The World of Aviation

Philippine Airlines started its first services between Manila and Brisbane on March 18, making it the third Australian gateway for the carrier. The twice weekly services are operated by a 302 seat Airbus A330-300 in two class configuration. The carrier has also introduced the higher capacity 777-300ER on Sydney and Melbourne services during February.

The Royal Federation of Aero Clubs of Australia (RFACA) has chosen four students from around Australia to receive $6000 scholarships from Airservices Australia to aid with their flying training. The four winners are Joanna Cantly and Vanessa O’Brien from Darling Downs Aero Club in Toowoomba, Lauren Mengel of Alice Springs Aero Club and Sam Regan

Queensland Airports Limited has recorded strong growth over the three airports it operates during February, with overall passenger volumes up 18 per cent. The biggest growth was experienced at Mount Isa Airport, which saw an increase of 28.1 per cent to 14,530 passengers, which was attributed to increasing activity in the resources industry. Gold Coast

Singapore Airlines is expected to renew its push for access to flights to the US from Australia, citing the recent announcement that Jetstar will make a major push into its home market. ”It’s just a matter of principle. I don’t think the Australian government can say that Singapore has not provided Australian carriers maximum access,”

United Airlines will operate additional services on the Sydney-Los Angeles route over the December-January peak season. From December 1 to January 9 the airline will operate a second daily service between Sydney and Los Angeles, while from January 10-31 it will operate three additional services each week. United is seen by some analysts as the

V Australia will add a third weekly Melbourne-Johannesburg service to its schedule from December, the carrier announced as its first inbound service arrived in Melbourne on March 17. The new service will commence on December 16 after the carrier takes its fifth Boeing 777-300ER. The airline says it will be focusing on attracting business traffic