Preflight

F-35’s first live fire air-to-air missile launch

AIM-120 fired at target drone

F-35A test aircraft AF-6 has launched an AIM-120 missile against an aerial target drone, the first live-fire launch of an air-to-air missile for the Joint Strike Fighter program.

“I think it is hard to overstate the importance of planning. JOHN BORGHETTI P4

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AF-6 was piloted by Capt Logan Lamping and took off from Edwards Air Force Base, with the live fire taking place in an over-water test range.

“Test data and observers confirmed the F-35 identified and targeted the drone with its mission systems sensors, passed the target track information to the missile, and launched the AIM-120 from the aircraft to engage the target drone,” the Joint Project Office said in a statement. “After launch, the missile successfully acquired the target and followed an intercept flight profile.

Moments before the missile was about to destroy the target, a selfdestruct signal was sent to the AIM- 120 in order to preserve the aerial drone for use in future tests. ” The AMRAAM launch came a day after a F-35B successfully completed the program’s first live air-to-ground weapons drop when an inert GBU-12 successfully hit a stationary tank on the Edwards test range.

Qantas ups Jetstar Japan stake

Qantas has increased its stake in Jetstar Japan via an equity injection “to support the airline’s growth”. Both Qantas and Japan Airlines are injecting a combined ¥11 billion (around A$120m) into Jetstar Japan via non-voting shares, taking their holdings in Jetstar Japan to 45. 7 per cent each. Consequently, Mitsubishi Corporation and Century Tokyo Leasing’s shares will be diluted from 8. 3 per cent each to 4. 3 per cent. “The equity injection will support Jetstar Japan’s future fleet and infrastructure growth, enabling the carrier to capitalise on the significant potential of the low-cost carrier market in the world’s third largest economy,” Qantas said in an October 31 statement. Jetstar Japan began flying in July 2012 and currently operates 18 A320s to nine Japanese destinations.

Boeing & LM team for new USAF bomber

Boeing and Lockheed Martin will team to compete for the USAF’s long-range strike bomber program, with Boeing acting as the prime contractor and Lockheed Martin as the primary team-mate.

Boeing and Lockheed Martin have previously partnered on the F-22 program, and the two companies had earlier teamed for the US bomber program, before cancelling that arrangement in 2010 while awaiting a better understanding of the project’s future.

Boeing’s Dennis Muilenburg said: “Stable planning, along with efficient and affordable development and production approaches, enables our team to reduce development risk by leveraging mature technologies and integrating existing systems. ” Few details of the bomber project are known publicly, other than a requirement for 80 to 100 aircraft and service entry in the mid-2020s.

Boeing’s extensive bomber A concept illustration of the new generation long-range bomber being developed by Boeing and Lockheed Martin. boeingheritage includes building the B-52 and, as Rockwell, the B-1B, while Lockheed Martin is prime contractor for the Joint Strike Fighter program (which it won ahead of Boeing). Northrop Grumman, builder of the B-2 Spirit, could also bid for the program.

A new era begins as Jetstar completes inaugural 787 RPT flight

Jetstar has operated its inaugural 787 revenue flight, with its first 787-8, VH-VKA, operating flight JQ432 between Melbourne and the Gold Coast on November 13.

More than 250 passengers including Jetstar CEO Jane Hrdlicka and representatives from Boeing and General Electric were aboard the flight, which departed a wet Melbourne Airport just after 11am and touched down at the Gold Coast 1 hour 39 minutes later. The crew was led by Captain Peter Terrill and cabin manager Andrew Pahuru.

“Today, we celebrate Jetstar being the first low fares airline in Asia Pacific to start commercial 787 services,” Hrdlicka said.

“Our customers will experience a step change in their comfort onboard and fly on the most modern and passenger friendly aircraft available. ” VH-VKA returned to Melbourne that afternoon on the reciprocal JQ435 service. Over the subsequent four weeks the aircraft was due to operate daily return services from Melbourne to Cairns and six weekly return services from Melbourne to the Gold Coast. The first international service, between Melbourne and Denpasar, Bali is scheduled for December 18.

