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Ayesha de Kretser

This Month

Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka and Qatar’s former boss, Akbar Al Baker have played the long game against Qantas and its former CEO Alan Joyce.

Qatar rebalances the scales in a long game of revenge against Qantas

A decade long drama between the Gulf carrier and the national carrier ultimately led to the blockbuster Virgin Australia deal, shaking up the aviation sector.

Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka says the Qatar investment will give the airline a huge boost to compete better with Qantas domestically.

Qatar Airways to buy 25pc of Virgin Australia, funding big expansion

The deal with Bain Capital will allow the Gulf carrier to effectively bypass government approvals for more flights, creating a formidable rival for Qantas.

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Qatar Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner business class.

What do we know about Qatar Airways?

The acquisitive operator started only two decades ago, and now flies to more countries than almost any other. But it has had its fair share of controversies.

September

The Qantas engineers’ union says workers won’t accept real wage cuts after three years of wage freezes.

Qantas engineers strike goes national, targets peak-hour flights

Qantas engineers critical to aircraft maintenance will stop work at major airports around the country next week, threatening to disrupt peak-hour flights at the start of school holidays.

Getting the AFL Grand Final is expected to cost Swans and Lions fans a pretty penny.

Heading to Melbourne for the footy? It might pay to book a stop-over

Brisbane fans might choose a less-than-ideal path to save a few dollars in the pilgrimage to the MCG this weekend – booking a flight via Sydney or Canberra.

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Qantas pilots to vote on pay freeze offer (worth 30pc more)

Short-haul pilots are the last group of the airline’s employees to vote on enterprise agreements since the pandemic, when wages were frozen across all entities.

BINGO Industries CEO Chris Jeffrey.

Macquarie’s Bingo secures $100m lifeline but loses CEO and CFO

The waste management group has been struggling under a heavy debt burden after being downgraded by S&P Global this year. In all, three executives will leave.

Webjet’s consumer business spirals as domestic demand softens

The newly demerged Webjet consumer-facing business was down during its trading debut as investors fret about the future of travel demand.

Transport Minister Catherine King has been working on a cohesive strategy for the aviation sector for more than a year. So far, little has changed.

Labor sings vastly different tunes on supermarkets and Qantas

Aviation is much more concentrated than supermarkets, yet the government seems to accept that the airline industry should remain anticompetitive.

Virgin Australia is struggling with the Cairns to Tokyo route.

Qantas eyes downtown Tokyo flights as Virgin waits for new planes

Demand for travel to Japan is strong, but not from Cairns, as the red kangaroo tries to muscle in on its rival’s misfortune.

The federal government has directed changes be made to Brisbane Airport’s flight paths.

Labor pulls Airservices into line on Brisbane Airport noise

The government agency charged with designing flight paths has been told to hurry up in Brisbane, as Labor faces an airport noise backlash at the state election.

Rex’s grounding is more bad news for travellers.

Domestic airfares jump after collapse of Rex

The demise of the regional carrier is more bad news for travellers as domestic raise fares and Qantas lifts its fees for changing bookings.

Auckland Airport’s “once-in-a-generation investment” will enable the facility “to be resilient and fit for the future”, said its CEO Carrie Hurihanganui.

Auckland airport stokes airline stoush with monster capital raising

Qantas has labelled Auckland International Airport’s $6.6 billion investment plan “inefficient”, saying it would cripple demand.

A Qantas aircraft at Sydney Airport. The company has said it will improve the customer experience, but is now charging more to change travel arrangements.

Qantas raises the cost of changing tickets by a whopping 20pc

The airline, which last year pledged to make it easier for travellers to modify flights, says it’s the first time it’s changed this particular fee since 2017.

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson says Australia is the airline’s third priority in terms of growth markets.

Air India boss waits for 470 planes to throw down gauntlet to Qantas

Air India’s CEO and Singapore Airlines veteran Campbell Wilson says the airline wants to fly twice daily from Melbourne and Sydney, as Qantas eyes Indian expansion from Perth.

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Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson.

Airlines and Melbourne Airport headed for runway funding feud

Vanessa Hudson says Melbourne Airport needs to wait until “the demand is there” before building a third runway and charging airlines and their passengers to pay for it.

Planes at Melbourne Airport.

Melbourne Airport cleared for third runway, sparking noise debates

Airport noise has become a growing concern in most major capitals, and the southern capital is tipped to be no exception.

Planes parked at Kingman Airport in Arizona, a former military base which is now used as a plane graveyard.

Rex accused of stealing planes from Arizona aircraft graveyard

The lawsuit, filed by American leasing company Jet Midwest, adds a twist to the regional carrier’s tortured demise. Rex entered administration in July.

Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson.

Qantas executive pay falls 40pc, Alan Joyce pockets $3m

The airline has changed the way it pays and claws back bonuses after a stinging rebuke of its remuneration report from shareholders.

Shadow Transport Minister Bridget McKenzie.

Nationals airline break-up push rankles Coalition

Nationals leader David Littleproud said the push for the Treasurer to establish aviation divestiture powers had not been considered by the Coalition’s shadow cabinet.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/by/ayesha-de-kretser-p535y1