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 “twofold breakdown” – at Southwest and FAA – led to the agency’s $10.2 million civil penalty against the carrier, and FAA is undertaking damage control to make sure the lapses do not compromise voluntary disclosure programs, says FAA (DAILY, March 7).
Southwest is not letting the prospect of weakening demand slow its capacity growth. The carrier saw capacity jump 9% in February, although it still managed to improve load factor due to a larger increase in traffic. Loads were up 1.8 points to 68.6%, with traffic rising 10.8%. For the first two months of the year, traffic increased 7.8% on a 7% capacity hike, resulting in load factor rising 1.1 points to 66.3%.
FAA plans to move its ATC System Command Center into a new custom-built facility, after occupying a leased building in Herndon, Va., for the past 14 years. The new facility will be adjacent to FAA’s Potomac terminal radar approach control in Warrenton, Va. Construction is expected to begin in January and finish in 2010. The project is estimated to cost $45 million, but once completed, the new building should yield $2 million in annual cost savings.
