Preflight

The LCC has applied to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) for two changes to its AOC. The first is for the addition of the 737 onto its AOC as it transitions from Airbus A320s to 737-800s, with pilot training for the 737 already underway. The second is to secure approval to operate international flights.

Virgin Australia chief executive John Borghetti told reporters after the company’s annual general meeting in Brisbane on November 16 Tigerair would grow its international network over the next three years. However, he appeared to rule out the use of widebody aircraft at Tigerair, describing its international flying as a “narrowbody operation”.

“There is no question Tiger will expand internationally, absolutely no question at all,” Borghetti said.

“What we’ve got now in Tiger is a budget airline who still gives you that cheap ticket and all the things I said but it includes friendlier service and that is the big differentiator that Tiger has got at that end of the market.”

While potential new destinations were not given, Borghetti’s comments suggested Tigerair may be in line to take over more Bali routes from Virgin, given the leisure nature of the market and the fact it can be served with 737-800s from the Australian mainland.

In terms of Virgin Australia’s international network, the airline announced a significant shakeup of its overseas flying in September, with a return to the Melbourne- Los Angeles route, the launch of Perth-Abu Dhabi services and a withdrawal from Sydney-Abu Dhabi all planned to occur in 2017.

“What you will see Virgin Australia do is what it is doing now and that is expanding and really our focus on the Virgin Australia international brand is all about continuing nonstop sector flying to America and Asia,” Borghetti said.

Borghetti offered no updates on previously announced plans to fly to Beijing and Hong Kong from Australia from June 1 2017 in partnership with shareholder HNA, other than to say that the airline would “absolutely” be flying to somewhere in Asia in calendar 2017.

Currently, Tigerair has three ex- Virgin 737-800s for flights to Bali. A fourth 737 was expected to join the fleet in December to assist with crew training and for additional domestic flights over the busy summer holiday season.

Meanwhile, the LCC’s 14 A320s will be progressively replaced with 737s over the next three years as Virgin and Tigerair move to a common fleet type.

Under chief executive Rob Sharp, Tigerair has moved into a new home at Melbourne Tullamarine Terminal 4, improved its on-time performance and posted a maiden full year profit in 2016/17, a year earlier than forecast when Virgin took full ownership of the then-struggling airline in 2014.

Borghetti said the Tigerair Australia brand would remain in place following Singapore Airlines’ decision to integrate the Tigerair Singapore operation with Scoot under a single brand and operating licence.

“We have no intention of changing that brand,” Borghetti said of Tigerair Australia.

“I think Rob and his people have done a great job in building the brand, the acceptance of the brand in Australia and it is performing very well for us.

On December 8, Tigerair announced former Qantas chief pilot Peter Wilson as its new chief pilot and director of flight operations.

Wilson will join the airline on January 16 2017, Tigerair chief executive Rob Sharp said in a note to staff.

He replaces Captain Harry Holling, who will remain as chief pilot and director of flight operations until January to ensure a smooth transition before he starts in a yet-to-be-announced new role at Tigerair.

Government releases final Badgerys Creek Airport Plan

Stage 1 to handle 10 million pax a year

The federal government has released the Airport Plan for the proposed airport at Badgerys Creek.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Minister for Urban Infrastructure Paul Fletcher said in a joint statement the final Airport Plan, published on December 12, was the “blueprint for this airport development”.

“After decades of studies and planning, all the approvals are now in place,” Prime Minister Turnbull and Minister Fletcher said.

“This is the most significant step taken by any Government on this project – meaning we can now get on with building the airport so it is ready to take its first passengers by the mid-2020s.”

The Western Sydney Airport Plan showed Stage 1 of the airport would feature a terminal capable of handling up to 10 million passengers a year, with domestic and international flights operating on a single 3,700m long by 60m wide runway in a 05/23 orientation.

The design of the facility would allow for a second parallel runway and expansion of the terminals to cater for 37 million passengers a year by 2050 and 82 million a year by about 2063.

The terminal design would feature swing gates capable of handling both domestic and international flights, which would increase the efficiency of transfers and increase the use of contact gates equipped with aerobridges.

Meanwhile, jet fuel supply was expected to be delivered by road tanker in a similar way to other airports operating on this scale, such as Canberra and Gold Coast airports.

And the Airport Plan said the flightpaths have not been finalised, noting the draft flight paths shown in the draft Airport Plan were a “conceptual model for aircraft arrivals”.

“Final airspace and air route planning for the proposed airport will assess different systems for sequencing arriving aircraft and alternative flightpath options,” the Airport Plan said.