Virgin’s $350m capital raising

Virgin Australia aims to raise $350 million through an entitlement offer to improve its liquidity position. Shareholders will be able to purchase five new shares for every existing 14 shares held on November 19.

The airline’s major shareholders and strategic partners support the entitlement offer and will be taking up their full entitlements, the airline said.

Virgin Australia chief executive officer John Borghetti said: “This capital raising is designed to enhance liquidity and the gearing position of Virgin Australia to ensure we are in a stronger position moving forward. It will provide the group with additional flexibility and resilience, enabling us to consolidate initiatives as part of the Game Change Program strategy. ” Air New Zealand, which currently holds 22. 9 per cent of the shares in Virgin Australia and has regulatory approval in Australia to increase its holding to 25. 99 per cent, confirmed that it is supporting the rights issue.

Borghetti calls for leadership to meet challenges

Virgin Australia CEO sees collaboration as essential to future prosperity

The aviation industry needs to show leadership and courage in addressing the challenges of compounding traffic growth over the next two decades, Virgin Australia CEO John Borghetti has said.

“Fifty per cent growth in air traffic over the next 20 years represents an additional 140 million passenger movements and we cannot simply keep doing things the way we have been as an industry and expect to cope,” Borghetti said in his keynote address to Airservices’ Waypoint industry conference in Canberra in November.

“But while the outlook is undeniably bright on the demand side, the supply side is where the real challenges lie. If we fail to manage the challenges effectively as an industry, Australia’s aviation system will not reach its full potential. This will have long-term impacts on the competitiveness of Australia’s businesses, trade and tourism. ” As a result, “Leadership is essential to bring stakeholders together to articulate their vision and develop goals and strategies for the long term,” Borghetti said. “And leadership is vital to form the partnerships that have the capacity to deliver outcomes well beyond those that can be achieved in isolation.

“But leadership is about more than that. It is the courage to think differently and to challenge the status quo. It is not being afraid to pursue outcomes because they have been discounted in the past or because the hurdles seem insurmountable. As leaders we have a responsibility to turn our minds to creative solutions, to make the case in the face of opposition and to foster a culture in our organisations that both promotes and harnesses this kind of thinking in our people. ” Borghetti told an industry audience representing the major and regional airlines, airports, business and general aviation operators, CASA and Airservices, “collaboration is integral to the sustainability and future growth of the aviation industry in Australia. As individual airlines, airports and government agencies we are all striving for continuous improvement, but partnerships have the potential to deliver step changes. ” Borghetti was drawing on his nearly 40 years in the airline industry and in particular his role at Virgin Australia in recognising the agility with which the industry needs to meet future challenges.

“Over the past five years passenger traffic at Australian airports has grown by an average 3. 5 per cent per annum, despite relatively subdued economic circumstances globally,” he said, offering a segue into where some of the practical challenges ahead lie. And in addition to the courage he sees as vital to future successes, he sees much of the potential constraint lying in aviation infrastructure to support the forecast growth of passenger traffic.

“In my view the key challenge arising from this revolves around ensuring that the right aviation infrastructure is in place and that it is supported by frameworks to enable safe, fair, efficient and reasonably-priced access. Without this, industry players will not be able to maximise the utilisation of their assets, compete on an equal footing, make returns for their investors or support future investment,” Borghetti said, adding that lead times to aviation developments demand the consideration of plans as early as possible.

“I think it is hard to overstate the importance of planning. Investment decisions on air traffic management

While the outlook is undeniably bright on the demand side, the supply side is where the real challenges lie. JOHN BORGHETTI

systems, navigation technology, terminals, runways and fleet plans all need to be made well in advance. Establishing a collective future vision for the industry is therefore vital. A shared understanding of where we are going, why and when, highlights critical success factors and makes pathways to achieving goals easier to define. ” That “future collective vision” was the centerpiece of Borghetti’s message and the importance interrelationships play in delivering an efficient aviation sector. He drew on the necessary participation of the industry’s many stakeholders from Airservices to airports, Defence and the community working in collaboration with airlines to realise potential.

