Virgin Australia’s share price dipped below 10 cents on Monday – days after credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded its outlook to negative.
The drop represents an enormous fall from a high of $2.19 in February 2007. Virgin played down the developments, claiming any speculation of the future of the business was “untrue and misleading”.
Last week, Australian Aviation reported that the wider group announced a $97 million half-year loss and its intention to cut its Tigerair fleet.
The Northrop Grumman unmanned aircraft system MQ-4C Triton has been deployed to the Pacific for the first time.
The deployment of the platform will give the US Navy greater maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data to inform critical decision making in one of the most strategically important regions in the world.
Unmanned Patrol Squadron One Nine, or VUP-19, will operate out of Guam as part of Task Force (CTF) 72, 7th Fleet, and is the first squadron to operate the MQ-4C.
VUP-19, nicknamed the ‘Big Red’, was established on October 1, 2013, and later commissioned on October 28 2016.
Getting unmanned systems out in front of manned aircraft and ships in the Pacific is one of the US Navy’s highest priorities.
This is in response to the emergence of China as it has expanded and reinforced its integrated web of sophisticated anti-access/area-denial capabilities in the South China Sea.
Doug Shaffer, Vice President and Program Manager of Triton program at Northrop Grumman, said the deployment was a significant milestone in the MQ-4C Triton program.
“Our partnership with the US Navy has been crucial in developing this system that will help commanders build a better common operational picture,” he said.
Triton’s ability to fly at high altitude and remain airborne in excess of 24 hours allows commanders to surveil a larger maritime area than ever before.
Designed to operate in a manned-unmanned teaming concept, Triton provides viability over massive swaths of ocean and littoral areas, enabling manned aircraft such as the US Navy’s P-8 Poseidon to focus on anti-surface and anti-sub-surface warfare.
The Triton is the US Navy’s newest and most technologically advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platform
Its autonomous suite of maritime sensors allows operators to detect, track, classify and identify vessels on the ocean or in the littorals in some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Australia is committed to the purchase of the Triton for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), with the prospect of six aircraft to be added to the RAAF’s inventory as part of the AIR7000 program.
Designed to operate in conjunction with Australia’s planned fleet of 12 manned P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft, the Tritons will provide a quantum leap in the nation’s surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.
The first of the RAAF’s Triton aircraft is expected to be introduced into service in mid-2023, with all six aircraft to be delivered and in operation by late 2025, based at RAAF Edinburgh, South Australia.
The RAAF investment in the Triton program is $1.4 billion.
The facilities and crew required to operate, train and maintain the fleet will be part of the initial $1.4 billion investment, which includes $364 million on new facilities at RAAF Bases Edinburgh and Tindal (in Northern Territory).
Airline partners with G’Day USA for Red Cross relief efforts
FORT WORTH, Texas — American Airlines donated $100,000 to help Australia recover from devastating bush fires that have burned more than 27 million acres to date. The donation, which was made through the Australian diplomacy program G’Day USA, will benefit the Australia chapter of the Red Cross.
“We are all affected by the heartbreaking images of the wildfires in Australia,” said American Airlines President Robert Isom. “American is proud to do what we can to assist in the recovery.”
This year, G’Day USA brought awareness and raised funds to assist with the Australian bush fires. The event is typically a celebratory dinner that honors the special relationship between Australia and the United States.
American also activated the airline’s disaster response fundraising platform, where customers and team members can assist those in need. From now through Jan. 31, AAdvantage® members can earn 10 miles for every dollar donated to the Red Cross with a minimum $25 donation.
“One of the best things Americans can do to support our friends in Australia is keep their travel plans and make new ones,” Isom said. “The Australian economy relies on its tourism business and nearly all the popular sites in Australia are unaffected by the fires.”
You can make your donation to the Australian bush fire recovery efforts by visiting the Red Cross website.