“This future airspace planning and design will evaluate each system and flight path option against the key criteria of safety, aircraft operation efficiency, capacity, and noise and other environmental impacts.”

The federal government has stipulated there would be no single point merge over the community of Blaxland or any other single residential area.

Also, night-time restrictions have been proposed for Badgerys Creek, with all takeoffs and landings between 2300 and 0600 to be in a south-westerly direction to avoid residential areas. This policy has been criticised by pilot groups.

Separately, the Airport Plan said the proposed facility may include facilities for general aviation, corporate aviation, emergency services and helicopters, depending on demand. However, no plans have been identified for such services.

The Airport Plan noted the 2012 Joint Study on aviation capacity in the Sydney region found that all weekday takeoff and landing slots at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport between 0600-1200 and 1600-1900 would be fully allocated by 2020.

Further, by 2027 there would “effectively be no slots unallocated, with an unmet demand of more than 100 flights per day” at Sydney Airport.

And it was “unlikely that there will be any usable capacity available for new services at Sydney Airport” by 2035.

When the Commonwealth sold Sydney Airport in 2002 it included a 30-year first right of refusal to build and operate any airport within 100km of the existing terminals at Mascot.

Sydney Airport has said previously it would have between four and nine months to consider the proposal once the Notice of Intention (NOI), effectively a sales contract, had been issued.

The document will cover the deed governing the development of the airport, the lease of airport land and the arrangements under which the airport will operate, among other matters.

The government has said previously it planned to issue the NOI before the end of 2016. In November, Federal Minister for the Environment and Energy Josh Frydenberg laid down 40 environmental conditions that needed to be met as part of the construction and operation of the proposed airport. They covered biodiversity, noise and heritage and were developed after a review of the proposed airport’s environmental impact statement (EIS) that was finalised in September.

Currently, road upgrade works in partnership with the state government were underway, while a joint federal-NSW government Joint Scoping Study on Rail Needs for Western Sydney was considering the airport’s rail needs.

While the Airport Plan allocated space for a rail line and station at the terminal, the airport was expected to open some time in the mid-2020s with road transport the only option for travellers and staff.

“Rail services will need to be provided at the Airport at the right time in its development,” the Airport Plan said.

“Rail services are expected to be required as part of a multi-modal transport solution by the time the Airport reaches 30 MAP [million annual passengers], estimated to be in the mid-2040s.”.

LATAM to serve Melbourne-Santiago nonstop from October 2017

Australians will have a new option to South America from October 2017 when LATAM Airlines begins nonstop flights from Melbourne to Santiago, Chile. The oneworld alliance member plans to serve Melbourne from its Santiago hub three times a week with Boeing 787-9s. The inaugural service is due to take off on October 5 2017 and will be the first nonstop link between Melbourne and Latin America, LATAM said in a statement on December 5. Melbourne will be the second Australian port for the Qantas codeshare partner.

Currently, LATAM flies daily from Santiago to Sydney via Auckland routing with 787-9s, while Qantas operates nonstop four times a week between Sydney and Santiago with Boeing 747-400 equipment.

A fifth flight is added during certain peak periods. LATAM’s 787-9s are configured with 304 seats comprising 30 lieflat business, 54 Space + and 220 economy seats.

Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand plan night-time flights from Queenstown to Brisbane, Sydney

Virgin Australia is the latest airline to undertake evening services to and from Queenstown. The airline said it planned to operate a night-time departure from Queenstown to Brisbane on Fridays and Sundays during the winter ski season between June and September 2017. At the same time, Virgin’s trans- Tasman alliance partner Air New Zealand has scheduled night-time Queenstown- Sydney flights for Saturdays and Sundays during the month of July. Virgin Australia says the new flights would enable travellers to enjoy a full day of skiing before travelling home. The two carriers said their combined schedule would feature 38 flights a week between Australia and Queenstown during the 2017 ski season.

6 SQN completes final Rhino flight

The RAAF’s 6 Squadron has completed its last flight with the F/A-18F Super Hornet as the unit prepares to introduce the EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft into service.

Six jets from Amberley-based 6SQN took part in a farewell flight over southern Queensland on November 23, the unit’s last flight with the Super Hornet before handing over the aircraft to sister unit 1 Squadron.

6 Squadron will now focus entirely on introducing the Growler into service in 2017 ahead of initial operating capability with the aircraft in 2018.

“We’ve started building up our Growler capability. There’s no better time to be here,” commanding officer 6SQN WGCDR Hinton Tayloe told Air Force News.

“I’m incredibly proud that 6SQN will operate the Growler for Air Force.”

