Traffic

Qantas took delivery of A330-202 VH-EBV Kangaroo Island in Sydney on November 25 after the aircraft, which was carrying ‘One World’ titles, arrived from Toulouse via Singapore as QF6022. VH-EBV entered service with Qantas on November 28 when it operated QF455 from Sydney to Melbourne. VH-EBV was the last of type currently on order for Qantas and takes its A330 fleet to 19 (nine A330-200s and 10 A330-300s).

A380-842 VH-OQG completed its maintenance lay-up with Lufthansa in Frankfurt on November 4 with the aircraft then ferrying to London/Heathrow as QF6001. Later that day VH-OQG returned to service with Qantas when it operated QF2 to Singapore and Sydney.

A380-842 VH-OQI ferried from Heathrow to Frankfurt on November 4 as QF6002 for planned maintenance with Lufthansa. On completion of the maintenance VH-OQI ferried from Frankfurt to Manila as QF6026 on November 25 and on arrival entered the Lufthansa Technik hangar for cabin refurbishment.

A380-842 VH-OQL completed its cabin refurbishment with Lufthansa Technik in Manila on November 10 (Traffic/December 2012) with the aircraft then being ferried to Sydney as QF6026. VH-OQL returned to Qantas service on November 10 when it operated QF11 from Sydney to Los Angeles.

Qantas continues the program of painting its older 737-838 aircraft in the current corporate livery.

737-838 VH-VXF operating as QF6020 ferried into Darwin from Seletar on November 17 after its repaint with the aircraft returning to Qantas service on November 18 when it operated QF829 from Darwin to Sydney.

737-838 VH-VXG operated QF846 from Sydney to Darwin on November 17 and the following day ferried to Seletar as QF6021. VH-VXG as QF6020 ferried out of Seletar direct to Melbourne on November 30.

737-476 VH-TJG was withdrawn from Qantas service on November 26 after operating QF821 from Canberra to Melbourne. The Qantas titles and kangaroo were removed from the aircraft before it departed on December 4 as QF6027 to Sydney, Apia, Honolulu and Victorville where it was placed in storage.

VH-TJG Eagle was delivered to Australian Airlines in Melbourne on July 7 ’90 after it ferried in from Port Angeles/Washington via Honolulu and Nadi as TN1396. VH-TJG entered service with Australian Airlines on July 11 when it operated TN482 from Melbourne to Brisbane. VH-TJG was then leased to Malaysia Airlines as 9M-MLE and on October 18 ’10 departed Melbourne for Perth and Kuala Lumpur. 9M-MLE returned to Melbourne on November 3 ’91 with the 737-476 later re-entering service with Australian as VH-TJG.

737-476 VH-TJX ferried from Melbourne to Avalon as QF6111 on October 15 and was still there as of early December.

QantasLink Dash 8-Q402 msn 4431 was on the Downsview production line in mid-November. Jetstar took delivery of A320-232 VH-VFK in Melbourne on November 18 after the aircraft ferried in from Hamburg/ Finkenwerder via Dubai and Singapore as JQ7992. VH-VFK entered service with Jetstar on November 24 when it operated JQ444 from Melbourne to the Gold Coast.

Jetstar Asia took delivery of A320-232 9V-JSQ msn 5390 in Singapore on December 2 after the aircraft ferried in from Toulouse via Abu Dhabi as 3K900.

Jetstar Japan took delivery of its seventh A320-232 JA07JJ msn 5355 at Narita on November 17 after it ferried in from Toulouse via Dubai and Hanoi.

Jetstar Pacific was planning to take delivery of A320-232 EI-EWS msn 2670 in December. The A320-232, which was previously operated by Kingfisher Airlines as VT-KFK, was noted parked at Dublin on November 17 with the aircraft now carrying basic Jetstar Pacific livery.

Network Aviation took delivery of Fokker 100 PH-AQA in Perth on November 23 after the aircraft completed its ferry flight from Woensdrecht via Trabzon, Al Ain, Nagpur, Penang and Halim. The Fokker 100, which was ferried by Southern Cross Aviation as SXI 1273, was later registered VH-NHM.