*** BE SURE TO SELECT – “AUSTRALIA BRUSHFIRES” BELOW THE – “I WANT TO SUPPORT” QUERY TO ENSURE YOUR DONATION REACHES TO CORRECT RECIPIENT!!! ***
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) says it is investigating a separation issue involving a Virgin Australia ATR 72-600 turboprop and Piper PA-28 light aircraft at Albury Airport.
The incident occurred on October 19 2019 when the Virgin Australia 72-600 VH-FVR was operating a regular public transport (RPT) flight from Sydney to Albury.
While passing through 1,300 ft and on a straight in approach to runway 25 at Albury Airport in visual meteorological conditions, the ATSB said the Virgin Australia turboprop received a traffic collision avoidance system alert on the PA-28.
The single-engine PA-28 VH-XDI, which was operated by the Australian Airline Pilot Academy, was turning final for Runway 25, the ATSB said in a short statement.
“The flight crew of the ATR 72 conducted a missed approach to increase separation between the two aircraft,” the ATSB said.
“As part of the investigation, the ATSB will interview directly involved parties and obtain other relevant information, including recorded data.”
The ATSB described the event as a near collision and a serious incident. There were no injuries.
Further, it said the investigation was expected to be completed by the second quarter of calendar 2020.
However, should a critical safety issue be identified during the course of the investigation, the ATSB said it would immediately notify relevant stakeholders in order that appropriate and timely safety action could be taken.
The Australian Airline Pilot Academy is a subsidiary of Regional Express (Rex), which recently bought another pilot training school based in Ballarat, ST Aerospace Academy.
Virgin Australia had eight ATR 72 turboprops in its fleet.
A day after unveiling the new PC-12 NGX single-engine turboprop aircraft at the National Business Aviation Association’s annual Convention and Exhibition (NBAA-BACE), Pilatus reports very strong demand for the new aircraft across the global Authorised Pilatus Sales Centre network.
Based on the PC-12 airframe, of which more than 1,700 aircraft have been delivered, Pilatus introduces the third major evolution of the aircraft, named the PC-12 NGX. Markus Bucher, CEO of Pilatus, revealed the new aircraft at a ceremony on Monday evening. More than 200 guests were on hand for the aircraft’s public debut.
First customers of brand-new PC-12 NGX
On the first public day of NBAA-BACE, three customers were eager to be first in line to purchase the new advanced version of the PC-12.
Australian born Dion Weisler, President and CEO of HP, is the first owner to upgrade from his PC-12 NG to the new NGX. Dion Weisler said: “As an existing, proud and active owner-pilot of a 2017 PC-12 NG, I am amazed by the substantial innovation improvements in what I thought was an impossible aircraft to improve on. I am thrilled to be customer number one for the new PC-12 NGX. Pilatus has done it again – reimagined aviation and taken an already perfect aircraft and magically redefined perfection.”
The first US customer of the new PC-12 NGX is Shon Boney, Co-Founder of Sprouts Farmers Markets, an American supermarket chain. The new PC-12 NGX will actually be Shon Boney’s fourth PC-12.
João Carlos Marinho Lutz will be the first Brazilian customer to take delivery of the new PC-12 NGX. Currently flying a non-pressurised turboprop, he chose the new Pilatus aircraft, because “only the PC-12 NGX can reach farms in remote places where I need to go and amazing destinations in Brazil with comfort, speed and efficiency.”
The new PC-12 NGX is already certified
The PC-12 NGX features a completely new BMW Designworks interior, larger cabin windows inspired by the PC-24 and fully reclining executive seats. The new Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6 E-SeriesTM engine comes with the Electronic Propeller and Engine Control. A fully integrated digital autothrottle and new avionics features by Honeywell, including a touch screen controller, emergency descent mode, tactile roll feedback and protection, and a low speed propeller quiet mode are just some of the features of the new cockpit environment.
The PC-12 NGX prototype first flew in December 2017. More than 600 hours of testing and certification flying were accumulated in Europe, USA and Canada as Pilatus quietly developed the new aircraft. The PC-12 NGX received certification just one week ago on Monday, 14 October 2019.