1SQN, meanwhile, will now operate all 24 of the RAAF’s Super Hornets, with 6SQN’s Super Hornet aircrew training role now shared between 1SQN and the US Navy.

Operational conversion of Super Hornet pilots and air combat officers will now be undertaken by the US Navy, while the newlyenlarged 1SQN’s C Flight will conduct operational transition (Optrans) training where aircrew who have completed the USN Super Hornet conversion are trained in RAAF processes and procedures.

Melbourne-Los Angeles to be Qantas’s first 787 route

Qantas has announced Melbourne-Los Angeles as the first international route for its Boeing 787-9 fleet. The nonstop service will operate six times a week from December 15 2017, Qantas said on December 13.

Currently, Qantas flies daily between Melbourne and Los Angeles with Airbus A380 equipment, as well as two services a week using Boeing 747-400s, offering a choice of morning or afternoon departures from Tullamarine.

Under the new schedule, the existing daily A380 flights will remain in place alongside the six 787-9 services a week.

The increase from nine to 13 flights a week will represent an additional 1,400 or so seats a week on the route, Qantas said.

Qantas international chief executive Gareth Evans said the Victorian state government and its tourism marketing arm Visit Victoria would help promote the new services.

“We’ll be working with Visit Victoria on joint marketing campaigns to highlight what Victoria and the Qantas Dreamliner have to offer,” Evans said.

The choice of Melbourne-Los Angeles as the 787-9’s maiden international route was in keeping previous statements from the airline saying the Dreamliners were ordered to gradually take over routes operated by the 747-400.

Qantas is due to take delivery of the first of eight 787-9s on firm order in October 2017.

The aircraft will be configured with 236 seats, comprising 42 business class seats (in a 1-2- 1 configuration), 28 premium economy seats (at 2-3-2 abreast) and 166 economy seats (at nine abreast).

United, which is the only other operator on the route, began Melbourne-Los Angeles flights in October 2014 with the 787-9.

Meanwhile, Virgin Australia said in September it would return to the Melbourne-Los Angeles route from April 4 2017, with five flights a week using Boeing 777-300ERs.

The announcement of Qantas’s first international route with the 787-9 comes two days after the airline committed to flying nonstop between Perth and London from March 2018 using the next generation aircraft (read more elsewhere in this issue).

Cathay bracing for A350 delays

Cathay Pacific chief executive Ivan Chu says the airline is unlikely to receive the 12 A350-900s it has been scheduled to take delivery of in 2016 due to problems with buyer-furnished-equipment (BFE) suppliers.

Instead, the oneworld alliance member is expected to have nine in the fleet by the end of the calendar year.

Chu said the airline hoped to minimise any impact the late deliveries would have on plans to launch new destinations and grow frequencies on existing routes. “We are very focused on it, we are working very closely with them on it,” Chu told reporters on the sidelines of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines(AAP) annual conference.

“It is not just our aircraft. We know everybody has been notified already.

“We still hope to take delivery of all 22 of the A350-900 by the end of next year because otherwise it will hit our network and frequency development. We have set plans already so we are a little worried about how many airplanes we will receive.”

For Australia, Cathay has announced Melbourne and Brisbane as its first two destinations in this country to receive the A350-900.

The airline planned to deploy the next generation widebody on one of its three daily Hong Kong- Melbourne from February, while the daily Brisbane-Hong Kong nonstop flight will switch to the

A350-900 from late March. Chu said the use of the larger A350-900, as well as three-class Boeing 777-300ER, allowed Cathay to add extra seats on existing routes without the need to schedule additional frequencies.

Cathay has utilised all available traffic rights for Hong Kong carriers to Australia’s four major international gateways of Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney, which currently sits at 70 flights a week. As a result, the only way to add capacity is to upgauge to larger equipment.

To that end, Chu flagged an increased use of the A350 and 777 to Australia, rather than pushing for the bilateral to be expanded.

“I don’t see an urgent move,” Chu said of the need to expand the current bilateral air services agreement between Australia and Hong Kong.

“Four times a day to Sydney and three times a day to Melbourne, that’s perhaps what we want to operate for some time.

“For us, we are happy with the frequencies and we have bigger aircraft. Putting more seats on those routes are really important so we have 777s that we are putting in.” The 777-300ER is already on two of Cathay’s four daily Sydney- Hong Kong services and will soon also be on one Melbourne rotation from March.

“In time, it will be three 777s [in Sydney], adding a hundred seats more per flight. That’s a lot,” Chu said.