Airline news

In this issue we report the delivery of a Fokker 70 to Alliance and an EMB-135LR to JetGo.

Air New Zealand unveiled 777-319ER ZK-OKP in a special colour scheme at Auckland on November 24. While ZK-OKP was in the hangar having the scheme, which promotes the film The Hobbit – An Unexpected Journey, also had the new black Air New Zealand tail colours applied. 777-319ER returned to service November 24 when it operated NZ1 from Auckland to Los Angeles and London.

Air New Zealand Link/Mount Cook’s first ATR 72-600 ZK-MVA was delivered to Christchurch on November 6 (Traffic/December) and entered service on November 15 when it operated NZM51 from Christchurch to Dunedin.

Air Niugini ferried Fokker 100 P2-AND from Port Moresby to Darwin, Denpasar and Seletar as PX6392 on November 25 for planned maintenance.

Fokker 100 P2-ANQ visited Canberra on November 28 with the aircraft arriving from Brisbane as PX4027 and departing for Port Moresby as PX4028.

Air Pacific wet leased euroAtlantic 777-212ER CS-TFM to cover planned maintenance on 747-412 DQ-FJK and 747-412 DQ-FJL. CS-TFM ferried from Lisbon to Los Angeles as FJ2811 on November 13 and the same day entered service when it operated FJ1811 from Los Angeles to Nadi. The Euro Atlantic 777-212ER made its first visit to Sydney on November 20 when it operated FJ911/910 from and to Nadi.

747-412 DQ-FJL departed Nadi for Singapore on November 13 as FJ2222 before returning to Nadi on November 19 as FJ2224. 747-412 DQ-FJK departed Nadi for Singapore on November 20 as FJ2223.

Airwork ferried 737-376 ZK-SLA as AWK 737 from Perth to Brisbane on November 17 via Kalgoorlie, Ayers Rock, Alice Springs, Mt Isa and Rockhampton. ZK-SLA was then leased to Our Airline for operations ex Brisbane (see below).

Alliance took delivery of Fokker 70 YR-KMA msn 11564 in Brisbane after the former Carpatair aircraft ferried in from Timisoara, Romania via Trabzon, Al Ain, Ahmedabad, Chittagong, Penang, Denpasar and Darwin. The ferry flight was operated by Southern Cross Aviation as SXI1276. The Fokker 70 which was later registered VH-QQR was delivered in an all-white scheme with only YR-KMA and the Romanian flag on the fuselage.

737-476 ZK-JTQ, which had been in New Zealand for planned maintenance since September 21, departed Auckland on November 9 as AWK737 for Melbourne and Perth.

ZK-JTQ returned to Alliance service on November 13 when it operated QQ731 from Perth to Karratha.

737-376 ZK-SLA, which was leased to cover the maintenance lay-up of ZK-JTQ, operated its final flight for Alliance on November 8 as QQ732 from Karratha to Perth.

Fokker 50 VH-FKO entered service with Alliance on December 13 when it operated QQ4521 from Adelaide to Port Augusta. VH-FKO was delivered to Alliance in Adelaide as OO-VLV on July 29 (Traffic/October).

JetGo took delivery of its second EMB-135LR VH-JGB in Brisbane on November 14 after the aircraft completed its ferry flight from Orlando, Florida via Banda Aceh, Seletar, Denpasar, Darwin and Rockhampton.

Our Airline wet leased 737-376 ZK-SLA from Airwork to operate flights from Brisbane to Honiara and Nauru on November 19, 22 and 29.

Tiger Airways ferried A320-232 VH-VNB TGW8172 from Melbourne to Singapore on November 13 for planned maintenance.

Virgin Australia fleet update

In this issue we report the delivery of an ATR 72-600 to Virgin Australia.

ATR 72-600 VH-FVQ Christies Beach was delivered to Virgin Australia in Perth on December 3 after the aircraft arrived from Toulouse via Alexandria, Al Ain, Nagpur, Penang and Halim. The ferry flight of VH-FVQ was operated by Southern Cross Aviation as SXI1281.