Indeed, his comments were analogous to the now proven success of the collaboratibve decision-making model between air navigation service providers such as Airservices, airports and airlines in delivering tangible improvements to airport and airspace efficiency in recent years.

A further element he stressed as vitally important – and one that sits outside the direct management of the industry itself – was state government, which he sees as both an enabler and disabler of aviation.

“Australia’s major capital city airports are amongst its key infrastructure assets. Together, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth account for over 70 per cent of total passenger movements at Australian airports annually. The protection of this infrastructure to ensure that capacity is not compromised by developments that are incompatible with aviation is critical.

“While some steps towards this have been taken, it will be important for the Commonwealth to work closely with the states to ensure that the appropriate safeguarding principles and mechanisms are reflected in planning regulations,” Borghetti asserted.

Encroachment on airport operations by residential and commercial development remains a key topic for the industry in its engagement with state governments, with a number of high-profile developments already affecting airport operations.

Borghetti could have drawn on many other examples of government policy decisions at state and federal levels, such as the potential for a curfew at Brisbane Airport, government-imposed curfew restrictions in Sydney and planning considerations around Canberra Airport.

While understanding the significant of these threats, Borghetti’s message to industry was a timely reiteration of both harnessing opportunities within the direct control of industry and the external factors that stand to inhibit it.

Equally in his succinct message, taking the lead on such issues is firmly within the direct control of the aviation sector to the extent leadership and courage are the underpinning values that have made Australia’s airlines the success they have been to date – and need to be into the future.

Sichuan into Sydney, Aerolineas to withdraw

November was a mixed month for Sydney Airport with the news that Sichuan Airlines is to become the latest Chinese airline to operate direct flights to Sydney countered by the announcement that Aerolineas Argentinas is pulling out.

Sichuan Airlines is due to commence twice-weekly services to Australia’s largest city commencing on December 20.

“Sichuan Airlines will operate twice-weekly flights with its Airbus A330-200 aircraft, providing more than 50,000 seats per year on the important Chongqing-Sydney route,” Sydney Airport CEO Kerrie Mather said.

“Chongqing is a major manufacturing centre, transportation hub and one of China’s emerging megacities. With around 30 million residents, the city has a greater population than Australia. ” The flights to Sydney will operate on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Meanwhile, citing weak demand and uneconomic operations caused by payload limitations, Aerolineas Argentinas will cease servicing the Buenos Aires-Sydney route from April. The move gives the remaining carriers in the South America run – oneworld alliance partners Qantas and LAN – an opportunity to consolidate their positions in the market.

The withdrawal of Aerolineas Argentinas’ A340-200s from its fleet created further impetus for the cessation of the service, as it has no replacement type with which to operate the nonstop service. The airline removed the intermediate Auckland stopover last year when it began the trans-Polar flights.

Qantas confirms closure of “subscale” Avalon maintenance facility

300 jobs lost as Qantas looks to move 747 maintenance offshore

Qantas has confirmed it will close its Avalon heavy maintenance base in March in a move that was widely anticipated, but a blow to the 53 Qantas and 246 Forstaff contractor staff who made a last-minute pitch to save the facility.

The airline announced in September it was reviewing the future of the Avalon heavy maintenance base, citing the rationalisation of its 747 fleet creating cost inefficiencies as down time between aircraft increased.

“Over the next four years there would have been up to 22 months with no scheduled maintenance at Avalon. No business could afford to continue operating a facility under those circumstances,” Qantas Domestic CEO Lyall Strambi explained.

“Avalon has become subscale,” said Strambi. “This decision in no way reflects on our employees at Avalon, it simply reflects the structural changes to our fleet that means long periods of no heavy maintenance work. ” Qantas has 15 747-400s in service, down from a peak of 34, with plans to cut that further to just 10.