“We don’t believe in providing excessive capacity or doing more supply than demand. We believe in meeting the demand of the market.

“We have no doubt that with the 777s, which is a fantastic aircraft with fantastic costs, we are meeting the need of the market and we will be flying more 777s to Australia.”

Chu said Cathay was “doing very well in Australia” with its flights experiencing high load factors. On November 22, Cathay added Brisbane West Wellcamp Airport to its freighter network, establishing a regular cargo link between Queensland’s Darling Downs and Hong Kong.

Wellcamp has been added as an extra stop on one of Cathay’s two dedicated freighter services a week to Australia, with the flight operating on a Sydney-Melbourne- Wellcamp-Hong Kong routing.

“We have had an encouraging response from exporters and shippers in the southern half of Queensland as well as northern New South Wales,” said Cathay Pacific general manager for Southwest Pacific Nelson Chin of the first flight. The airline operated a one-off freighter service from Wellcamp in November 2015.

(Read more about Airbus’s production delays elsewhere in this edition.)

The largest member of Boeing’s 787 family of aircraft has entered the final assembly line at the manufacturer’s Charleston, South Carolina facility. Boeing said on December 8 the 787-10 was expected to fly for the first time in 2017 (without nominating when), with first delivery due to take place in 2018.

The 787-10 is the third and largest member of the 787. The aircraft, which shares about 95 per cent commonality with the 787-9 entered commercial service in 2014, is designed to carry 330 passengers in a twoclass configuration a distance of 6,430nm, according to the Boeing website. Boeing’s Charleston facility will build the 787-10. The company said it has received 154 orders for the 787-10 from nine customers.

Hobart gets international (freighter) Service

International flights are returning to Hobart. However, before people start heading to the nearest travel agent to book tickets, it is cargo rather than passenger demand that has led to a proposed once weekly service out of Tasmania.

Qantas plans to operate a Boeing 767-300 freighter from Hobart to Ningbo, China to transport some 50,000 litres of fresh milk a week, with flights due to commence some time in the first half of calendar 2017.

The milk, from the VAN Dairy milk company, will be sold in supermarkets and convenience stores in Ningbo and Beijing, Qantas said on November 25. Further, the start of the Qantas freighter service would allow other Tasmanian producers to also export their goods such as fresh meat, seafood, fruits and vegetables directly to China.

Qantas said the 767- 300 freighter would be the largest commercial aircraft to regularly operate into and out of Hobart. Frequencies could be increased from the proposed once a week service to meet demand.

Hobart last had regular international passenger flights in the late 1990s, when Air New Zealand had some trans- Tasman services.

Qantas Freight and Qantas Catering group executive manager Alison Webster noted the proposed 767-300 freighter flight out of Hobart added to the airline’s five existing dedicated freighter flights a week between Australia to China. Currently, Qantas has daily passenger flights from Sydney to Shanghai and will return to the Sydney-Beijing route in January 2017. It also serves Hong Kong from Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Australia has become an all Boeing 787 destination for Vietnam Airlines after it switched both its Melbourne and Sydney services to the Dreamliner on December 5. The Ho Chi Minh City-Melbourne route was previously served with Airbus A330-200 equipment and the airline becomes the eighth carrier to serve Tullamarine with the 787 alongside Air India, Air New Zealand, Jetstar, Royal Brunei Airlines, Scoot, United and Xiamen Airlines. Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines previously operated Boeing 777-200ERs on the Ho Chi Minh City-Sydney route, and the switch to the Dreamliner brings to nine the number of carriers operating the aircraft at Sydney – Vietnam Airlines joins Air India, Air New Zealand, ANA, Jetstar, LATAM Airlines, Scoot, United and Xiamen Airlines. Qantas places its QF airline code on Vietnam Airlines’ two Australian routes. photo seth jaworski

Australia, China sign open skies

Chinese airlines will have unrestricted capacity into Australia after the federal government announced it had reached an agreement with China for an “open aviation market” between the two countries.

The agreement, announced on December 4, paves the way for China-based carriers to maintain the furious pace of growth into this country in recent times, catering for the increasing number of Chinese tourists travelling overseas.

Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester said opening up aviation capacity in the Australia-China air services agreement had been a top priority since he took up the portfolio.

“These new arrangements will remove all capacity restrictions between Australia and China for each country’s airline which is an important enabler for increased trade and tourism,” Chester said in a statement.

While the most obvious benefit will be for Chinese carriers, who are now free to continue their rapid expansion into this country, Chester noted the new agreement also contained some benefits for Australian flag carriers.