ATR 72-600 VH-FVR Yallingup Beach was planned for delivery to Virgin Australia in Perth in early January.

E-190-100IGW VH-ZPM departed Brisbane on October 22 for Apia, Honolulu and Santa Maria, California and not to Nashville as we reported in Traffic/ December. VH-ZPM had positioned to Santa Maria as the second of type in the Virgin Australia fleet to be fitted with a business class section. On completion of the work VH-ZPM returned to Brisbane on November 15 from Santa Maria, Honolulu and Apia.

Regional airline news

In this issue we report the delivery of a Dash 8-100 to Solomon Airlines, a Saab 340B to Corporate Air, a BN-2T to Sunbird Aviation and a BN-2B-21 to Cape Air Transport.

Air Vanuatu ferried ATR 72-500 YJ-AV72 out of Port Vila on November 7 to Cairns, Darwin, Denpasar and Subang for planned maintenance. YJ-AV2 arrived back at Port Vila from Subang on December 1 via Denpasar, Darwin and Cairns. To cover the downtime on its ATR 72-500 Air Vanuatu leased ATR 72-500 F-OIQN from Air Tahiti.

Cape Air Transport took delivery of BN-2B-21 VH-IOS at Mareeba on November 18 after the aircraft ferried in from Denpasar and Darwin. VH-IOS msn 862 was registered to Anju Azul Aviation of Cooktown on October 10 ’12.

Chartair took delivery of Cessna 402C V5-VAC at Darwin on November 19 after the aircraft ferried in direct from Bangkok in just under 16 hours. The Cessna 402C was previously operated by Bay Air International of Namibia.

Corporate Air/Vee H Aviation took delivery of its second Saab 340B VH-VEO 340B-366 at Goulburn on November 14 after the aircraft completed its delivery flight from Rome/New York via McCook/ Nebraska, Merced, Honolulu, Pago Pago and the Gold Coast. The ferry flight of VH-VEO was operated by DBF Aviation Services of Sydney.

Saab 340B VH-VEP 340B-377 was registered to Corporate Air/Vee H Aviation on November 6 and was planned for delivery to Goulburn in early December.

In Traffic/December we mentioned the delivery flight of Saab 340B VH-VEM from Rome to Goulburn and for the record the aircraft ferried via Wichita, Merced, Honolulu, Majuro, Honiara and the Gold Coast.

Great Barrier Airlines BN-2A-26 ZK-REA was leased to Chathams Pacific on June 27 and returned to Auckland from Tonga on November 6.

Hardy Aviation Metro II VH-MMY, which was damaged in a ground accident at Darwin in July ’02, has been parked there since. However, on November 15 the Metro II was moved to the Darwin Aviation Heritage Centre where it is now displayed.

Niugini Aviation took delivery of PAC 750XL P2-KNA in Port Moresby on November 9 after the aircraft completed its ferry flight from Taupo via Kerikeri, Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island, Toowoomba, Mackay and Cairns.

Solomon Airlines took delivery of Dash 8-102 H4-SOL Megapode at Honiara on November 14 after the aircraft completed its ferry flight from Athens via Ambon and Port Moresby.

Sunbird Aviation took delivery of BN-2T P2-SBC msn 1365 ex RP-C788 at Port Moresby on August 27 after the aircraft, which was ferried by Air Center One, arrived from Manila via Davao, Manado, Biak, Vanimo and Mount Hagen.

Bizjet news

Citation CJ4 ZK-PGA was registered to Pacific Jets of Christchurch on November 8 and arrived at Auckland on November 12 from Majuro and Port Vila. It is the first Citation CJ4 based in our region.

MK Air of Newcastle changed the registration of its Falcon 900EX VH-MQK to VH-MQR on November 19.

Singapore Flying College Learjet 45 VH-SQD, which had been in long-term storage at Maroochydore, departed for Sydney on November 27 where it joined Learjet 45 VH-SQR and Learjet 45 VH-SQV in the ExecuJet hangar.

Pratt Aviation Global Express VH-VDX arrived at Essendon from Honolulu on November 13 with the aircraft noted to be carrying an identical colour scheme to the Pratt Aviation Global Express VH-VGX.