Staff had been invited by Qantas in October “to sit down and discuss the challenges and look at potential options for our Avalon base. ” Through the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA), Qantas and Forstaff engineers proposed late October to relocate some 737 maintenance work to Avalon to fill the gaps between planned 747 maintenance.

The suggestion was argued as capacity at the airline’s Brisbane maintenance facility was reaching saturation according to the ALAEA, and that moving 737 work to Avalon would have both eased capacity constraints in Brisbane and retained the 300 jobs at Avalon.

The ALAEA also suggested on behalf of its members that they take three months leave without pay as a last-minute inducement to retain Avalon, which was opened in 1996 heralding a new way forward for Qantas to maintain its 747 fleet.

However, while acknowledging the ALAEA’s proposals, the review concluded the efforts were “just a drop in the ocean and doesn’t solve the problem”. Strambi said Qantas will work with affected employees to “explore redeployment opportunities”.

The question now remains where Qantas will undertake 747 maintenance, whether relocating it to Brisbane or to send aircraft offshore, but Strambi said it would be “well into next year before we have to make that determination”.

In May last year Qantas announced a consolidation of its Australian-based heavy maintenance into Brisbane and Avalon, and flagged its intention to ultimately reduce to one Australian heavy maintenance facility.

As a result of that strategic decision, Qantas announced in November last year it was winding back work at Avalon after the conclusion of a program to refurbish nine 747‑400s with new A380-style interiors. The move at the time saw 250 Forstaff contractors and some Qantas staff lose their jobs. It coincided with the creation of 120 new positions at Brisbane following an announcement in May last year the airline was shutting its Melbourne Tullamarine maintenance base and moving 737 maintenance to Brisbane.

The consolidation of maintenance activities last year saw net job losses of more than 500 positions.

Throughout the changes, Qantas has affirmed it would continue to do the vast majority of its maintenance in Australia.

“Qantas is the only major airline which does heavy maintenance at its own facilitates in Australia, and this will continue to be the case into the future,” Strambi said. In addition to its Brisbane heavy maintenance base, Qantas Engineering conducts line maintenance at 19 ports around Australia and employs approximately 4,500 people.

Qantas also stressed the recent announcement of the establishment of a 787 maintenance and training base at Melbourne Airport as testament to it not abandoning in-house engineering functions. The airline also said it had invested $30 million this year to upgrade its maintenance facilities in Brisbane which are due to be completed by the end of 2013.

MAX yields additional one per cent fuel efficiency gain

Boeing says it has improved the fuel efficiency of its 737 MAX by a further one per cent, and is also promising reduced maintenance and support costs.

Consequently, Boeing says 737 MAX operators “will realise a 14 per cent fuel-efficiency improvement over today’s most fuel efficient single-aisle aircraft. At longer ranges, the improvement will be even greater. ”

A320 passes 10,000 order milestone

Airbus’s A320 family has passed the 10,000 order milestone following new orders from US carrier JetBlue for 15 A321s as well as converting18 existing A320 orders to A321s.

JetBlue will also be the first airline to take delivery of an aircraft from Airbus’s Mobile, Alabama final assembly line.

Boeing to up 737 production

Boeing has announced a further increase in 737 production rates to 47 aircraft a month in 2017. This will see more than 560 737s a year come off its Renton production lines, representing an increase in output of nearly 50 per cent since 2010.

Boeing is currently building the 737 at a rate of 38 aircraft a month, with the rate to increase to 42 per month in the first half of 2014.

RAAF starts Growler training in the US

The RAAF’s first pilot instructor has commenced flying on the EA-18G Growler in the US.

FLTLT Sean Rutledge has commenced training with the Electronic Attack Wing, US Pacific Fleet at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. Once he’s completed his training, FLTLT Rutledge will be qualified to instruct other RAAF aircrew for the 12 EA-18G Growlers the Australian government is purchasing via the United States Foreign Military Sales program.