“We have also liberalised traffic rights and code share arrangements, which are important for Australian airlines,” Chester said.

“This will enable Australian and Chinese airlines to service destinations between and beyond both countries, and will allow them to take full advantage of their cooperative arrangements with their commercial alliance partners.

The Australia-China air services agreement was most recently expanded in January 2015, which increased the available capacity for both flights between the major cities of China (Beijing/Guangzhou/ Shanghai) and Australia (Brisbane/ Melbourne/Perth/Sydney) as well as between so-called secondary cities in China.

Currently, there are seven Chinese airlines flying to Australia.

Meanwhile, there is just one nonstop flight from an Australian flag carrier to China – Qantas’s daily Sydney-Shanghai service, although the Flying Kangaroo will resume Sydney-Beijing nonstop flights from late January 2017.

Virgin Australia has proposed operating to Hong Kong and Beijing from June 2017 as part of a commercial alliance with HNA Group. However, it has offered few details publicly about their proposed flights.

Australian Airports Association chief executive Caroline Wilkie hoped the open skies agreement with China would lead to further additional capacity in other air services agreements.

“We look forward to continuing to work with the Government and other stakeholders to remove constraints on air access from other markets where possible, in order to facilitate the continued growth and contribution of our airports and aviation industry to the Australian economy,” Wilkie said in a statement.

Former Qantas chief economist and the managing director of Airline Intelligence and Research Tony Webber said the open skies agreement would offer little benefit to Australian carriers.

“It is a good thing for the welfare of Australian passengers and Australian consumers because it will unambiguously mean more inbound tourism,” Webber said.

“But I don’t think Qantas will be better off as a result because there is greater impulse for Chinese airlines to bring more capacity into Australia than there are for Australian airlines to bring capacity into China.”

CASA extends ADS-B deadline for private IFR

CASA has extended by almost three years the deadline for private aircraft to be fitted with ADS-B technology.

Under the new timeline, private aircraft registered before February 6 2014 flying under instrument flight rules (IFR) will now have until January 1 2020 to be fitted with ABS-B transponders, the satellite-based technology that enables aircraft to be accurately tracked by air traffic controllers and other pilots without the need for conventional radar.

The new deadline gives operators of those aircraft about three more years to make the switch, given the previous deadline was February 2 2017.

“The new ADS-B deadline for private operations will mean the remaining aircraft can be fitted with the equipment in an orderly manner – reducing the burden on owners, operators and avionics suppliers,” CASA said.

The change meant Australia’s ADS-B deadline would be aligned with the United States’ and would benefit a “small number of private aircraft operators who have not yet been able to fit the equipment while ensuring safety”, the regulator said.

Although the deadline has been extended, CASA said aircraft conducting private operations under IFR without ADS-B would be subject to a number of conditions. Non ADS-B IFR flights would be required to operate below 10,000ft in uncontrolled class G airspace, while they would be subject to air traffic control clearance in class D airspace, CASA said.

Further, they would only be operate in class C and E airspace “to facilitate arrival or departure from a class D aerodrome, with prior clearance from air traffic control and only if fitted with a secondary surveillance radar transponder”.

“Safety will not be compromised due to the range of conditions that will apply to the non-ADS-B flights,” acting CASA director of aviation safety and chief executive Shane Carmody said.

There were also CASA provisions for a “very small number” of foreign-registered aircraft to continue operating without ADS-B until the European deadline of June 6 2020, subject to air traffic control clearances and flying under 29,000 feet in continental airspace.

The current mandates require all Australian regular public transport, charter and aerial work aircraft to be fitted with ADS-B by February 2 2017.

Figures from Airservices showed 89.7 per cent of all Australia-based IFR flights were fitted with ADS-B transponders at mid-December 2016, including 64 per cent of IFR aircraft operating below 10,000ft.

Separately the Airservices website notes that there were fewer than 880 IFR-capable aircraft had yet to be fitted with ADS-B, “of which a vast majority have indicated they are intending to fit before the [February 2 2017] mandate”.

Airservices cites the Aircraft Electronics Association as saying the cost of a “simple” ADS-B installation “can be as low as $6,500”.

Qatar Airways plans Canberra Flights

Canberra has been named as one of eight new destinations Qatar Airways will add to its fast-growing network.

Qatar indicated flights to Canberra would begin some time in the 2017/18 timeframe, without providing any further details, such as frequencies and operating aircraft type.

The Australian capital would be Qatar’s fifth destination in this country.

It would also be Canberra’s second international service, following Singapore Airlines’ Capital Express Singapore- Canberra-Wellington flights that started in September.

