From December, Qantas will operate non-stop A330-200 services from Perth to Auckland and Johannesburg, adding more than 155,000 seats per year and bolstering the airport’s role as the Flying Kangaroo’s western hub.
The Northrop Grumman-manufactured high altitude, long endurance, remotely piloted aircraft system, labelled online as United States military A57-002 (similar aircraft pictured), arrived at RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory earlier this week.
ZK-NZH, which returned from its refit in Singapore last month, will fly from Auckland to Brisbane on 19 May before taking off for its first long-haul flight, from Auckland to San Francisco, later in the evening on the same day.
Paul Bennet Airshows pilot Glenn Collins, whose Pitts Special stunt plane crashed into the ground during an aerobatic display at around 5:15pm on 28 March, has told supporters his recovery is “ongoing and still uncertain in many ways” after his surgeries.
The route, which previously operated in last year’s peak, will fly three times per week on 787-9 Dreamliners starting from 30 November.
The intersection of Sir Donald Bradman Drive and Marion Road, which handles more than 60,000 vehicles per day, is receiving an $85 million upgrade.