Falcon 7X N705FJ arrived in Sydney from Beijing on November 25 and after overnighting continued to Canberra. N705FJ departed Canberra on November 28 for Sydney and Essendon and it is known that at both Canberra and Essendon it operated a demonstration flight. N705FJ departed Essendon for Seletar on December 1.

Citation VII VH-ING was sold by Inghams Enterprises of Liverpool, NSW to Citation VII P/L of Bendigo, Victoria on October 31. The removal of the Inghams name from the Australian bizjet listing will be missed as they have been part of the bizjet scene for over 32 years.

Inghams Enterprises took delivery of its first bizjet in May ’80 when Citation II N26461 msn 550-0141 was purchased from Cessna. N26461 was registered to Inghams on June ’18 ’80 as VH-ING and it continued in service using that registration until June 28 ’99 when it was re-registerd VH-INX. The change of registration was done to allow Inghams Enterprises to use the registration VH-ING on a Citation VII which was delivered to them on December 25 ’99.

Citation II VH-INX was sold in June ’90 with the aircraft later changing its registration to VH-EJY in July ’00.

King Air fleet update

In this issue we report the delivery of a King Air B200.

King Air B200 N818PF msn BB-1059 registered to Jet 1 Charter of Naples, Florida was delivered to Jandakot on November 15 after the aircraft ferried in from Manado, Darwin and Broome. Earlier the King Air B200 was ferried round the North Pacific from Portland to Magadan, Russia via Boeing Field, Juneau, Anchorage and Nome.

CareFlight NT King Air B200 N215ML, which was delivered to Essendon on October 27 (Traffic/ December), was registered VH-ZCO on November 5 and after maintenance was carried out it departed Essendon for Albion Park on November 23.

CareFlight NT King Air B200 VH-ZCI arrived at Essendon from Albion Park on November 5 and was noted to be carrying the titles ‘Top End Medical Retrival Service’ on its fuselage and ‘Careflight 26’ on its tail. VH-ZCI was later delivered to Darwin on November 9 with the aircraft arriving from Longreach and Borroloola.

RFDS/South Eastern Section King Air B200 VH-MWX has been sold and on November 7 the RFDS titles were removed from the aircraft. VH-MWX departed Essendon on November 9 for Ayers Rock and Broome on delivery to Broome Air Services.

RFDS/Ambulance Service of NSW King Air B200 VH-MVP, which was parked at Essendon, has returned to service as a replacement for King Air B200 VH-MWX.

RFDS/South Eastern Section King Air B200C VH-MVX was named RFDS Friends in the UK – Patron HRH Prince of Wales by Prince Charles in a ceremony at Longreach on November 5.

King Air B100 N802GC was delivered to Warrnambool on October 13 (Traffic/December) and was registered VH-EJV to Vieross P/L of Warrnambool on November 16.

PC-12/47E VH-BEV, which was registered to Millbrae Quarries of Leeton, NSW on September 12, arrived at Adelaide on November 6 from Denpasar, Broome, Alice Springs and Griffith.

Gulfstreams galore

Netjets Gulfstream 550 N534QS arrived in Perth from Abu Dhabi on November 14 before continuing to Melbourne on November 16. The Gulfstream 550 departed Melbourne for Kona on November 17.

Gulfstream 550 N556TT arrived in Sydney from Mumbai on November 26 and after overnighting departed to Honolulu.

Johnson & Johnson Gulfstream 550 N600J arrived in Sydney from Honolulu on November before returning there on November 16.

Success Lucky Gulfstream 550 B-LDL arrived in Sydney from Hong Kong on November 29.

Nanshang Jet Company Gulfstream 550 B-8260 arrived in Sydney from Qingdao as NJS891 on November 5 and after overnighting departed to Singapore as NJS892.

International Jetclub Gulfstream 550 M-YBJK arrived in Sydney from Bangkok on November 3 and departed to Halim on November 5.

Jet Aviation Gulfstream 550 VP-CKC arrived in Cairns from Hong Kong on November 17 and remained there until November 25 when it returned to Hong Kong.