Canberra Airport managing director Stephen Byron said he expected Qatar to operate nonstop to Canberra from its Doha hub when flights do eventually commence.

“Our view is that it is most likely, in fact very likely, the service will be in the later evening just as the Singapore Airlines flight is and again that is taking advantage of Canberra Airport’s curfew free status, which has been critical to the development of our international flight operations,” Byron said.

“It’s a great day for Canberra, a great day for tourism into the city and what a fantastic follow on from the Singapore Airlines first flight.”

Byron said start of SIA’s flights and the Qatar announcement to serve the city would help attract more services.

Further, he said discussions were ongoing with a number of other Australian and overseas airlines about international flights, which could lead to a new service starting before Qatar begins its operations to Canberra.

Separately, Qatar planned to upgauge its daily Melbourne- Doha flight from the Boeing 777-300ER to Airbus A380 from June 30 2017.

Aircalin places region’s first A330neo order

Airbus has secured its first A330neo (new engine option) operator in Oceania with Aircalin ordering two A330-900s as part of the airline’s fleet renewal program.

The order for the two A330- 900s, as well as two A320neo narrowbodies, was announced in the New Caledonia capital Noumea on November 29, with representatives from Airbus and Aircalin present at a signing ceremony.

Currently, Aircalin has an all- Airbus jet fleet consisting of two A330-200s used on flights to Japan and Sydney and two A320ceos that operate to Australia, New Zealand and the islands of the South Pacific.

In addition to retaining Aircalin as an Airbus customer, the manufacturer gets to showcase all the enhancements of the latest iteration of the medium-haul A330 in a region where Fiji Airways, Qantas and Virgin Australia are already operators of the type.

Airbus executive vice president for Europe, Africa and Pacific Christopher Buckley said it was great to have Aircalin bring the A330neo to the region.

“I realise the order, by world standard, might be seen as fairly small but it is hugely significant for getting our first A330neo into the Australasian and Pacific region,” Buckley told Australian Aviation from the official signing ceremony in Noumea.

“While it is retaining Aircalin and replacing in the long-term four aircraft with another four aircraft, they are also going to become a bit of a flagship for us now with the A330-900.”

Launched at the Farnborough Airshow in 2014, the A330neo features new Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines and a larger wing with ‘Sharklet’ wingtips to reduce fuel consumption.

The type is also the launch aircraft for Airbus’s “AirSpace by Airbus” cabin concept which features larger overhead compartments, wider seats and aisles and new lighting, a “welcome area” and removal of the inflight entertainment box taking up legroom under the seat in front.

There are two A330neo variants – the A330-800 is the replacement for the A330-200 currently flown by Fiji Airways, Qantas and Virgin in this part of the world, while the A330-900 is the replacement for the larger A330-300.

Qantas and Fiji Airways also operate the larger A330-300.

There is 95 per cent commonality between the A330neo and current A330 variants.

Airbus is targeting certification of the A330-900 in late 2017, with certification for the A330- 800 to follow a year later. TAP Portugal is the launch customer of the A330neo, with 14 A330-900s on order. The first A330neo, an A330-900, entered final assembly in October.

The Airbus website shows the A330neo program has received 186 orders from 10 customers.

Aircalin chief executive Didier Tappero said the order would support the airline’s growth ambitions, including the possibility of opening new routes to China.

While the global trend was of airline yields being under pressure amid strong competition and plenty of new capacity coming into the market, Buckley said there was a positive outlook for Oceania’s largest markets of Australia and New Zealand, noting the growth plans of Qantas and Air New Zealand in the period ahead.

“In the context of a general softening of the market, we are still seeing Australasia and the Pacific as well as really offering really quite a few good opportunities for us moving forward,” Buckley said.

“We are paying very close attention as well as here to what is going on in Australia and New Zealand to make sure we are well positioned with the right aircraft, particularly on the long-haul side.”

Fiji to the MAX

Boeing has secured a third 737 MAX customer in Oceania with Fiji Airways ordering five 737 MAX 8s for first delivery in 2018.

The Fijian flag carrier said in on November 23 the 737 MAX 8 would “replace its existing narrow-body fleet”. Currently, Fiji Airways has five 737s, comprising one 737-700 and four 737-800s, that are used on short- and medium-haul routes to Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Kiribati, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Fiji Airways chief executive Andre Viljoen said the selection of the new generation Boeing narrowbody came after an “extremely exhaustive procurement and selection process”.

Further, Viljoen said the aircraft would be delivered via a 12-year sale and leaseback financing arrangement as part of a package deal with GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), Boeing and engine manufacturer CFM International.

