News for South Pacific

Tigerair Australia launched (01-Jun-2017) four times weekly Brisbane-Perth service. Tigerair Australia will be the only LCC to operation in the route. The carrier intends to operate a year round base schedule, which will increase in frequency during peak periods such as school holidays. The new service, which will utilise A320 equipment, will deliver over 80,000 additional seats p/a through Brisbane Airport and Perth Airport. Tigerair Australia CEO Rob Sharp stated the carrier is confident the new services will prove popular with budget and leisure travellers, providing a welcome economic and tourism boost to Queensland and Western Australia. Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) CEO and MD Julieanne Alroe stated Tigerair’s network expansion is a keystone for BAC’s continued growth as the most connected airport in Australia. [more - original PR]

Air New Zealand announced (01-Jun-2017) plans to grow its Samoa operation with a move to twice weekly widebody service year-round, adding an additional 14,500 seats for Auckland-Apia annually. Air New Zealand will utilise a combination of Boeing 787-9 and Boeing 777-200 aircraft on Thursdays and Saturdays from Sep-2017, increasing to four times weekly widebody service during the peak season. Air New Zealand CRO Cam Wallace stated the move to extra scheduled widebody services will be a significant boost for Samoa’s tourism and export industries. [more - original PR]

Rossair Charter grounded its entire fleet indefinitely as of 31-May-2017, following a fatal crash of one of its Cessna 441 Conquest II aircraft during a training flight from Renmark Airport (Adelaide Now, 31-May-2017). The carrier operates a fleet of Embraer Brasilia, Beechcraft 1900D and Cessna 441 Conquest. Rossair will work with CASA and emergency authorities to investigate the accident.

Qantas appointed Rob James as chief technology officer, succeeding Chris Taylor who resigned in May-2017 (IT News, 31-May-2017). Mr James will commence the role in Aug-2017.

Qantas announced (31-May-2017) it will introduce twice daily upgauged A330 Sydney-Auckland service from 13-Jul-2017, when Emirates withdraw from the route. Bookings can be made on both Qantas and Emirates websites. Qantas International CEO Gareth Evans commented: "One of the advantages of the Qantas-Emirates partnership is the flexibility we have with our combined fleets". [more - original PR]

Tigerair Australia partnered (31-May-2017) VroomVroomVroom to offer passengers car rental service on its website. VroomVroomVroom is a distribution partner of several car rental companies including Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, Thrifty and Redspot, allowing consumers to compare their services and vehicles on a single platform. Tigerair Australia head of ancillary & product Peter Edwards stated along with the recent addition of "accommodation and holiday packages on the website" customers can book all "their travel needs…from the convenience of the Tigerair website". [more - original PR]

dnata Australia announced (31-May-2017) it invested AUD1.5 million (USD1.1 million) to install five new x-ray machines in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide. This is in keeping with the mandated Piece Level Screening requirements for cargo consignments to the US. The new technology is now live at all Australian airports dnata operates in time for the 01-Jul-2017 deadline. All cargo that passes through dnata’s facilities across Australia which travels to the US either on a direct service or via another airport will be subject to the screening requirements. [more - original PR]

Airservices Australia installed (31-May-2017) a ground based augmentation system (GBAS), referred to as 'SmartPath', at Melbourne Tullamarine Airport. SmartPath is a satellite based precision approach and landing system, which enables suitably equipped aircraft to land in low visibility conditions. SmartPath was first installed at Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport in 2014. Airservices executive GM air navigation services Stephen Angus said: "The integration of SmartPath both at Sydney and Melbourne Airports highlights Airservices commitment to embracing global navigational satellite systems technology". [more - original PR]

Wellington Airport signed (20-May-2017) an agreement with Skyfii to collect and analyse passenger's behaviour to better optimise terminal facilities, retail offerings and marketing info. The one year contract will see the complete deployment of Skyfii's 'IO' platform including IO Connect (data collection), IO Insight (analytics) and IO Engage (marketing), as well as the provision of data consulting services. Skyfii ANZ MD John Rankin stated: "There is a growing shift towards the use of location based analytics and marketing tools" that allows airport "create better passenger experiences based on evidential insights". [more - original PR]

Australia's Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) reported (31-May-2017) the following international traffic highlights to/from Australia for Mar-2017:

• Passengers: 3.1 million, +1.7% year-on-year;
• Available seats: 4.3 million, +6.2%;
• Flights: 16,155, +3.3%;
• Cargo: 96,220 tonnes, +9.6%;
• Aircraft movements: 16,155, +3.3%;
• Top 10 international carriers:
  • Share of passengers carried:
    • Qantas: 16.4%, +0.8ppt;
    • Jetstar: 9.3%,  -0.4ppt;
    • Emirates: 8.3%, -1.0ppt;
    • Singapore Airlines: 8.2%, +0.2ppt;
    • Air New Zealand: 7.4%, -0.3ppt;
    • Virgin Australia: 5.9%, -0.8ppt;
    • Cathay Pacific Airways: 4.9%, -0.4ppt;
    • AirAsia X: 4.1%, +0.5ppt;
    • Etihad Airways: 3.1%, +0.2ppt;
    • China Southern Airlines: 2.9%, -0.1ppt;
  • Share of cargo carried:
    • Singapore Airlines: 16.3%, -1.3ppts;
    • Qantas: 12.8%, -1.0ppt;
    • Emirates: 10.0%, -2.8ppts;
    • Cathay Pacific Airways: 7.2%, -0.3ppt;
    • Air New Zealand: 5.5%, +0.4ppt;
    • Malaysia Airlines: 3.5%, +1.0ppt;
    • Etihad Airways: 3.2%, +0.2ppt;
    • Thai Airways: 3.2%, -0.3ppt;
    • Qatar Aiways: 3.0%, +0.5ppt;
    • China Southern Airlines: 3.0%, -0.2ppt. [more - original PR]

BITRE also reported LCCs AirAsia X, Cebu Pacific Air, Indonesia AirAsia, Jetstar, Jetstar Asia and Scoot accounted for 17.2% of total international passenger traffic to/from Australia in Mar-2017. LCC share in Mar-2016 was 17.8%.