Adrian is Auckland bureau chief for Aviation Week, based in New Zealand. He covers commercial aviation in the Asia-Pacific region.
Adrian was previously based in Aviation Week’s Washington office for nine years, writing for a range of the group’s publications and covering many aspects of the commercial aviation industry. He has won Australasian and international awards for his aviation writing.
Prior to joining Aviation Week in 2002, Adrian covered aviation industry and policy issues for two other publishing companies in Washington. He has also worked for newspapers in Texas and New Zealand, covering a wide range of topics. Adrian graduated from Auckland University with a degree in history and English in 1992.
Qantas Airways will close one of its two heavy maintenance bases in March, rejecting a union’s last-ditch proposal to keep the facility open. The decision to close the base at Avalon Airport, near Melbourne, means that Qantas will be left with just one heavy maintenance facility, in Brisbane. The Avalon base primarily handles Boeing 747-400 maintenance, but the gradual phase-out of this aircraft type is reducing its scheduled workload.
The rapid rise of air travel to and from China is an increasingly important dynamic for the airline industry. Overseas carriers and tourist agencies are looking for new ways to tap into the flow of Chinese tourists, while at the same time, the international growth of Chinese airlines is prompting them to consider how they can attract more foreign passengers.
High-profile AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes is returning to a more hands-on role at the low-cost carrier as he assumes the position of group CEO. Fernandes has most recently been serving as non-executive director, and had been focusing much of his attention on the carrier’s Indonesian office, established two years ago partly to oversee AirAsia’s growth in Southeast Asia. AirAsia has established multiple joint-venture franchises across the region.
