The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has finalised licensing arrangements which will allow passengers to use their mobile phones in flight. Under the new arrangements, mobile communication services on aircraft will be governed by apparatus and class licenses. ACMA says it has consulted closely with CASA for the new licensing arrangements, with no technical
Regional Express is cutting the number of flights on the Adelaide-Port Lincoln route due to increased competition from QantasLink. From August 23, the carrier will cut the number of flights it operates on the route from 120 to 98 per week, all of which are operated by 34-seat Saab 340s. This will result in a
Jetstar has announced plans to fly from Melbourne and Cairns to Auckland next year. From December 13, Jetstar will launch daily services between Melbourne and Auckland, followed by a three times weekly Cairns-Auckland service from April 12 2011. Both services will be operated by 177-seat A320s, and represents an additional 92,000 seats annually on the
Strategic Airlines has lodged a competing application with the International Air Services Commission (IASC) for additional capacity on the Indonesia route, as more Indonesian carriers look to fly to Australia. Strategic’s application seeks an allocation of 1716 seats per week on the Indonesia route for new services which would be operated by the airline’s A320
Qantas commenced its trial of the ‘Next Generation Check-in’ at its Perth domestic terminal on July 29, which CEO Alan Joyce says will dramatically reduce check-in times, and eliminate queues for passengers. As part of the trial, 100,000 frequent flyers who regularly travel through Perth have been issued with new cards embedded with an ‘intelligent
Sir Richard Branson told journalists in Sydney that he has no plans to sell down the Virgin Group’s stake in Virgin Blue, despite some friction during recent months over the planned new name for the airline. “No plans to sell any stake to anybody, that’s all I can say at this stage,” Sir Richard said