Gulfstream 550 VP-CKG arrived in Sydney from Seletar on November 22. VP-CKG departed Sydney for Brisbane on November 25 before returning to Seletar on November 26.

Cargill Gulfstream V N253CM arrived in Melbourne from Guangzhou on November 29 and after overnighting continued to Wagga Wagga and Newcastle. N253CM departed Newcastle for Honolulu on December 1.

Ptero Gulfstream V N740SS arrived at the Gold Coast from Kahului on November 15 before departing to Honolulu on November 15.

Gulfstream V N950CM arrived in Sydney from Bangkok/ Don Muang on November 12 before departing to Haneda on November 14.

G5 Executive Gulfstream V HB-JEV callsign ‘Batman 243’ arrived in Perth from Abu Dhabi on November 9. HB-JEV was later seen in Canberra, Melbourne, Launceston and Brisbane before it departed Sydney for Shanghai on November 22.

MJets Gulfstream V HS-WEH arrived in Brisbane from Don Muang on November 7 before departing to Gladstone and Perth on November 9. After overnighting HS-WEH departed for Don Muang.

Micron Leasing Gulfstream 450 VP-BMV arrived in Sydney from Seletar on November 6 before continuing to Rockhampton and the Gold Coast on November 8. VP-BMV departed the Gold Coast for Manila on November 11.

Gulfstream 450 N888KJ arrived in Darwin from Beijing on November 15 and after overnighting continued to Sydney. N888KJ later visited Melbourne and Hobart before departing Cairns for Hong Kong on November 24.

Las Vegas Sands Corporation Gulfstream IV N688LS arrived at Cairns from Halim on November 27 and returned there on December 1.

Blackhorse Two Gulfstream IV N889TC arrived in Melbourne from Nadi on November 26 before continuing to Sydney on November 28. After overnighting N889TC departed for Nadi.

Star Oriental International Gulfstream IV M-GFOR arrived in Perth from Subang on November 24 and after overnighting operated a return flight to Busselton. M-GFOR departed Perth for Subang on November 27.

US Navy Gulfstream IV/ C-20G 165093 callsign ‘Convoy 2289’ arrived in Canberra from Guam on November 14 and departed for Cairns and Manila on November 16.

Overseas bizjets

Caterpillar Global Express N797CT arrived at Essendon from Honolulu on November 12 and departed to Adelaide on November 14. N797CT continued to Mackay and the Gold Coast on November 15 before departing to Kona on November 16.

Execaire Global Express C-GDPF arrived at Karratha from Hong Kong and Port Hedland on November 18 before departing for Cairns and Kona on November 20.

Global 5000 N50XC, which is the former VH-KTG, arrived in Brisbane from Nadi on November 5 and after overnighting continued to Essendon. N50XC departed Essendon for Nadi on November 7.

TAG Aviation Asia Global 5000 N103ZZ TBJ29 transited Melbourne in the early hours on December 1 while en route from Hong Kong to Queenstown.

Swiss Air Ambulance Challenger 604 HB-JRA as flight SAZ243 arrived at Melbourne from Apia and Newcastle on November 13 and departed for Newcastle, Port Hedland and Colombo on November 15.

VKRM Aviation Challenger 604 N999VK arrived at Ayers Rock from Auckland and Brisbane on November 14. N999VK was later reported at Adelaide and Hamilton Island before departing Cairns for Apia on November 19.

Challenger 604 I-WISH departed Adelaide for Port Hedland and Male on November 8.

Falcon Aviation Services ERJ-190BJ Lineage A6-HHS arrived at the Gold Coast from Singapore on November 5 before continuing to Auckland on November 7. A6-HHS arrived in Brisbane from Queenstown on November 15 and departed later that day to Singapore.

Wallenmount Falcon 7X HB-JFN arrived in Sydney from Kuala Lumpur on November 15 before continuing to Essendon on November 17.

Dasnair Falcon 7X HB-JSN arrived in Sydney from Dhaka on November 14 before returning there on November 16.

