Ben Sandilands
Editor of Plane Talking @PlaneTalking
Ben Sandilands has reported and analysed the mechanical mobility of humanity since late 1960 - the end of the age of great scheduled ocean liners and coastal steamers and the start of the jet age. He’s worked in newspapers, radio and TV in a wide range of roles as a journalist at home and abroad for 56 years, the last 18 freelance.
Virgin Blue has two weeks in which to save its "vital" trans-Pacific joint venture with Delta Airlines from US disapproval, and said this morning "it’s not over yet".
Bad news this morning for a cornerstone of Virgin Blue’s plans to become a profitable long haul carrier, with the US Department of Transportation proposing to reject its intended trans-Pacific joint venture with Delta, writes Ben Sandilands.
The Milne Bay crash that killed three Australians and a New Zealander in PNG on Tuesday has also exposed serious concerns about CASA’s handling of Trans Air’s operations.
The fatal crash of a small jet on a Milne Bay airstrip in PNG yesterday afternoon is believed to have killed Les Wright, a pilot and aviation entrepreneur.
Today Virgin handed down a full year profit result that sees it continue to make more money than the much larger Qantas/Jetstar group.
Tiger is being put under siege by Qantas and Jetstar, which this morning detailed massive increases in capacity on domestic routes vital to Tiger's fortunes.
If there was a functioning new government in Canberra this week the Jetstar offshore strategy would demand urgent attention from its transport minister.
Virgin Blue is quitting the NZ domestic market from October 18, but adding flights to its Australian domestic network and trans-Tasman, US , South African, Bali and Phuket routes.
Qantas insists on departing from the normal ways of reporting financial results, and it's fair to say the full-year results they announced this morning are the equivalent of an airline shafted by the light.
NSW, no matter what the government, cannot be trusted with infrastructure dollars, as the mal-administration of transport projects is hard-wired into the state’s public service.