“We’ve started early as there is an awful lot to learn between now and when we begin flying our own EA-18Gs in 2017. The support that we have had from the US Navy, particularly from Captain Springett and his team here at NAS Whidbey Island has been truly magnificent. They have really made us feel welcome as new members of the community,” WGCDR Paul Jarvis, Deputy Director EA-18G Growler Transition team said in early November.

“Growler is a game-changer for the Royal Australian Air Force. With its unique mix of capabilities it provides multiple options to commanders, all of which reduce the risk to supported Australian Defence Force or coalition forces whilst increasing their lethality. ” Over the next three years, six RAAF crews (comprising one pilot and one electronic warfare officer) will learn to fly the Growler with the US Navy’s VAQ-129, with assistance from the US Program Management Office (PMA-265) at Naval Air Systems Command in Patuxent River, Maryland.

Auckland-Perth first Air NZ 787 route

Auckland-Perth will be Air New Zealand’s first 787-9 route when the aircraft enters service next October, CEO Christopher Luxon announced at the opening of the airline’s Customer Innovation and Collaboration Centre in Auckland on November 7, where he also revealed details of the airline’s 787-9 interior.

Passengers travelling from Auckland to Perth on the October 14 launch flight will experience a three-class, 302-seat cabin comprising 12 lie-flat Business Premier seats, 21 premium economy seats set at 2+3+2 and 263 economy seats at nine-abreast, including 14 Skycouch rows.

Following Auckland-Perth, a route codeshared with Virgin Australia, Air New Zealand will deploy the 787-9 on Auckland-Shanghai and Auckland-Tokyo services.

Air New Zealand is the launch operator of the 787-9 and has 10 on order.

Meanwhile, Air New Zealand has announced its first deal licensing its Skycouch seat arrangement to another airline, with an as yet unnamed Asian carrier the first to adopt the innovative seating arrangement.

“We took a deliberate decision to keep the product exclusive to our own customers initially and families in particular have really appreciated the extra space and flexibility it offers,” Luxon said. “We’re pleased to have signed this first agreement and we’re continuing to talk with other airlines about further licensing agreements. ” The first Skycouch customer can’t be named until next year. The licensing agreement follows the expiry of Air New Zealand’s exclusivity period for the Skycouch, which it first introduced in 2011. Air New Zealand is the launch operator of the 787-9 and has 10 on order.

Ballina Byron aims for RNP approaches

Ballina Byron airport has commissioned Airservices to introduce RNAV (RNP)-AR terminal instrument flight procedures – or Smart Tracking.

Airservices is developing new arrival flightpaths for both Runway 06 and Runway 24 at the regional airport, which has experienced rapid high-capacity traffic growth with the introduction of services by Jetstar and Virgin Australia.

The new flightpaths are close to existing conventional flightpaths, so no new residential areas will be overflown. There will also be no significant changes in the heights at which aircraft will fly over residential areas. Airservices said, however, it is possible that Smart Tracking, which is a precise navigation technology, will lead to flights being concentrated more along the flightpath.

But the enhancement will only be progressively implemented, with Jetstar the sole carrier that has committed to using Smart Tracking at Ballina Byron airport.

Airservices said: “Over the next few years, other commercial airlines are expected to equip their aircraft and train their crews to use the system, so use of Smart Tracking will increase. ” With Smart Tracking, decision height for landing is reduced from the current 660ft at Ballina Byron airport to 250ft, allowing more landings to take place in poor weather.

Subject to successful community consultation, the procedures are expected to be operational early in 2014.

Airservices has been trialling Smart Tracking around Australia since 2006 and the system has been permanently implemented at five airports around the country.

Moore-Wilton wonders who’s been smokin’ what

Second Sydney airport may finally get parliamentary nod, but urgent remedies needed for Mascot

The federal government may be set to finally give approval for the development of a second Sydney airport. If true, a 60-year-old hoodoo will be broken.

Federal treasurer Joe Hockey is reportedly seeking to include funding for an airport at Badgerys Creek in the 2014/15 budget to help stimulate a slowing economy. Certainly a $6 billion infrastructure project would help deliver that stimulus.

