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.
An Australian labor court has rejected a long-running challenge by Qantas pilots against the carrier’s use of a New Zealand-based subsidiary. Fair Work Australia dismissed the Australian and International Pilots Association’s application to allow it to represent pilots employed by Jetconnect. Jetconnect is a Qantas Group subsidiary that operates New Zealand-based Boeing 737s between New Zealand and Australia.
A diplomatic cable unearthed by Wikileaks sheds more light on an FAA audit of Australia’s aviation safety oversight in 2009, and reveals that the FAA was concerned enough to consider restricting air service between the two countries.
Tiger Airways Australia has reached the cap on daily operations imposed by safety regulators, and the carrier is now seeking approval to restart more domestic routes. Tiger is currently only allowed to operate 18 daily sectors, due to limits set by Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) following a five-week grounding. The airline will achieve its full allowance when it relaunches daily Sydney-Perth flights on Sept. 7.
