Qantas increases airfares due to high cost of fuel

Qantas has announced it will raise airfares due to a sharp jump in jet fuel prices tied to the escalating Middle East conflict, joining a growing number of airlines around the world adjusting ticket prices. The airline has confirmed that fare hikes will mainly affect long-haul international routes with the highest fuel use. 

Qantas confirmed it is actively studying options to expand capacity on existing European routes in the coming months, potentially adding extra frequencies or deploying larger aircraft to meet growing passenger demand. Rather than launching entirely new routes, the airline is focused on redeploying existing aircraft capacity where it is needed most.

Passengers are also increasingly choosing alternative connections to Europe via the United States, Asian cities or Johannesburg through Qantas' partner network to avoid the Middle East region.

On the other hand, Air New Zealand announced broader airfare increases on the same day, pointing to the widespread industry impact of surging global energy prices. 

Fuel typically represents one of the largest single operating costs for any airline, making price sensitivity to oil markets particularly acute on long-haul services.

China halts refinery exports, cuts jet fuel supply to Australia

Australia’s biggest provider of jet fuel has cut exports, leaving the country’s airports with an uncertain future.

China has reportedly ordered refineries to halt exports in a move that could cut critical jet fuel supplies to Australia.

Australia is almost entirely dependent on jet fuel from overseas, with Chinese refineries alone making up 32 per cent of imports in 2025.

While no public announcement has been made, Asia Pacific oil pricing chief at data firm Argus Aldric Chew said on Friday that Chinese authorities told refineries not to load cargoes that had not cleared customs by March 11, the Australian Financial Review reported.

Mr Chew cited emails from Chinese authorities to a trading firm.

NewsWire understands the Albanese government is mulling a response, with one source saying it was not wholly unexpected while another said it caught the Canberra off-guard.

The Chinese move comes amid murmurs Australia’s other major sources, such as South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Japan, could also impose run cuts on their refineries.

NewsWire understands the government is not concerned about March’s deliveries but watching closely what happens in April and beyond.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Two U.S. Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker involved in incident- one crashes

A U.S. military KC-135 refueling plane has crashed in western Iraq in an incident involving two aircraft, according to the Pentagon. Six crew members were on board, it is believed they are deceased, but there was no official word on their condition.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Thursday that the incident happened in friendly airspace and was not caused by hostile fire or friendly fire. One of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, while the second one landed safely after declaring a mayday call.

This marks the fourth publicly acknowledged aircraft to crash as a part of Operation Epic Fury. Last Monday, the U.S. military also confirmed that three F-15E Strike Eagles were downed in a friendly-fire incident involving Kuwait, but all 6 crew members safely ejected. 

The Pentagon said more information would become available as "the situation develops" and asked for patience as more details were gathered "to provide clarity for the families of service members."

Aircraft Information: Damaged

Owner/operator: United States Air Force - USAF

Aircraft: Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker

Registration: 63-8017

MSN: 18634

Aircraft Information: Crashed

Owner/operator: United States Air Force - USAF

Aircraft: Boeing KC-135R Stratotanker

Registration: 62-3556

MSN: 18539

Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of the deceased during this difficult time.

Air India flight closes runway due to hard landing

AIR INDIA BOEING 777-337 VT-ALU (MSN 36319)

Thailand's Phuket International Airport temporarily closed its main runway yesterday morning after an Air India Express Boeing 737 MAX 8 made a hard landing, damaging its landing gear and disrupting arriving flights.

At 11.28 a.m local time on Wednesday, Air India Express flight IX938 operating the Hyderabad (HYD/VOHS) - Phuket (HKT/VTSP) route suffered an incident on the runway at Phuket International Airport.

The problem was reportedly caused by a detached wheel, which is believed to have resulted from a very hard landing.

Following the incident, Phuket International Airport announced a temporary closure of the runway in order to remove the aircraft and carry out safety checks on the runway before flight operations could resume. It was initially estimated that the process would take around six hours.

As a result, all flights scheduled to land at Phuket International Airport were required to hold in nearby airspace, while some were diverted to alternate airports.

All 133 passengers disembarked the aircraft whilst on the runway and transported to the terminal by buses. 

An image posted on social media showed part of the aircraft's landing gear, with a wheel missing, in direct contact with the runway, with a long, swerving skid mark on the tarmac.

Aircraft Information 

Airline: Air India

Code: IX/AXB

Aircraft: Boeing 737 Max 8

Registration: VT-BWQ

Serial Number: 43836

Engines: 2 x CFMI LEAP-1B

First Flew: 4th October 2019

Age: 6.5 Years 

Plane spotting from Albert Park and Tullamarine

Over the weekend, my daughter went to the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park in Melbourne. She captured some shots of the aerial display at the event for me, and then before her flight home on Monday, she snapped a few more photos for me from Tullamarine. Even with just a small pocket camera, I think she did a great job, and I’m really grateful for her efforts.

