JULY 2018 13
Australia and Qantas will add its QF
code on 30 Air New Zealand-operated
domestic serv fices in New Zealand
from October 28 2018. There will also
be reciprocal lounge access for eligible
frequent flyers.
- Jetstar group chief executive Gareth
Evans said the codeshare would have
no impact on the Jetstar New Zealand
domestic operation and the airline
group was “fully committed” to that
business.
However, Virgin Australia group
executive for airlines Rob Sharp
said the arrangement was bad for
consumers and will have some flow-
on consequences on the Tasman.
Further, Sharp said Virgin Australia
management was considering the
question of what role regulators could
have.
AIRLINE NEWS
Etihad Airways’ 10-year naming
rights sponsorship of Melbourne’s
Docklands stadium will end in
- It is the latest example of the
Abu Dhabi-headquartered carrier’s
reduced presence in the Australian
market, following confirmation it was
ending flights to Perth in October
2018 and downgauging its service to
Melbourne.
- Air New Zealand chief operating
officer Bruce Parton will leave in
September 2018 after a 22-year career
at the airline. The airline said on
May 28 Parton had decided to take a
break from corporate life. His role has
been split into two parts, with Carrie
Hurihanganui to be chief ground
operations officer and John Whittaker
to be chief air operations and people
safety officer.
Meanwhile, Air New Zealand chief
financial officer Jeff McDowall says
the airline is working towards placing
an order with Airbus or Boeing for
new widebody aircraft by early 2019.
The timetable for the replacement of
Air New Zealand’s Boeing 777-200ER
fleet was outlined at the company’s
investor day in Auckland on June 14.
McDowall said the company was
“at the tail end” of evaluating
the responses to the Request for
Information (RFI) process that began
in 2018. “We’ve got an opportunity,
and a need actually, to replace our
777-200 fleet between the 2023 and
2025 financial years.” McDowall said
there were “no bad choices” among the
candidates to replace the 777-200ER,
which comprised the 787 family and
the 777-X family from Boeing, as well
as the Airbus A350 family.- Still on Air New Zealand, the airline
has commenced legal action against
BP and Z Energy after the fuel
pipeline leak at Auckland Airport that
left airline schedules in chaos. Both
BP and Z Energy said they would fight
the claims.
Singapore Airlines’ regional wing
Silkair has operated a limited season
of charter flights between Singapore
and Broome. The first of four trial
flights touched down in Broome on
May 23. The service was supported
by tourism bodies and the local Shire
council.
Singapore Airlines’ low-cost carrier
Scoot has boosted its sales presence
in Australia with the appointment
of Kirsty Lucas as national sales
and partnership manager. Based in
Sydney, Lucas will report to Scoot
general manager for Australia Jared
Simcox.
Alliance Airlines has commenced
charter flights for Japanese travel
company JTB as part of a three-year
deal signed in April. The first service
took place on June 1 carrying 64
passengers from Brisbane to Uluru.
Alliance Airlines chief executive Lee
Schofield said there were 25 charters
planned for the rest of calendar 2018.
Hong Kong Airlines will end flights
to Australia from October 20 2018
when it drops its three-times-a-week
Hong Kong-Cairns-Gold Coast-Hong
Kong service with Airbus A
equipment. Cairns Airport said in a
statement the HNA Group carrier and
Virgin Australia alliance partner was
ending the flights due to its “changing
business strategy in the Australian
market”.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) plans to
bring Silkair under the main SIA
brand and spend $100 million
upgrading the regional carrier’s cabins
to offer closer product and service
Silkair operated the first of
four charter flights between
Singapore and Broome on
May 23.SILKAIRconsistency for passengers. The
product upgrades were due to begin
in 2020 and include lie-flat seats in
business class and seat-back inflight
entertainment for every seat.- Still on SIA, the airline group reported
a more than doubling of net profit
for the 12 months to March 31 2018
at S$893 million, from the S$
million in the prior financial year.
Meanwhile, operating profit, which
excludes one-off items, rose 70 per
cent to S$1.057 billion, SIA said on
May 17. The company said the impact
of its three-year transformation
program alongside passenger and
cargo growth were behind the
improvement.
Royal Brunei Airlines (RB) will join an
already crowded field offering a one-
stop product on the Kangaroo Route
between Australia and Europe when it
begins nonstop Bandar Seri Begawan-
London Heathrow service with Boeing
787-8s from the end of October. The
new route would enable it to offer
a one-stop Melbourne-Bandar Seri
Begawan-London Heathrow option,
compared with its current two-stop
Melbourne-Bandar Seri Begawan-
Dubai-London Heathrow offering.
Regional carrier Jetgo on June 1
entered into voluntary administration
and suspended all regular public
transport (RPT) flights. McLeod and
Partners’ Jonathan Paul McLeod
and Bill Karageozis were appointed
Debrief
A Qantas 737-800 and Air
New Zealand A320 at Sydney
Airport providing a backdrop
to the announcement of a
new codesharing agreement
between the two carriers.QANTAS