Pilatus will begin customer deliveries of the new PC-12 NGX early in the second quarter of 2020. The first production PC-12 NGX with serial number 2001 is present on the static display of Pilatus throughout the NBAA-BACE. Contact Pilatus or your nearest Authorised Pilatus Centre for aircraft availability.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters) – Searchers found the bodies of the last two Alaska seaplane crash victims on Tuesday evening, after a hunt through the debris and frigid waters following a mid-air collision that left a total of six people dead and 10 injured, officials said.
“The last two people were found. They were found deceased,” said U.S. Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Matthew Schofield.
The discovery of the bodies closes the search at the scene where the two seaplanes crashed after colliding over the inlet waters near Ketchikan, in southeastern Alaska, Schofield said.
Work at the crash site will now shift to an investigation into what led the two planes, which were ferrying Princess Cruises passengers on sightseeing expeditions, to strike each other and fall into the waters of George Inlet.
A team of 14 National Transportation Safety Board investigators has been sent to the site and divers will start working on Wednesday to pull up the wreckage of the two planes.
The two missing people, an Australian and a Canadian, were among 14 passengers from a Princess Cruises ship who boarded two seaplanes operated by separate tour companies in the town of Ketchikan on Monday, the cruise line said.
A 14-member team from the NTSB began investigating the crash on Tuesday and is unlikely to determine the cause during the week the team will be at the scene, NTSB board member Jennifer Homendy told a news conference.
Ten people survived but were injured in the collision, which took place over open water during daylight, the Coast Guard said. The dead include one of the pilots. The victims were not immediately identified.
Three of the injured were in serious condition and seven in fair condition, Dr Peter Rice, medical director of the PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center, told a separate news conference.
The water temperature off Ketchikan on Tuesday was 48 Fahrenheit, according to the National Weather Service. Expected survival time in 40-50F (4-10C) is one to three hours, according to the United States Search & Rescue Task Force website.
The investigators will be collecting information from the survivors, the Federal Aviation Administration, any other witnesses who might have been in the area, flight logs, training records and other sources, including the wrecked planes, Homendy said.
“We still have to recover the planes and then we have to look at those. It takes some significant work to really understand how the two came together,” she said.
All of the planes’ passengers arrived in Ketchikan on the cruise ship Royal Princess during a seven-day trip between Vancouver, British Columbia, and Anchorage, Alaska, Princess Cruises said.
Ten passengers and a pilot were aboard one float plane, a de Havilland Otter DHC-3, operated by Taquan Air. Four passengers and a pilot were aboard the second float plane, a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, run by Mountain Air Service of Ketchikan.
The crash site, at Coon Cove about 300 miles (480 km) south of Juneau, Alaska’s capital, lies near a tourist lodge that runs excursions to the nearby Misty Fjords National Monument.
Ketchikan-based Taquan Air said the plane was returning from a sightseeing tour of Misty Fjords when the crash occurred.
Reporting by Yereth Rosen in Anchorage; additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta and Barbara Goldberg in New York; Editing by Bill Tarrant, Cynthia Osterman and Leslie Adler
FILE PHOTO – The logo of Australian casino giant Crown Resorts Ltd adorns the hotel and casino complex in Melbourne, Australia, June 13, 2017. REUTERS/Jason Reed/File Picture
(Reuters)
– Wynn Resorts Ltd, the world’s No. 2 casino operator, said on Tuesday
it scrapped preliminary talks to acquire Crown Resorts Ltd for A$10
billion ($7.1 billion), after the Australian Financial Review broke news
of the negotiations.
Wynn’s
backtracking illustrates how media leaks of deal talks can test the
resolve of potential acquirers. Crown shares jumped as much as 22
percent on the news to A$14.37, close to the $A14.75 per share level
that Crown said Wynn’s latest cash-and-stock offer valued the company.
