Australian Aviation

The low-cost carrier will operate a seasonal Brisbane–Queenstown service from June–October next year, alongside new daily flights from Hamilton–Christchurch starting 1 December 2025, and will add around 500,000 annual seats on popular trans-Tasman and NZ domestic routes.

On this special episode of the Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake sits down with former Virgin Australia Captain Michelle Huntington to talk about her career, her book, whether there’s life after the sky – and how to keep your internal organs in their proper place at 30,000 feet.

The aircraft, which formerly flew for QantasLink as VH-YQW, will reside at Aviation Australia’s Brisbane Airport hangar, and will offer hands-on experience for students at the Qantas Group Engineering Academy. The plane saw its final flight in December last year.

Starting in November this year, Malaysia Airlines will increase Adelaide services from five to six per week, before going daily from 2 February 2026, adding more than 60,000 seats per year. The carrier will also introduce its new 297-seat A330neo aircraft on the route.

Boeing hinted at both capabilities with a “Take a peek into the future” video circulating online and explained how the uncrewed aircraft could be controlled by a two-seater US F-15EX fighter aircraft with battle management controls.

Charles Darwin University’s North Australia Centre for Autonomous Systems (NACAS) has opened the Airspace Integration Research Facility (AIR-F) at its Katherine Rural Campus, the only purpose-built unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) test site in northern Australia.