MARCH 3, 2026.AUSTRALIA

Fleet renewal quickens as Virgin Australia MAX 8 ferries in

Virgin Australia’s first aircraft delivery of the year is on its way to Australia. The B737-8, VH-8VG (msn 67037), departed Orlando’s Melbourne (MLB) Airport for Kona (KOA) via Ontario (ONT) on March 1, 2026 (local time) and is expected to land in Brisbane (BNE) early afternoon on March 3 (local time).

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MARCH 2, 2026. VANUATU

Air Vanuatu’s sole ATR72 resumes flying after long grounding

Air Vanuatu’s sole ATR72-600 will resume scheduled flying on March 3, 2026, after spending eight months on the ground. CEO Joseph Laloyer confirmed the restart date after footage of the aircraft undertaking a test flight was posted online.

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MARCH 2, 2026. TIMOR-LESTE

Aero Dili starting KL flights in March 2026, Darwin in May

Timor-Leste’s Aero Dili will begin flights to Kuala Lumpur this month and Darwin in May, according to CEO Lourenço de Oliveira. At a February 27, 2026, press conference, he said flights to KL would start on March 28 and Dili and Darwin on May 24.

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Aero South Pacific Airport Briefs available for download

Aero South Pacific has released its first airport briefs covering Australia’s top 20 passenger airports. The briefs, which you can download for free, provide an informative snapshot of scheduled regular passenger transport and passenger charter activity at Australia’s busiest airports.

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  • Air New Zealand B787 deliveries on track, two by June

    FEBRUARY 27, 2026: Air New Zealand is on track to receive two GE-powered 787-9s by the end of June and the refurbishment of its older Rolls Royce-powered B787-9s is due to be completed by the end of calendar 2026.

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  • Next-gen aircraft helps Qantas bank a tidy half year profit

    FEBRUARY 27, 2026: Qantas has trousered a tidy AUD925 million statutory after tax profit for the six months to December 31, 2025, an outcome CEO Vanessa Hudson attributes to an influx of next-gen aircraft over the past year.

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  • $4.5 billion upgrade of Melbourne’s international terminal

    FEBRUARY 26, 2026: Melbourne Airport (MEL) will add five new gates to the existing international pier as part of an AUD4.5 billion terminal upgrade due to start later this year. The new gates will be capable of accommodating five widebody or eight narrowbody aircraft.

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  • Tax increase for passengers leaving Western Samoa

    FEBRUARY 26, 2026: The Samoa Airport Authority (SAA), operator of Faleolo (APW), Fagali’i (FGI), Maota (MXS), and Asau (AAU) Airports, plans to impose a WST180 (USD67) tax on all passengers departing Western Samoa on tickets purchased on or after March 1, 2026.

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March 2026 News Briefs

MARCH 2, 2026: Adelaide Airport (ADL) experienced its busiest ever January with 771,814 people travelling through the terminal in January 2026. International passenger numbers achieved double-digit growth with 128,000 travellers, an increase of 21.6% on the year prior. Domestic and regional passenger numbers were in line with last year.

Read the news release here.

MARCH 2, 2026: New Zealand’s Transport Accident Investigation Commission is investigating a November 8, 2025, incident at Hamilton (HLZ) in which a Jetstar A320-200, VH-A5E (msn 12556), backtracking on a runway was overflown by an Ardmore Flying School Cessna 172 landing on runway 18L. The Cessna landed safely and the Airbus continued on Sydney (SYD).

Read the news release here.

MARCH 2, 2026: At the Pacific Agenda: Investment, Security, and Shared Prosperity Summit held in Hawai’i last week, the US Trade and Development Agency announced funding for project scoping to start infrastructure development processes and to examine deploying trusted US technology to projects that would strengthen airport security in Kiribati, improve the reliability of Tonga’s fuel supply, and upgrade Amata Kabua International Airport (MAJ) in the Marshall Islands, among other funding announcements.

Read the news release here.

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FEBRUARY 25, 2026. PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Topicair Twin Otter loses nose wheel gear after take-off

A Twin Otter DHC-6-300 operated by Papua New Guinea’s Tropicair lost its nose wheel gear shortly after take-off from Tapini Airport (TPI) on January 22, 2026, according to a preliminary report from the PNG Accident Investigation Commission.

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FEBRUARY 24, 2026. AUSTRALIA

Australian Gov’t ignored local carriers keen to take over Rex

Australia’s transport minister ignored a plan by the Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) for some of its member airlines to take over Rex’s regional routes following the airline filing for administration, according to RAAA Chairman Malcom Sharp.

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March 2026 Aircraft Movements

MARCH 2, 2026: Abelo has delivered an ATR72-500, VH-FVX (msn 762), to Air Navigator Group’s Australian subsidiary, Aerlink, to support their fly-in-fly-out operations. The aircraft ferried from Toulouse (QYF) to Perth (PER) between February 20 – 27, 2026

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FEBRUARY 24, 2026. AUSTRALIA

Hobart Airport in “fruitful” talks with SQ, Cathay Pacific

The CEO of Hobart Airport says that talks are underway with Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific about flights to Tasmania. Yesterday, Norris Carter told a Senate Committee that Hobart’s recently extended runway makes flying there economically viable.

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March 2026 Route Briefs

MARCH 3, 2026: Qantas will deploy its A321-200XLR onto the Sydney (SYD) - Cairns (CNS) city-pair between June 20 - October 3, 2026. The aircraft will operate a single round-trip on Saturdays and Sundays.

MARCH 2, 2026: Jetstar will run thrice-weekly seasonal A321-200NX flights between Christchurch (CHC) and Perth (PER) between October 27, 2026, and March 27, 2027.

MARCH 2, 2026: Korean Air has extended its second daily B737-800 operated round-trips between Seoul (ICN) and Guam (GUM) through to October 24, 2026.

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FEBRUARY 23, 2026. AUSTRALIA

Qantas ferries in fourth A321XLR – with added toilet!

Qantas has ferried in its fourth A321 200XLR. The aircraft, VH-OGD (msn 12668) landed at Brisbane (BNE) on February 22, 2026, flying in from Hamburg (XFW) via Bangkok (BKK). Another three XLRs are due before June 30, 2026.

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