This
can make deal negotiations more difficult by emboldening acquisition
targets to drive a hard bargain, analysts said. In this case, Wynn’s
inexperience with pursuing big deals also likely played a factor, some
analysts added.
“(Wynn)
management’s experience with acquisitions is limited, so when you
target synergies it’ll be nice to have more of a track record for such a
large transaction,” said Roth Capital Partners analyst David Bain,
calling the termination of the deal talks a positive development for
Wynn.
After
the Australian Financial Review revealed Wynn’s takeover approach,
Crown not only confirmed the confidential talks on Tuesday, but also
disclosed the price that Wynn was offering. It added that Crown’s board
had not yet considered Wynn’s latest offer.
Wynn then issued two statements, first confirming the talks, and, a few hours later, stating that they had ended.
“Following
the premature disclosure of preliminary discussions, Wynn Resorts has
terminated all discussions with Crown Resorts concerning any
transaction,” the company said in a statement.
Wynn’s shares were down 3.2 percent at $140.21 in New York at mid-afternoon.
Examples
of companies confirming acquisition talks only to back out hours later
are few and far between, because they reflect a lack of conviction on
the part of the aspiring acquirers.
Last
year, drug maker Allergan Plc confirmed it was in the early stages of
making an offer for peer Shire Plc, after Reuters broke news of the
deliberations, only to issue a second statement a few hours later
stating it would not make an offer.
Insurer
Aon Plc said last month it would not pursue a merger with rival
insurance brokerage Willis Towers Watson Plc, a day after it confirmed
it was in early stages of considering an all-stock offer for the Irish
company following a Bloomberg News report revealing the deliberations.
HEDGE AGAINST MACAU
Wynn
was founded in 2002 by Steve Wynn, who started his casino business in
Las Vegas in the 1960s and created some of the city’s most iconic
landmarks – the Mirage, Bellagio and Treasure Island – before selling
them. Beset by sexual misconduct allegations, Wynn left the company and
sold his entire 11.8 percent stake in Wynn Resorts for $2.1 billion last
month.
Wynn
operates large resort-and-casino complexes in Las Vegas and Chinese
gambling hub Macau, with another under construction in Massachusetts.
The deal would have offered a hedge against Macau, where its licences
are up for renewal, by giving it two lavishly revamped Australian
casinos and a third being built on the prized Sydney harbour front.
Buying
Crown would also fit in with Wynn’s strategy to diversify
geographically to protect its growth prospects if its Macau licences are
not renewed.
The
company’s efforts so far have included ramping up promotion of a resort
in Japan, a market seen as the next potential goldmine to Macau and a
former expansion target for Crown.
“Wynn
has typically grown through building their own facilities, not through
acquisition,” said Bain, the Roth Capital Partners analyst.
For
Crown’s 47 percent owner James Packer, who re-badged his father’s media
empire as a gambling concern in 2007 only to withdraw from business
engagements last year due to mental illness, the deal would have ended
his career as a casino mogul with a A$4.7 billion payout.
He
would have ended up as Wynn’s biggest shareholder with 9.8 percent of
its shares, based on its current number of shares on issue.
“We
think Wynn’s strategy was mostly defensive, but if they have a strong
strategic rationale for wanting to acquire Crown, they would likely come
back to the table when things settle down,” said John DeCree, Union
Gaming Securities’ director of North America research.
(Reporting by Byron Kaye, Tom Westbrook and Paulina Duran in SYDNEY, Devika Syamnath and Nivedita Balu in BENGALURU, and Greg Roumeliotis in NEW YORK; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila, Shounak Dasgupta and Richard Chang)
(Nattee Chalermtiragool/Shutterstock)
stock-Wynn-Macau-01-shutter
Macao, China – March 12, 2016: View of Macao city at night in Macao, China
AVALON,
Australia (Reuters) – Boeing Co on Wednesday unveiled an unmanned,
fighter-like jet developed in Australia and designed to fly alongside
crewed aircraft in combat for a fraction of the cost.
