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.
Air New Zealand reported strong results for May, defying the industry recession that is generally hitting Asia/Pacific carriers more than those in other regions. The airline reported healthy growth in load factor and yield for the month, with capacity cuts staying well ahead of the traffic decline. Air NZ is proving it can change quickly enough to reflect market conditions, CEO Rob Fyfe told The DAILY. He noted that Air NZ has been “profitable through this [down] cycle, and our projections are that we can continue to be profitable.”
FAA’s new en route ATC system saw its operational debut in the early hours of Wednesday morning at the Salt Lake City center. The en route automation modernization (ERAM) system is initially being used on selected sectors, and only on the least-busy shifts. ERAM will replace the existing Host system at all FAA centers, after operational testing at Salt Lake City. This multi-billion-dollar program is regarded as one of the most complex and expensive FAA has attempted.
The Air Transport Association is urging the Senate Commerce Committee to reject clauses in the House FAA reauthorization bill that would threaten airline alliance arrangements. The House clause, backed by Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Chair James Oberstar (D-Minn.), called for sunsetting antitrust immunity for alliances, and making them reapply. The Senate is working on its own version of an FAA bill.