“This is a major capital decision that had to be done correctly so we followed a rigorous, thorough and transparent process to find the right solution,” Viljoen said.

“As a consequence of the fierce competition between the rival bidders and the extensive process followed by Fiji Airways, we have achieved a ground-breaking package deal that represents excellent value for our shareholders, customers and stakeholders.”

Viljoen said the MAX’s operating economics and efficiency would assist the airline in securing a four-star rating from Skytrax.

“Our team will now work on the cabin designs and fit-outs to Fiji Airways specifications,” Viljoen said.

“With 170 seats, we will continue with our existing twoclass configuration (business and economy) and be able to offer an extremely competitive short- and medium-haul product.”

The 737 MAX program, which is currently in the flight test phase, has booked 3,339 orders through October 2016, according to the Boeing website. The figure does not include the Fiji Airways order, which will be added to the total once finalised.

Fiji Airways joins Virgin Australia and Air Niugini from the region as a MAX customer.

Virgin Australia is due to receive the first of 40 MAX aircraft in 2018, while Air Niugini is expected to take delivery of four MAX aircraft from 2020.

Boeing forecasts need for 30,000 new pilots and maintainers in Oceania

Boeing expects Australia, New Zealand and the nations of the South Pacific to require an additional 30,000 pilots and aviation professionals over the next two decades to meet the growing demand for air travel.

The manufacturer’s 2016-2035 Pilot and Technician Outlook forecasts a need for 13,000 new pilots and 17,000 new maintenance engineers (technicians) in Oceania over the next 20 years as airlines expand their networks and more passengers take to the skies, especially in the fast-growing lowcost carrier (LCC) segment.

The figures for Oceania, released on December 7, are up from 12,000 pilots and 13,000 technicians in the 2015-2034 report.

Boeing has published its pilot and maintenance engineer outlook for the past seven years.

The forecast was guided by the manufacturer’s Current Market Outlook (CMO), which has forecast 39,620 new aircraft deliveries in the 20-year period between 2016-2035.

Oceania was likely to account for seven per cent of all new aircraft deliveries over the coming two decades, while the region was expected to require five per cent of the world’s additional pilots.

Boeing Flight Services vice president Sherry Carbary said the discrepancy was explained by the growing presence of LCCs in the market.

“The big driver in the Oceania region over the next 20 years is the low-cost carriers,” Carbary told reporters during a media briefing in Brisbane.

“You think about a low-cost carrier. It is a single-aisle airplane, uses less pilots than a widebody airplane.

“Today there is about 25 per cent of the Oceania market that is with the low-cost carriers. It is going to grow to over 40 per cent by the end of the 20-year period.”

More broadly, the Asia Pacific region was expected to need about 248,000 new airline pilots and 268,000 new technicians over the next two decades, with China requiring the bulk of those jobs.

The estimates were up from 226,000 new pilots and 238,000 new technicians in Boeing’s 2015- 2034 outlook.

Given the enormous need for pilots and technicians, Carbary said those looking to work in the aviation sector were in for “exciting career opportunities”.

“We recognise that to attract a new generation of pilots and technicians, we need to inspire and train them in new ways and that’s why Boeing continues to work closely with airlines, regulators, flight schools and other industry groups to develop innovative training methods and courseware.”

Carbary noted it took two years to develop a “competent and confident” pilot, while it was four years to develop a qualified maintenance engineer that was type rated to work on a Boeing 737 NG.

First prize winner

Colin Turner for his photograph of the French prime minister’s Dassault Falcon 7X landing at Canberra Airport. The image was taken when French Prime Minister Manuel Valls, flew into Canberra on May 2 2016 to hold talks with Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull.

Australian Aviation and Dassault Falcon photo competition

We would like to thank our readers for the overwhelming response we received to the Australian Aviation/Dassault Falcon photo competition. The quality of the entries meant it was a tough decision.

Dassault Falcon and Australian Aviation launched the photo competition to celebrate Dassault Aviation’s 100th anniversary this year and to highlight Dassault’s historic and ongoing involvement with Australia.

The first prize winner receives an exclusive model of the 8X, Dassault Falcon’s newest aircraft and longest range aircraft. The first prize winner also receives a limited-edition book on the history of Dassault Aviation. Second prize winner also gets the 8X model as well as a Dassault pin collection that includes the Rafale fighter, Neuron combat UAV, Falcon 20 and Falcon 8X.

We and Dassault Falcon are proud to present the winners.

