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.
Korean Air plans to trial a new “meet and assist” service for first-class passengers at its Incheon hub during March. Passengers connecting to or from Los Angeles and New York Kennedy flights will be met at the gate by airline representatives, who will guide them to their next flight. Passengers checking in at Incheon for LAX flights will also be escorted to the gate.
JAL Group saw revenue in its core airline business increase 2.1% for the nine months through Dec. 31, with a boost in unit revenue offsetting cuts in capacity and traffic. The Air Transport segment reported an operating profit of JPY71.2 billion (US$663 million) for the first three quarters of the fiscal year. This helped drive a group net profit of JPY20.4 billion – compared with a loss of JPY9.3 billion for the same period the previous year. Although airline revenue was up, group operating revenue dropped 1.9%.
Air New Zealand says it will be reviewing its security measures after a knife-wielding woman attempted to hijack an Air NZ commuter flight last week, prompting a scare at Christchurch Airport. Both pilots and a passenger – who helped restrain the woman – received minor knife injuries, and the pilots managed to safely land the 19-seat Beechcraft at Christchurch Airport. One pilot required surgery on his hand. The flight was operated for Air NZ by Air National.
