accuracy.

The winning article came from a writer who has consistently delivered high-calibre and thought provoking defence stories.

The winner of $1500, and the Boeing trophy.

announced by Bill Profilet, VP Business Development Australia for Boeing Defense, Space and Security, was Andrew McLaughlin of Australian Aviation for his article ‘Rhino charge – The Super Hornet enters RAAF service’.

The runner-up prize of $750 went to Gregor Ferguson for his article ‘Awaiting delivery’ in Australian Defence Magazine. That story looked at the variety of defence platforms that will contribute to a significant transformation in the RAAF’s air combat capability.

Highly commended were: • Stewart Wilson, of Aero Australia magazine for ‘RAAF VIP aircraft’; • Emma Kelly in Asia Pacific Defence Reporter for ‘Training for the future very much in the future’; • Nigel Pittaway, of Defence Today for ‘Nulka decoy – Australian export success story’; and • Trevor Thomas, of Australian Defence Business Review for ‘Defence of the Deficit? Treasury dollar harvest spells tighter budget for Defence’ and ‘Replacement helicopter choice to fall on joint warfighting attributes’.

2010 Aviation photograph of the Year

In its fifth year, this category attracted 14 quality entries covering all aspects of aviation, from light aircraft, to commercial airlines, defence operations and rotorcraft.

The judges made their selections on the basis of the photograph telling a story, its originality, composition, and impact.

The entry criteria are designed to ensure we capture the very best aviation photographs taken in the past 12 months by photographers based across Australia and New Zealand.

The winner of the 2010 Aviation Photograph of the Year continues the firm New Zealand grip on this award, becoming the fourth New Zealand photographer in five years to take the trophy back across the Tasman.

As announced by Doug Park, Senior Vice President Australia and New Zealand Operations, Hawker Pacific, the $1500 and the Hawker Pacific Trophy went to Andrew Gorrie of The Dominion Post for his photograph ‘Once in the Blue Moon’, which was a standout entry.

The runner up has been one of Australia’s most recognised aviation photographers whose imaginative work has covered the gamut of aviation subjects.

The $750 runner-up prize went to Paul Sadler for his Australian Aviation photograph ‘On delivery’ capturing the arrival of the RAAF’s first Super Hornets.

Highly commended were:

• Peter Clark of New Zealand Aviation News for ‘Boeing 787 first flight’ and ‘Exercise Parra Brevet’;

• Derek Flynn of The Marlborough Express for ‘Leaving New York’;

• Paul Sadler of Australian Aviation for ‘Chopper squad’; and

• Trevor Thomas of Australian Defence Business Review for ‘Phoenix of Sea 1411’