Royal Malaysian Air Force Falcon 900 M37-01 callsign ‘RMF410’ arrived in Melbourne from Denpasar on October 12 and after overnighting continued to the Gold Coast. The Falcon 900 departed the Gold Coast for Denpasar on October 15.

Air Alsie Falcon 2000LX OY-MHA, which was operating as MMD3034, arrived in Brisbane from Kuala Lumpur on November 13 and departed to Denpasar on November 18.

Ferry flights

AT-802A VH-NWU msn 0327, which was registered to R & M Aircraft of Port Macquarie on October 29, was delivered to Moree on November 7. The AT-802A was ferried by SRD Aviation of Albury and commenced its delivery flight at Valencia, Spain and was flown to Moree via Malta, Luxor, Muscat, Colombo, Cocos Island and Broome.

AT-802A N5001N msn 0479 was delivered to Aerotech at Parafield on November 19 by SRD Aviation with the aircraft ferrying in from Olney, Texas via Merced, Honolulu, Majuro, Honiara, Gold Coast and Moree.

Rotor-Lift BK117 B-2 VH-BKS arrived at Ardmore on November 10 after ferrying in from Port Vila via Noumea, Norfolk Island and Auckland.

Cessna 208B N208RL msn 208B0865, which was ferried by Air Center One, was delivered to Christchurch on December 10 with the aircraft crossing the Pacific from Merced/California via Hilo and Pago Pago. After overnighting in Christchurch the Cessna 208B continued its ferry to Timaru where it reportedly will be registered ZK-NZO.

Jhonlin Air Transport Cessna 208B PK-JBC arrived in Cairns on October 12 and departed on November 30 for Merauke.

NZ Aerial Mapping Cessna 402B ZK-PVC, which had been working in Fiji since July, returned to Hastings on November 6 from Nadi via Norfolk Island and Auckland.

Cessna 182Q N95803 registered to Sternavia Inc of Wilmington, Delaware arrived at Jandakot on November 10 after ferrying in from Kupang via Broome and Meekatharra.

CHC Helicopters S-76A+ RP-C176 arrived in Darwin from Dili on November 20.

Strong Engineering Vulcanair P-68C-TC VH-EPF departed Darwin for Kupang on October 27 and was later cancelled from the register on November 5 when sold in Taiwan. VH-EPF, which was registered to Strong Engineering of Berwick, Victoria on April 17, was delivered to Moorabbin on September 3.

Heavy metal

White Airways A319-115LR CS-TFU arrived in Sydney from Rotorua on November 16 and departed for Denpasar as WHT9401 on November 19.

Volga-Dnepr An-124 RA-82074 VDA6913 arrived in Brisbane from Tianjin, China and Townsville on October 12. RA-82074 departed Brisbane for Darwin as ASY105 on November 14 and after overnighting continued to Jakarta again as ASY105.

Volga Dnepr An-124 RA-82047 VDA2294 arrived in Perth from Kansai on November 17 and after overnighting operated a return service to Karratha as VDA2294/2295. RA-82047 departed Perth for Xi’an as VDA2295 on November 19.

Polet Avia An-124 RA-82068 POT4789 arrived at Rockhampton from Chennai on November 26. After loading five Singapore Defence Force AH-64Ds that had been on exercise in Queensland the An-124 departed on November 27 for Darwin and Paya Lebar as POT4788.

Volga Dnepr An-124 RA-82042 VDA2389 arrived in Brisbane on November 27 from the former Clark AFB in the Philippines and departed for Darwin and Batam, Indonesia as ASY124 on November 28.

Antonov Airlines An-124 UR-82008 ADB2046 arrived in Perth from Colombo on November 30 and after overnighting continued to Karratha again as ADB2046. After unloading at Karratha the An-124 departed for Port Hedland and Brisbane as ADB206F/ADB2328.

Boeing Company 737-7BC/ BBJ N835BA arrived in Canberra from Honolulu on November before continuing to Brisbane. N835BA departed Brisbane for Honolulu on November 20.

Itera Holdings 737-7HZ/BBJ P4-NGK arrived in Perth from Ho Chi Minh City on November 21 and departed for Dubai on November 30.