But a slowing economy does not an airport maketh. Australia has been through many, sometimes severe, recessions since a second Sydney airport was first mooted mid-last century, and despite the many cries from the aviation, business and tourism sectors, no airport has materialised other than what has been published in copious volumes of long-dead trees on the subject.

It’s no wonder the never-mildly-spoken Max Moore-Wilton, as chairman of Sydney Airport Corporation, has laughed at the suggestion of a new airport.

“When people tell me that the concrete trucks are going to start pouring in the first term of this government, boy oh boy, I wonder what they have been smoking,” Moore-Wilton reportedly said about the proposal for Badgerys Creek.

Of course, corporate governance demands he does. He is the chairman responsible to some weighty investors in Sydney’s only international airport. That warrants protecting.

But if it is all true, then the new government looks to be a tremendous ally of aviation. After Moore-Wilton described former transport minister Anthony Albanese as the “worst aviation minister that we had in my life time”, a view shared by many in the industry, the Coalition’s transport minister Warren Truss is instilling a sense of relief within the industry. Already he is moving ahead on pre-election promises for the regional aviation sector as well as opening the door to consultation that has been lacking during recent political terms.

The signs thus far have been very positive.

If the new federal government is to make a decision on a second airport, it is best positioned to do so early in its first term – the period of greatest political courage.

And it will need courage and resolve. Not only does a new airport have yet to pass parliamentary hurdles, it has to pass other regulatory and community obstacles that may well pass Badgerys Creek into the next parliamentary term and a period of greater political risk.

However, it would be fair to suggest the community, business sector and aviation together have created more momentum for Badgerys Creek than at any time in the history of this sorry tale. Arguably there has been no better time to press hard.

Furthermore, if the government choses to demonstrate even greater courage on matters aviation, it could more immediately relax some of the absurd impositions on the natural capacity of Sydney Airport. Recognition, for instance, that some aircraft could operate comfortably outside the current movement cap without hindrance to the community.

Even an additional four movements an hour – two arrivals and two departures, would offer respite from saturation. And another four movements an hour would barely be perceptible, especially if those additional slots were limited to turboprops or the latest generation of widebody aircraft such as the 787 and A380 that are now recognised world-over as neighbour-friendly, even at some of the most noise-sensitive airports such as Heathrow. The same can be said of operations during curfew hours. Though a riskier political move, the pre-curfew period between 0500 and 0600 could be opened up under the same low-noise conditions applied to any additional slots approved over the current 80-an-hour limit.

And more slots, of course, would make Moore-Wilton very happy, without a vestige of smoke anywhere.

Interestingly, this first massive test of the government’s resolve will act as an indicator of how it intends to deal with other problem issues. If the government’s courage can take on Badgerys Creek and win, it’s a portent for other tough policy decisions in the coming parliamentary term.

Aviation, for one, could at last be recognised for the important catalyst it is to the economy. Even Moore-Wilton would have to acknowledge that from his seat overlooking the constrained mess that is Sydney Airport.

Government could more immediately relax some of the absurd impositions on the natural capacity of Sydney Airport.

AirAsia X inaugurates Adelaide

AirAsia X operated its inaugural Kuala Lumpur-Adelaide service on October 31, marking the start of its year-round four times weekly schedule.

The airline is the only one to offer a direct low-cost service between Malaysia and Adelaide.

The airline said it has been encouraged by demand for the new route, with the inaugural flight operating at a load factor in excess of 80 per cent.

The service is operated using A330-300s with a seat capacity of 377. South Australian travellers will be able to fly to onward destinations through AirAsiaX’s Kuala Lumpur hub using the airline’s popular Fly-Thru transfer service, allowing easy connections through KL’s Low Cost Carrier Terminal.

China Southern 787s to NZ

China Southern Airlines has become the first airline to operate scheduled 787 services to New Zealand following the arrival of the airline’s newly-delivered aircraft in Auckland on October 28.

Operating a daily service, the 787 replaces the airline’s existing A330-operated schedule and increases annual seat capacity by around five per cent.

