Australian Aviation

Adam, Jake and Chris discuss the latest as take-off technicalities become national news.

VH-ZNN, named ‘Snowy River’, took off from Melbourne to London (Heathrow) via Perth at 3:33pm on Thursday. It is Qantas’s 14th 787-9, and the last of a batch of three that began arriving in May following a two-year delay.

In a quarterly earnings call, the planemaker said it is in “prep mode” to further increase 737 production to 42 per month. Though did not give a firm date, it plans to reach 50 planes per month by 2025–26. Production of 787s is also increasing to five per month later this year, and 10 by 2025–26.

The Rex Domestic Pilots’ Enterprise Agreement was supported by almost 75 per cent of the pilot body in mid-June, while the NJE Logistics Enterprise Agreement was approved by 100 per cent of affected employees.

Registered VH-VQX, the aircraft – the first of two on order from Airbus, with the second to arrive by the end of the year – makes WA Police the first law enforcement jurisdiction in the Southern Hemisphere to operate the H145.

The United Firefighters Union said the “zombie” reforms, which arose from a CASA review under the former Coalition government, would see fewer aviation firefighters protecting air travellers and add delays to response times.