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Transport

This Month

Bain Capital’s Mike Murphy. The private equity firm has done well out of Virgin Australia.

Virgin float has Bain in line for $15.9m advisory golden parachute

It will be a nervous wait for the private equity giant’s dealmakers as years of planning come to a head this week with the airline’s return to the ASX.

A British Airways plane on the runway at London City.

Macquarie Asset Management buys back into UK airports

Macquarie, one of the world’s largest private infrastructure investors by assets under management, has bought into the Bristol, Birmingham and London City Airports.

The government will double down on its bailout of Regional Express.

Rex limbo to drag on as EY fails to find airline a new owner

The Albanese government said administrators of the collapsed regional carrier would ask the Federal Court to extend the timeline until the end of the year.

Virgin Australia is preparing to return to the ASX after a five-year hiatus.

Virgin Australia IPO too expensive and opportunistic: Morningstar

The first broker note circulated before the airline’s return to the ASX argues Australia’s travel market won’t be a duopoly forever.

Luke Trouchet (left) and his brother Karl Trouchet (right) have joined forces with private equity group BGH Capital to make a buyout bid for Tourism Holdings Ltd. THL merged with Apollo Tourism in 2022. Apollo was founded by the Trouchet family in Brisbane.

Queensland brothers join private equity bid for campervan group THL

Private equity group BGH Capital and the Trouchet family have teamed up to lob a $471m bid for ailing campervan operator Tourism Holdings.

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Tesla vehicles at the Port of Melbourne in March.

Car dealers face $2b hit from tougher fuel efficiency standards

The surging popularity of hybrid cars is a dilemma for manufacturers and dealers as they grapple with the government’s stricter fuel standards regime.

FILE - In this June 12, 2017, file photo, a Boeing 787 airplane being built for Norwegian Air Shuttle is shown at Boeing Co.'s assembly facility, in Everett, Wash. Boeing is dealing with a new production problem involving its 787 jet, in which inspections have found flaws in the way that sections of the rear of the plane were joined together. Boeing said Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, it's not an immediate safety risk but could cause the planes to age prematurely. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

Air India crash unlikely a systemic Dreamliner problem: experts

Qantas is closely monitoring implications of the devastating Air India crash, but experts say it is unlikely to signal broader safety issues.

Salvage crews work near the wreckage site in the Potomac River of a mid-air collision between an American Airlines jet and a Black Hawk helicopter in early February.

2025 is now the deadliest for air travel in years

The crash of Air India Flight 171 has turned 2025 into one of the most fatal years in the past decade for civil aviation.

An Air New Zealand aircraft at Auckland Airport this year. The company has endured several years of poor returns.

Air New Zealand throws down gauntlet to Qantas on US business travel

The airline says it will increase the number of seats to North America significantly and expects its new premium cabins to draw customers from its major rival.

Virgin CEO Dave Emerson during a media call ahead of the first Virgin-Qatar airways flight at Sydney International Terminal.

Virgin Australia resumes long-haul flying on Qatar Airways

The first of Virgin’s long-haul flights, using Qatar Airways planes, pilots and crews, is set for take off from Sydney today.

New chief operating officer of BYD Australia Stephen Collins.

Plug-in ute a game changer for BYD in Australia, says top exec

The new chief operating officer in Australia for the fast-growing Chinese brand says having the BYD Shark ute in the line-up has given extra credibility.

Prime minister Anthony Albanese with Simon Hickey (right).

Sydney airport rift deepens as west declares 24-7 gives an edge

Western Sydney International Airport terminal opened Wednesday with plans from its chief executive to own the night in tussle with Sydney airport.

Rex, which has served regional Australia for 22 years providing links with communities and their economies into capital cities, entered the intercity market after COVID-19 lockdowns.

Buyout fund lobs bid for collapsed airline Rex

Bids for the carrier, better known as Rex, were collected last week with local and international buyers canvassed by investment bank Houlihan Lokey.

Vanessa Hudson has made a big call on one of Alan Joyce’s babies.

Qantas ends Joyce’s Asian folly as Hudson narrows focus

By shutting Jetstar Asia, Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson is showing investors that she too will home in on the markets that deliver the biggest returns.

Jetstar flies passengers to popular holiday destinations in Asia, like Bali.

Qantas to close Jetstar Asia and move planes to domestic routes

The changes will not affect Qantas’ domestic budget carrier Jetstar, and come amid the airline’s $15 billion fleet overhaul.

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Regional Express, better known as Rex, collapsed into administration in July.

Rex bidder plans to return airline to ASX, relocate it to Canberra

But the proposal from Renaissance Infrastructure has been met with a lukewarm reception from administrators and the government, who believe it is too complex.

Inside Western Sydney’s dramatic new terminal building.

First look inside Sydney’s soon-to-open new airport

Western Sydney International is getting ready for take-off, opening its dramatic terminal building to the public on Wednesday.

Dave Emerson has been Virgin Australia’s chief executive since March.

Virgin chief Dave Emerson in line for $10m windfall after ASX float

The airline’s prospectus also outlines the big payments each of the other executives are expecting if the company’s share price remains above the IPO price.

Scott Wharton, CEO of ASX-listed car leasing group Smartgroup.

From stopping thieves in the GFC to running a $1b company, via The Star

Scott Wharton had an uneasy stint as CEO of The Star Sydney, but it was nothing compared with trying to stop office break-ins during the Lehman Bros collapse.

Dave Emerson has been Virgin Australia’s chief executive since March.

Dave Emerson emerges from consultancy-land for Virgin’s ASX redux

He’s “fair” and seems “nice enough”. Flight Centre’s Graham Turner reckons he’d “class him as an introvert”. But the former Bain consultant is about to go big.

Ex-Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka high-fives pilot Brett Douglas at Brisbane Airport.

Jayne Hrdlicka and Virgin staff’s $180m payday

The former CEO stands to make life-changing money in the airline’s IPO. How much?

A Virgin Australia aircraft lands at Sydney Airport.

Virgin Australia prepares for life on the ASX with big spending plans

The airline is set to return to the boards on June 24 following a five-year absence, after owner Bain Capital decided to proceed with a $2.90 per share float.

Chinese car maker Chery had a record sales month in Australia in May. The Tiggo model is one of its main sellers. Chief operating officer for Chery Australia, Lucas Harris, says local motorists are not overly fussed about where vehicles are made.

The company behind this $24,000 SUV just had its best month

Chinese carmakers accounted for four of the top-selling 15 brands in Australia in May, as more people become less worried about where their vehicles are built.

Fund managers have been impressed by the Virgin management team, led by chief executive Dave Emerson.

The not-so-secret key to Virgin’s IPO? Qantas

Conditions are perfect for the listing with Qantas shares surging, oil prices down and domestic demand as strong as ever. But are we near the top of the cycle?

May

Chief executive John Guscic has defied the downturn.

Web Travel bookings surge defies industry slowdown

The hotel aggregator is still seeing strong demand, even in the difficult US market, helping its shares to rise sharply.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/companies/transport