The daily flights will be increased to 10 times weekly for the peak summer season. China Southern brought forward its planned introduction of the 787 to the New Zealand market from December to October.

Defence criticises ATSB over LOS report

A report by the Australian Transportation Safety Bureau (ATSB) into loss of separation (LOS) incidents in Australian airspace drew strong defence from the operator of military airspace, in which the ATSB found a disproportionate level of LOS incidents over two years.

The Bureau said “military controlled terminal area airspace in general, and all airspace around Darwin and Williamtown in particular, had a disproportionate rate of LOS for civilian aircraft. ” In a stern response, Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Geoff Brown said the unique nature of military flying meant the ATSB report had unfairly compared civilian and military airspace.

“I am disappointed that the report has chosen to concentrate on the loss of separation incidents in military airspace, and does not address the 80 per cent of loss of separation incidents that occur in civil air traffic control space, which is outside of Air Force’s control,” Brown said in a statement.

The ATSB has issued recommendations to Defence to review all processes and controls in place for aircraft separation in military air traffic services and to CASA to review whether its current level of involvement with military ATS is sufficient to assure the safety of civil aircraft operations.

“The factors which may make military airspace more dynamic and variable, do not necessarily make the airspace less safe,” Brown said.

CASA issues ADS-B exemption, as new ground stations commissioned

CASA has issued a two-year exemption allowing aircraft not equipped with ADS-B transponders to continue operating in airspace above Flight Level 290, a move that will be particularly welcomed by business jet operators.

The mandate for all aircraft to be equipped with ADS-B was due to take effect from December 12 this year, but the exemption will allow limited operations in the ‘J-curve’ of Australian airspace that has radar coverage (along the east coast from Brisbane to Melbourne, and across to Adelaide), as well as exempted oceanic airspace areas. However, operators will still need to notify CASA of flight details 14 days in advance.

“Exemption requests for other areas of airspace at and above FL290 where ADS-B is the primary means of surveillance for air traffic management will not be approved,” CASA said in issuing the exemption instrument (CASA EX113/13). “Operators can complete and submit Form 208 to provide CASA with advice on those aircraft which it intends to operate in the exempted airspace without ADS-B. CASA will use the information provided to inform Airservices Australia of the notified aircraft, for use in its air traffic control system. ” The exemption runs from December 12 to December 11 2015.

Meanwhile, Airservices has commissioned two new ADS-B ground stations, bringing to 61 the number now in operation across Australia.

The two new ADS-B ground stations, at Point Lookout near Coffs Harbour and Mount Hardgrave on North Stradbroke Island, will provide a backup to the radar surveillance in the region and enhance the high-level coverage for air traffic from Lord Howe Island to Sydney and Brisbane.

Over the next three years Airservices will install a further 15 ADS-B ground stations to provide additional surveillance coverage at lower altitudes and extend higher level coverage offshore.

With the first ADS-B mandate coming into effect on December 12, more than 90 per cent of airline and charter aircraft have already been fitted with the technology. Airservices reports it is also seeing more than 94 per cent of flights at or above 29,000ft in the Australian flight information region operating with ADS-B capability.

However, more than 100 corporate aircraft have yet to be fitted with the necessary equipment, forcing CASA to issue the conditional two-year exemption.

The next key milestone for the transition to ADS-B will occur on February 6 when CASA regulations will require all new instrument flight rule (IFR) aircraft registrations in Australia to be ADS-B capable, if they are undertaking an IFR flight, as well as all new transponder installations in older IFR aircraft needing to be ADS-B capable.

Two years later all IFR aircraft operating within 500nm to the north and east of Perth are required to be fitted with ADS-B. Then by January 6 2017, all Australian registered IFR aircraft flying within Australia’s airspace are required to operate using ADS-B.

CASA lifts Dromader grounding

TThe Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has lifted its grounding of the Dromader aircraft once owners comply with new wing inspection requirements.