The
U.S. manufacturer hopes to sell the multi-role aircraft, which is 38
feet long (11.6 metres) and has a 2,000 nautical mile (3,704 kilometre)
range, to customers around the world, modifying it as requested.
The
prototype is Australia’s first domestically developed combat aircraft
since World War II and Boeing’s biggest investment in unmanned systems
outside the United States, although the company declined to specify the
dollar amount.
The
Australian government is investing A$40 million ($28.75 million) in the
prototype programme due to its “enormous capability for exports,”
Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne told reporters at the Australian
International Airshow.
Defence
contractors are investing increasingly in autonomous technology as
militaries around the world look for a cheaper and safer way to maximise
their resources.
Boeing rivals like Lockheed Martin Corp and Kratos Defence and Security Solutions Inc are also investing in such aircraft.
Four
to six of the new aircraft, called the Boeing Airpower Teaming System,
can fly alongside a F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, said Shane Arnott, director
of Boeing research and prototype arm Phantom Works International.
“To
bring that extra component and the advantage of unmanned capability,
you can accept a higher level of risk,” he said. “It is better for one
of these to take a hit than for a manned platform.”
The
Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies in the United States said last
year that the U.S. Air Force should explore pairing crewed and uncrewed
aircraft to expand its fleet and complement a limited number of
“exquisite, expensive, but highly potent fifth-generation aircraft” like
the F-35.
“Human
performance factors are a major driver behind current aerial combat
practices,” the policy paper said. “Humans can only pull a certain
number of G’s, fly for a certain number of hours, or process a certain
amount of information at a given time.”
MULTI-MISSION CAPABILITIES
In
addition to performing like a fighter jet, other roles for the Boeing
system include electronic warfare, intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance alongside aircraft like the P-8 Poseidon and E-7
Wedgetail, said Kristin Robertson, vice president and general manager of
Boeing Autonomous Systems.
“It
is operationally very flexible, modular, multi-mission,” she said. “It
is a very disruptive price point. Fighter-like capability at a fraction
of the cost.”
Robertson declined to comment on the cost, saying that it would depend on the configuration chosen by individual customers.
The
jet is powered by a derivative of a commercially available engine, uses
standard runways for take-off and landing, and can be modified for
carrier operations at sea, Robertson said. She declined to specify
whether it could reach supersonic speeds, common for modern fighter
aircraft.
Its
first flight is expected in 2020, with Boeing and the Australian
government producing a concept demonstrator to pave the way for full
production.
“I
would say we are some years away from exports, we are probably years
away from it being in operation here in Australia,” Pyne said. “It is
designed to be a cheaper platform, a shield if you like around the more
expensive platforms, to protect our servicemen and women who might be on
a Poseidon or a Wedgetail or a F-35A.”
Australia,
a staunch U.S. ally, is home to Boeing’s largest footprint outside the
United States and has vast airspace with relatively low traffic for
flight testing.
The
Boeing Airpower Teaming System will be manufactured in Australia, but
production lines could be set up in other countries depending on sales,
Arnott said.
The United States, which has the world’s biggest military budget, would be among the natural customers for the product.
The
U.S. Air Force 2030 project foresees the Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint
Strike Fighter working together with stealthy combat drones, called the
“Loyal Wingman” concept, said Derrick Maple, principal analyst for
unmanned systems at IHS Markit.
“The
U.S. has more specific plans for the wingman concept, but Western
Europe will likely develop their requirements in parallel, to abate the
capabilities of China and the Russian Federation and other potential
threats,” he said.
Robertson
declined to name potential customers and would not comment on potential
stealth properties, but said the aircraft had the potential to sell
globally.
“We
didn’t design this as a point solution but a very flexible solution
that we could outfit with payloads, sensors, different mission sets to
complement whatever their fleet is,” she said. “Don’t think of it as a
specific product that is tailored to do only one mission.”
($1 = 1.3914 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Jamie Freed; additional reporting by Gerry Doyle; editing by Gerry Doyle)