US Air Force 737-7FD/C-40B 02-0042 callsign ‘SAM 196’ arrived in Perth from Guam on November 12 and departed for Guam again as ‘SAM 196’ on November 14.

Royal Malaysian Air Force 737-7H6/BBJ M53-01 callsign ‘RMF409’ arrived in Melbourne from Kuala Lumpur late on November 10 and departed for Kuala Lumpur in the early hours of November 11. The BBJ later arrived at the Gold Coast from Kuala Lumpur on November 17 and after overnighting returned to Kuala Lumpur.

United States of America 757-2G4/C-32A 99-0003 callsign ‘SAM 460’ arrived in Perth from Guam on November 13 and after overnighting continued to Adelaide. The C-32A departed Adelaide for Paya Lebar on November 16.

United States of America 747-200B/E-4B 73-1677 callsign ‘Grim 42’ arrived in Perth from Honolulu on November 13 and departed for Bangkok/Don Muang on November 15.

USAF/AMC C-17A 04-4133 callsign ‘Reach 373’ arrived in Perth from Townsville on November 10 before departing to Canberra on November 15. The C-17A, which was from McGuire AFB, departed Canberra for Honolulu as ‘Reach 373’ on November 16.

AirScapade DC-3 N451ZS The Jean Batten Clipper, which was re-enacting the 1936 flight of Jean Batten from England to New Zealand, departed Lydd, UK for New Zealand on October 25. N451ZS arrived in Darwin from Kupang on November 9 and continued to Jabiru, Mt Isa, Longreach and Hervey Bay where it arrived on November 12. A mechanical problem resulted in the DC-3 remaining in Hervey Bay until November 15 when it continued to Norfolk Island and Auckland where it arrived on November 16.

Volga Dnepr Il-76TD-90VD RA-76952 VDA4320 arrived in Darwin from Hiroshima on November 11 and after clearing customs continued to Karratha. After overnighting the Il-76 departed for Broome where it remained until November 18 when it departed for Chennai as VDA4321. RA-76952 returned to Darwin from Singapore as VDA6014 on November 24 and departed the following day as VDA6015 for Mount Isa where it off-loaded plant machinery for Incitec Pivot before continuing to Cairns. The Il-76TD departed Cairns for Ambon on December 4 as VDA6017.

Fire attack helicopters

A number of overseas-registered helicopters arrived in Australia in this period in preparation for the 2012-13 bushfire season.

Erickson Air-Crane Sikorsky S-64E N957AC/738 Ichabod arrived at Perth from the Fremantle docks on December 1. N957AC, which was shipped in from Europe, will be contracted to the WA government and be based at Jandakot for the summer.

Erickson Air-Crane Sikorsky S-64F N179AC/739 Elvis arrived at Essendon from the Melbourne docks on December 2 after being shipped in from the United States. The S-64F, which will be based at Essendon for the summer, was later marked as Helitack 341.

Erickson Air-Crane Sikorsky S-64E N218AC/740 Elsie arrived at Essendon from the Melbourne docks on December 2 and was later ferried to Brukunga, South Australia.

Erickson Air-Crane Sikorsky S-64E N189AC/731 Gypsy Lady arrived at Ballarat direct from the Melbourne Docks on December 6. N189AC will spend the summer at Ballarat as Helitack 342.

Erickson Air-Crane Sikorsky S-64F N159AC/735 Camille arrived at Bankstown on December 11 after being shipped into the Melbourne docks on December 10 and ferried north via Essendon.

VIH Helicopters Sikorsky S-61N C-FQNG Helitack 681 arrived at Perth from the Fremantle docks on November 30.

VIH Helicopters Sikorsky S-61N C-GHTN Helitack 682 arrived at Perth on November 21.

Coulson Aircrane Sikorsky S-61N C-FCLM Helitack 348 arrived at Essendon by road from the Melbourne docks on December 8 and was later flown to Mansfield where it will spend the summer.

Coulson Aircrane Sikorsky S-61N C-FIRX Helitack 347 arrived at Essendon by road from the Melbourne docks on December 8 and was later flown to Colac where it will spend the summer.