The inspections, covered by a new airworthiness directive, follow a safety review of the type after the fatal October 24 crash of Rebel Air Dromader VH-TZJ while involved in aerial firefighting on the NSW south coast. The new requirements for maintenance inspections of wing components include regular inspections of wing attachment joints for corrosion or cracking, and come after the ATSB’s initial investigation into the accident found that the aircraft’s wing separated inflight as a result of fatigue cracking.

The timing of the inspections depends on how many hours the aircraft has flown, the directive stating a requirement for a visual inspection every 100 hours and the centre wing and outboard wings to be removed to allow better access for inspection of the wing attachment joints every 2,500 hours. An earlier requirement for inspection of attachment joints every 500 hours remains, but the wings do not need to be removed from the fuselage.

CASA said once Dromader operators have complied with the new inspection requirements their aircraft can resume operations.

International traffic drives Adelaide’s “solid” result

Adelaide Airport Ltd has produced a “solid” result for its 2012-13 financial year, with increased revenue and profit driven by a 15. 5 per cent rise in international traffic.

The arrival of Emirates a year ago, with initially four direct flights weekly between Adelaide and Dubai and increasing to daily services last February, was a major factor in the strong international performance.

Emirates is claiming an 80 per cent average seat factor with its 360-passenger 777-300ER. Its inaugural year was helped by the withdrawal of partner Qantas from international services through Adelaide.

Incumbent carriers Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and Air New Zealand increased their passenger capacity over the past year, AAL chairman John Ward said. And in November, as reported earlier, AirAsia X began services between Adelaide and Kuala Lumpur, operating four return flights a week initially to offer more growth opportunities for the airport.

Total international capacity jumped by 245,00 seats, or 27 per cent, and total overseas passenger numbers rose from about 660,700 in the previous year to 763,000 in 2012-13.

Domestic traffic rose a more moderate 2. 9 per cent to six million passengers. Qantas and Virgin increased capacity and Tigerair renewed Adelaide services, while regional airlines gained 1. 2 per cent to 608,600.

Managing director Mark Young said the flat regional performance resulted from a slowdown in the mining sector, particularly the deferral by BHP Billiton of the huge Olympic Dam expansion project.

Overall passenger performance increased 3. 9 per cent to almost 7. 38 million passengers.

On the revenue side, income from aviation and commercial operations rose from $146 million to $158. 4 million.

With completion of the $100 million multi-storey car park and adjoining pedestrian plaza, and a new headquarters for the Australian Federal Police at the airport, the fair value of investment properties rose by $11. 3 million, helping to take earning before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITA) up from $88. 9 million to $102. 9 million.

Net profit after tax increased from $4. 6 million in the previous year to $10. 5 million.

John Ward, who took over as chairman in August following the death of David Munt, said the past financial year had been one of the most significant for AAL in terms of aviation and infrastructure projects.

The airport had broken into new markets, particularly the Middle East following the start of Emirates services, he said. This had opened up several one-stop options to destinations in Europe, Africa, South America and the east coast of the US.

International growth was the clear standout, but overall performance had been solid and continued the strong role the airport played in generating jobs and investment in Adelaide.

DAHER-SOCATA displayed a TBM 850 in a polished aluminium finish at October’s NBAA convention in Las Vegas, which it says demonstrates its ability to meet unique customer personalisation requests.

Says the company: “To meet this customer personalisation request involved extra work time and research. The consequences of a bare metal finish needed to be investigated by the design office of DAHER-SOCATA Airplane Business Unit and the alclad supplier. Due to limited technical information on this kind of finish, DAHER-SOCATA engineers embarked on a test process to determine the viability of the in-service longevity of this finish. Once this process was complete the standard primer coat had to be removed off the already treated skins that involved over 250 man hours of hand work. This was followed by the application of polishing compounds to bring about a high lustre finish, subsequently completed by a final polish phase performed by a US specialist in California. ” DAHER-SOCATA says the aircraft is 50kg lighter than a standard TBM 850. Inside the aircraft features a black onyx cabin interior with carbon fibre fittings.