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.
It appears even more certain that Congress will have to extend the FAA’s operating authority yet again, this time until early July. Lawmakers are expected to finalize the latest extension sometime next week. They are likely to propose a new expiration just before the July 4 holiday break. The current extension expires April 30, a deadline that was supposed to give the House and Senate time to reconcile their versions of a long-term FAA reauthorization bill. But it is clear that they won’t reach a deal before the end of this month.
Airlines canceled domestic flights at a few Canadian airports on April 19 due to fears of volcanic ash drifting into Canadian airspace, but flights were resumed after the threat did not materialize. Weather experts in the U.K. and Canada had predicted a low risk of volcanic ash appearing over Newfoundland. This led Air Canada and others to cancel the morning flights out of St. John’s and other small airports “while waiting to hear whether or not flights may be affected,” an airline spokesman said.
The Air Transport Association is endorsing new Senate legislation that would limit oil speculation, which ATA says was a major cause of recent oil price spikes and price volatility. The bill, titled the Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act of 2010, is authored by Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.). ATA President James May said the bill “will close loopholes, increase transparency and promote stability in the commodity markets.”