QATAR AIRWAYS BOEING 777-3DZ A7-BES (MSN 64089) 7 YEARS

QATAR AIRWAYS BOEING 777-3DZ A7-BEJ (MSN 60336) 9 YEARS

QATAR AIRWAYS BOEING 777-3DZ A7-BES (MSN 60331) 10 YEARS

QATAR AIRWAYS BOEING 777-3DZ A7-BEO (MSN 64065) 8 YEARS

THAI AIRWAYS AIRBUS A350-941 HS-THO (MSN 351) 6 YEARS

QANTAS AIRBUS A380-842 VH-OQD (MSN 026)
QF93 OFF TO LOS ANGELES (LAX) 17 YEARS

SINGAPORE AIRLINES BOEING 777-312 9V-SWB (MSN 33377)
SQ237 ARRIVING FROM SINGAPORE (SIN) 19 YEARS

AIR NEW ZEALAND BOEING 787-9 ZK-NZQ (MSN 39296)
NZ1331 ARRIVING FROM AUCKLAND (AKL) 7 YEARS

SHANGHAI AIRLINES BOEING 787-9 B-1112 (MSN 637070
MU738 OFF TO SHANGHAI (PVG) 7 YEARS

ATLAS AIR BOEING 747-47UF N492MC (MSN 29253)
QF7589 FLYING FROM AVALON (AVV) TO SYDNEY (SYD) 27 YEARS

XIAMEN AIR BOEING 787-9 B-7836 (MSN 63042)
MF804 OFF TO XIAMEN (XMN) 8 YEARS

LATAM AIRLINES BOEING 787-9 CC-BGM (MSN 38771)
LA804 OFF TO SANTIAGO (SCL) 9 YEARS

Huge thanks to my daughter for taking the time to snap these amazing shots.

ANA DC 3 crashes in Hobart 80 years today

On Sunday the 10th of March 1946 a Douglas DC-3 aircraft departed from Hobart, Tasmania (HBA/YMHB) for a flight to Melbourne, Victoria (MEB/YMEN). The aircraft crashed into the sea with both engines operating less than 2 minutes after takeoff. All twenty-five people on board the aircraft died. It was Australia's worst civil aviation accident at the time.

The Australian National Airways aircraft registered VH-AET arrived at Cambridge aerodrome at 8:15 pm local time, about four hours late. The return flight to Essendon Airport was scheduled to depart at 4:50 pm but did not do so until 8:50 pm.

On board were 21 passengers, 3 pilots and an air hostess. Douglas DC-3 (and C-47) aircraft were normally crewed by two pilots but on the 10th of March the cockpit of VH-AET was occupied by a third person, a supernumerary pilot who was making his first flights with the airline. The weight of the aircraft was about 900 pounds (410 kg) below the maximum authorised weight. The takeoff was into a light southerly wind towards Frederick Henry Bay and the sea. Observers at the aerodrome reported that the takeoff was normal, and both engines were operating perfectly.

Witnesses in the vicinity of Seven-Mile Beach estimated that the aircraft reached a height of a little above 400 ft (120 m) before turning left slightly and descending steeply. The aircraft cleared the land and crashed into Frederick Henry Bay about 300 yards (270 m) beyond the water's edge and a mile (1.6 km) from the western end of Seven-Mile Beach. After takeoff it flew for less than 2 minutes and covered a distance of only 2.9 nautical miles (5.4 kilometres)

The exact cause of this accident was not determined but the most like cause was the inadvertent engagement of the autopilot just after take-off with the gyros set in 'caged' position by the First Officer

Aircraft Information:
Airline: Australian National Airways - ANA
Code: AN/ANA
Aircraft: Douglas C-47-DL (DC-3)
Registration: VH-AET
Serial Number: 6013
Engines: 2 x Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp
First Flew: 13th November 1942
Age: 3.4 Years

Brand new, the aircraft was allocated to the 5th Air Force and delivered to Brisbane (Archerfield) on the 15th of January 1943. Used by 374th Troop Carrier Squadron with the registration VH-CGD. It was later sold to the Department of Civil Aviation having flown 1,911 hours - on the 24th of November 1944. Converted to civilian standards by Australian National Airways at Melbourne (Essendon) Airport
The aircraft was entered onto the Australian Aircraft Register as VH-AET on the 20th of December 1944

Remembering Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302

On the 10th of March 2019, an Ethiopian MAX 8 aircraft crashed near the town of Bishoftu six minutes after takeoff, killing all 157 people aboard. There were one hundred and forty-nine passengers and eight crew.

Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Addis Ababa-Bole Airport (ADD/HAAB), Ethiopia to Nairobi-Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO/HKJK), Kenya

• One minute into the flight, the first officer, acting on the instructions of the captain, reported a "flight control" problem to the control tower.

• Two minutes into the flight, the plane's MCAS (Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System) activated, pitching the plane into a dive toward the ground. The pilots struggled to control it and managed to prevent the nose from diving further, but the plane continued to lose altitude.

• Three minutes into the flight, with the aircraft continuing to lose altitude and accelerating beyond its safety limits, the captain instructed the first officer to request permission from air traffic control to return to the airport. Permission was granted, and the air traffic controllers diverted other approaching flights. Following instructions from air traffic control, they turned the aircraft to the east, and it rolled to the right. The right wing came to point down as the turn steepened.

• Five minutes into the flight, the pilots struggled to keep the plane's nose from diving further by manually pulling the yoke, the captain asked the first officer to help him, and turned the electrical trim tab system back on in the hope that it would allow him to put the stabilizer back into neutral trim. However, in turning the trim system back on, he also reactivated the MCAS system, which pushed the nose further down. The captain and first officer attempted to raise the nose by manually pulling their yokes, but the aircraft continued to plunge toward the ground.

• Six minutes later the aircraft disappeared from radar screens and crashed at 08:44.

This was the second MAX 8 accident in less than five months after the crash of Lion Air Flight 610 on the 29th of October 2018. Both crashes prompted a two-year worldwide long-term grounding of the jet and an investigation into how the aircraft was approved to service.

Aircraft Information:
Airline: Ethiopian Airlines

Code: ET/ETH
Aircraft: Boeing 737 Max 8

Registration: ET-AVJ

Serial Number: 62450

First Flew: 30/10/2018

Age: 4 Months

Engines: 2 x CFMI LEAP-1B

We are keeping in mind the family and friends who are remembering their loved ones today.