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.
A satellite-based version of ADS-B is being developed that offers the potential to provide coverage across all Atlantic airspace, which could mean dramatic changes for oceanic ATM procedures. The Aireon system will rely on an Iridium satellite network instead of ground stations, so it can provide coverage beyond the range of terrestrial ADS-B ground stations. It is considered not suitable for busy domestic airspace, but a good solution for less-congested oceanic airspace.
The global aviation industry will be watching Australia this year as it prepares to impose the first nationwide equipage mandate for automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), years ahead of the deadlines proposed by European and U.S. regulators.
Australia’s competition watchdog says it needs more information before it can rule on Virgin Australia’s proposed takeover of Tiger Airways Australia, although it has hinted that Virgin faces an uphill struggle to win approval. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) made a scheduled announcement regarding the takeover on Feb. 7, but instead of a ruling, it released a “statement of issues” and set a March 14 deadline for a final decision.
