Airbus says the resilience of passenger traffic will require carriers in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands to acquire 631 new aircraft valued at US$87bn (A$96bn) between now and 2028. According to its Global Market Forecast, Airbus predicts that revenue passenger kilometres will grow by five per cent over the next 20 years, higher
Boeing announced on November 5 that it delivered the RAAF’s third F/A-18F Super Hornet, A44-203, on September 30, three months ahead of schedule. “We look forward to continuing to deliver Australia’s newest combat aircraft on budget and ahead of schedule, as promised,” said Carolyn Nichols, Boeing F/A-18F program manager for Australia. “Successful early delivery of
Virgin Blue is reportedly close to signing a major sale with Boeing which will include Boeing 777-200LRs for V Australia to launch direct Perth-London Gatwick services from 2011. Australian Aviation contributor Geoffrey Thomas reports in The West Australian newspaper that the order for six 777-200LRs is part of a wider order for 70 aircraft being
Aviation Week & Space Technology reporter Guy Norris claims that the Boeing 787 is unlikely to make its first flight until late December due to slow progress with the wing-join fix which has slowed the program down. According to a blog post by Norris, the fix is not yet complete on the first aircraft, ZA001,
Gold Coast based Australian Wings Academy has started training its first group of cadet pilots from Malaysian low cost carrier AirAsia after it secured a contract with the airline earlier this year. “AWA is delighted and extremely proud to have been selected by AirAsia as their Australian flight training partner,” said Phil Sweeney, director of
The Airbus A330-200F Freighter successfully completed its maiden flight from Toulouse on the morning of November 5, launching a 180 hour flight test program. The 3hr 50min hour flight departed from Toulouse-Blagnac Airport’s Runway 32 at just after 10am local time. After evaluation of test points, including an altitude of 41,000ft and a speed of
