Air traffic control via satellites is a step closer after Skykraft conducted a “world-first” trial of the technology. The test used the same Very High Frequency (VHF) band traditionally employed by ATC, but that currently can only be accessed in the range of a ground-based radio.

Peter Harris, who chaired the Productivity Commission from 2012 to 2018, said it was the “height of absurdity” to think that the domestic market can only sustain two airlines as calls continue to mount for an overhaul of the controversial take-off slot system.

Speaking on Today this week, Mr Shorten, now the Federal Minister for Government Services, seemed to agree with host Karl Stefanovic’s description of Australia’s airports as a “basket case” beset by “last minute cancellations [and] delays that stretch into the hours and days”.

The Turkish flag carrier is hoping to fly daily to Sydney and Melbourne, totalling 14 flights per week, as reported in The Australian Financial Review, but needs federal government approval as well as “fifth freedoms” that would allow it to fly from Melbourne and Sydney to Singapore.