Airlines are hoping to once again make profits on long-haul flights to the US after increased competition on routes has kept ticket prices low in recent years. In 2009, Delta Air Lines and V Australia joined United Airlines and Qantas to offer trans Pacific services. This resulted in a race to offer the cheapest fares possible and turned what had been a highly profitable business for Qantas and United into a loss maker.

However, it looks like fares are beginning to rise, with the cost of an economy ticket to Los Angeles and back going up by around 20 per cent, and the price of a return to New York rising by around 10 per cent.

According to official figures, there is little evidence that the price rises are having… Read the full story

by Mia Harris on January 3rd, 2012

Qantas boss Alan Joyce has been given a share bonus worth $600,000 just two months after making the decision to ground the airline’s entire fleet and stranding around 70,000 passengers around the globe. Mr Joyce decided to take the action as the flag carrier fought with workers’ unions.

Because he has hit specific targets the board of Qantas has awarded Mr Joyce a total of 375,014 shares worth $1.58 each. This means that his remuneration stands at around $5 million. The bonus has angered the pilots’ union. Australian and International Pilots Association vice president, Richard Woodward, said it was unreasonable for Mr Joyce to be rewarded for losing Qantas around $70 million by keeping the global fleet on the ground. He added that this did not include the amount of… Read the full story

by Riley Walker on January 2nd, 2012

Passengers who were injured in 2008 when a Qantas jet plunged hundreds of feet as it was travelling to Perth from Singapore have been awarded compensation worth millions of dollars. Investigators are still not certain of the cause of the malfunction, but do know that inaccurate data readings were caused by faulty sensors.

The settlement has been made out of court, with some passengers receiving in excess of $400,000. The Airbus A330, which was carrying 300 passengers, dropped 700 feet in the space of 23 seconds. According to one of the passengers, the incident caused chaos with many onboard thinking they were going to die.

Some of the passengers have refused to accept compensation offers, and intend to launch a class action against Airbus and Northrop Grumman, an aviation technology… Read the full story

by Cooper Anderson on December 31st, 2011

Qantas is bracing itself for the introduction of the emissions trading scheme (ETS) which will come into force in Europe on 1 January. The flying kangaroo estimates that it will have to come up with an extra $5 million to cover the first year of the scheme. The controversial tax will apply to the final leg of flights to Europe. This means that on a flight from Sydney to London via Singapore, Qantas will be expected to pay for the leg from Singapore to London.

The airline said it was still trying to work out how much of the tax passengers are going to be expected to cover in the price of a ticket. Qantas will not have to pay its 2012 emissions bill until the following year.

The flag… Read the full story

by Aadyn Taylor on December 30th, 2011

Qantas offshoot Jetstar is currently in talks with potential investors interested in acquiring a stake in the company’s new Japanese venture. The budget airline intends to tap into the lucrative Asian market by establishing Jetstar Japan. At the present time the project is a partnership with Japan Airlines.

Mitsubishi also has a 16 per cent share in the group. Bruce Buchanan, chief executive of Jetstar, has said the airline is looking for one more investor. Mitsubishi will give up half of its holding when the deal is finalised. Mr Buchanan confirmed that a number of parties were interested and that Jetstar was currently assessing which would bring the greatest strategic advantage.

He added that it was hoped that any transactions would be completed within the first four months of 2012.… Read the full story

by Lily Thompson on December 28th, 2011

Virgin Australia has announced plans to start equipping its passenger jets with Wi-Fi connectivity so that customers can access in-flight entertainment through laptop computers and mobile devices. The airline has entered into an agreement with Lufthansa Systems to fit one of its Boeing 737s with the technology, which will be known as ‘BoardConnect’. This is due to be completed by the middle of 2012.

Following a test period, Virgin Australia said it wants to roll out wireless connectivity for the entire 737 fleet, and add it to its 777s which carry passengers on international routes. A decision still has to be made as to whether the Wi-Fi system will be introduced on the carrier’s Airbus 330s, or on the smaller ATR turbo-props or Embraer 190s.

Virgin’s product and guest services… Read the full story

by Mia Harris on December 27th, 2011

An intensive investigation into what caused a Qantas passenger jet in Western Australia to go out of control in October 2008 has been unable to come up with an answer. The incident was the result of faulty data, and one of the causes suggested is the bombardment of the plane by high-energy particles.

Incorrect information was produced by the air data inertial reference unit which takes information from sensors and processes it. However, as the Airbus 330, which was bound for Perth, approached the coast, a software design fault caused the aircraft to pitch forward and drop 650 feet. The aircraft then entered a nosedive for a further 400 feet.

The rollercoaster ride resulted in nine of the crew being injured, and 51 passengers needing to be treated in a… Read the full story

by Riley Walker on December 26th, 2011

Car manufacturer Toyota has announced plans to ramp up production next year by 20 per cent. The company was forced to battle against problems caused this year by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and the widespread flooding across Thailand. Toyota said that it would be increasing sales to 8.65 million, and would be pushing up production to 8.48 million vehicles.

The announcement comes after the car maker said year end profits were likely to be closer to 180 billion yen than the 390 billion forecast made in August. According to some analysts, Toyota is being ambitious. Chibagin Asset Management’s Fujo Ando said that factors such as the state of the global economy and the debt crisis in the eurozone were likely to dampen Toyota’s optimism.

Overseas sales for… Read the full story

by Cooper Anderson on December 23rd, 2011

Virgin America has confirmed that it made a net loss of $3.3 million in the third quarter of the financial year compared to a profit of $7.5 million during the same three months in 2010. The most significant contributor to the disappointing figures continues to be the high price of jet fuel. Since 2010, the airline has seen an 86 per cent rise in the cost, which totalled $110 million over the quarter.

David Cush, president and CEO of Virgin America, said the airline was still young, and as such was still investing in growth. He added that an operating profit of $16 million for the three months was encouraging and that revenue performance remained strong.

The company’s cash position has been supported by a debt offering of $150 million.… Read the full story

by Isabella Robinson on December 22nd, 2011

Middle Eastern airline giant Emirates has announced that it will begin serving passengers in Melbourne with an Airbus 380 superjumbo as of next October. The aircraft is due to travel daily on the existing Emirates route from Dubai to Melbourne and then on to Auckland. Passengers travelling to Dubai will then be able to catch other A380s flying on to other destinations including London, Paris and Rome.

The configuration of the superjumbo will be 399 economy-class seats, 76 business recliners, and 14 private cabins in first-class. The service will provide passengers with 135 more seats than are currently available on the Boeing 777-300ER which currently operates on the route.

Emirates said it will continue to operate 777-300ERs on its daily Melbourne services from Dubai which travel via Singapore and Kuala… Read the full story

by Lily Thompson on December 21st, 2011