Runner up

John Taylor for his photograph of a Royal Australian Air Force Mirage IIIO. John took the photo in 1973 when he was with the RAAF’s Squadron 75 stationed at Butterworth air force base in northwest Malaysia. 75 Squadron was based at Butterworth from 1967 to 1983 as part of the RAAF’s ongoing deployment of aircraft in Malaysia under the ‘Five Power Defence Agreement’, a multilateral agreement that continues to this day and involves the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Singapore.

Airservices has implemented all recommendations of critical audit

ANAO found Airservices did not follow its own policies

Airservices chief executive Jason Harfield says the nation’s air traffic manager has implemented all the recommendations of a critical audit of procurement arrangements related to the OneSky project and is establishing a more accountable culture among its staff.

Federal Parliament’s Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit heard from Harfield on November 25 in relation to Airservices’ contracting of the International Centre for Complex Project Management (ICCPM) to provide services related to OneSky, which aims to combine both the civil and military air traffic management systems into one program.

The ICCPM contract was the subject of an audit from the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO), which was critical of the Airservices’ procurement practices and highlighted some “systemic failures” within the organisation.

Harfield told the Committee Airservices had accepted all the ANAO report’s six recommendations, which cover procurement policies and procedures, as well as the culture within the organisation.

“We acknowledge that our procurement framework and its implementation could be improved and we have accepted all of the ANAO’s recommendations,” Harfield said.

“All of the recommendations in the report have been actioned and addressed as of 30th September this year.”

The ANAO conducted its audit at the request of the Senate Rural Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee and the Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development.

The audit, which was published in August, examined whether Airservices had effective procurement arrangements in place, with a particular emphasis on whether consultancy contracts entered into with ICCPM in association with the OneSky Australia program were effectively administered.

It found Airservices did not follow its own policies and procedures in contracting ICCPM to provide services related to the OneSky project.

“A key shortcoming in Airservices’ procurement policies and procedures is that they do not give appropriate emphasis to the use of competitive processes,” the ANAO report said.

“In addition, Airservices routinely failed to adhere to its policies and procedures in procuring services from ICCPM. As a result, Airservices’ procurement of services from ICCPM, on an exclusively sole-sourced basis, did not deliver value for money.”

Harfield acknowledged that “in hindsight, we should have gone out to the market”.

“But because we had had a relationship with ICCPM and we were forming up with the Department of Defence to do this procurement and they had extensive expertise in Defence procurement practices, processes and complex management expertise it was, I’ll call it, naturally assumed that they were the best people,” Harfield said.

The ANAO report noted there were 42 engagements of ICCPM employees and sub-contractors through 18 procurement processes, which were all on an exclusive solesourced based and did not deliver value for money.

Harfield said procurement processes had not been changed to reflect the need for a more competitive approach.

“There was a culture of authorised exemptions. So in other words, you would go along to the financial delegate and get authorisation to do a sole source.

What we’ve changed around is that you have to do a competitive process,” Harfield said.

“The barriers to be able to do it have been put in place. The norm is actually to do a competitive tender.”

Further, Harfield said the changes being implemented at Airservices were designed to establish stronger accountability within the organisation.

“Part of the change process that we are going through is to build that accountable performance culture, which actually has that as part of very much managing the performance of individuals and holding people to account,” Harfield said.

“One of the things that our organisation from a cultural perspective would talk about accountability and responsibility, which is all fine and you can say that I am accountable for X or responsible for Y, but the added element that was probably part of the cultural piece was no one was being held to account.

“That is one of the areas that we are focusing on.”

Auditor-General Grant Hehir told the Committee the response of Airservices showed the organisation was moving in the right direction.

“The description of what they have undertaken sounds like the type of things that we would expect to have occurred,” Hehir said.

“I think the emphasis on cultural change is quite important given the systemic nature of the issues that we have identified.”

Harfield said Airservices had just completed a probity audit of the OneSky program.

The audit was to “ensure that the changes we’ve made to the probity framework as a result of this audit have been implemented appropriately and are effective”, he said.

The ANAO is undertaking a second performance audit of Airservices, which looks into the conduct of the OneSky tender process “from initiation to finalisation of the election and contracting process, with a focus on the achievement of value with public resources in accordance with appropriate probity protocols”.

Hehir said the second audit was a separate topic to the matters raised relating to ICCPM in this first audit.

“Our second audit is about the OneSky procurement process. They touch on each other but they don’t really cover the same ground,” Hehir said.

“The audit will look at issues like the procurement process undertaken for OneSky, including the probity arrangements around it, so they have a similar topic area but difference substance.”

The report from that second audit was due to be published in the middle of 2017.