Originally slated to open in 2029, the rail link – which will connect Melbourne Airport to Sunshine Station via a new stop at Keilor East at a cost of up to $13 billion – will not meet that completion date, Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan confirmed in an interview with ABC Radio.

Dovetail, which is owned by Sydney Aviation Holdings – a firm that also owns tourist operator Sydney Seaplanes – is aiming to retrofit electric turbine engines to existing planes such as Rex’s Saab 340 fleet by 2026.

The new service took off for the first time at 4:47pm yesterday as flight QF39, arriving in Jakarta at 8:18pm local time. It will operate three times per week using Airbus A330 aircraft, adding to the national carrier’s existing Sydney-Jakarta flights.

The primary purpose of the 100-day mission is to test the aircraft’s unique “super pressure” technology, but it will also carry a telescope from Princeton University that will image large galaxy clusters.