Aviation - VibeWire Magazine

Launch window opens for Australian hypersonic flight milestone

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February 13, 2026
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The flight is scheduled for no earlier than late February, launching aboard Rocket Lab’s “That’s Not A Knife” mission from Launch Complex 2 at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, operated by the Virginia Spaceport Authority. Final launch timing will b…

Virgin Australia farewells pair of execs in management reshuffle

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February 13, 2026
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Velocity Frequent Flyer CEO and VARA group executive Nick Rohrlach, and chief strategy and transformation officer Alistair Hartley, will depart Virgin Australia as of 30 April. Rohrlach will be replaced by hotel executive and former Qantas senior manag…

Navy and Airservices test Western Sydney’s ‘digital tower’

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February 12, 2026
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The EC-135 training helicopter conducted a “series of passes and manoeuvres” near the 45-metre digital aerodrome service (DAS) mast at WSI on Thursday in order to help calibrate and validate the camera feeds, said Airservices.

Gold Coast marks more than 1.2m passengers over 2025 peak

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February 12, 2026
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Around 47,000 more passengers transited the airport in the 2025 holiday peak than in 2024, with 600,000 in December and a further 637,000 in January. It comes as airlines including Qantas, Jetstar, and Fiji Airways look to ramp up services from the Gol…

Sunshine Coast Airport opens new baggage handling facility

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February 12, 2026
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Featuring several hundred metres of new conveyor belts, alongside Rapiscan CT screening technology, higher throughput, and updated infrastructure to “minimise operational disruptions and downtime”, construction on the facility began in May last year an…

Qantas takes global bronze medal for on-time performance

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February 11, 2026
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The Flying Kangaroo arrived at the gate within 15 minutes of schedule 83.32 per cent of the time last month, OAG said, behind China Southern in first place at 89.4 per cent, and Hainan Airlines in second place at 87.92 per cent. Out of a total 22,676 Q…

Video Podcast: A busy week for the bush

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February 11, 2026
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On this week’s Australian Aviation Podcast, special guest host and former Rex and Virgin Australia pilot, Captain Michelle Huntington, returns to lend Jake her regional aviation expertise as they unpack all the big news from outside the big smoke.

QantasLink donates Network Fokker 100 to aircraft museum

Guest authors
February 11, 2026
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VH-NHO touched down in Parkes on Tuesday afternoon after a flight from Perth via Kalgoorlie, having flown 18 years for Network after its delivery in 2008. It comes as QantasLink looks to replace its Fokker 100s with newer aircraft, including mid-life E…

Flight training under the microscope after fatal Gippsland crash

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February 10, 2026
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Speaking to ABC’s 7:30, RAAus chair Michael Monck said that one accident does not necessarily point to wider systemic problems. It comes as the organisation faces scrutiny over training shortfalls that allegedly contributed to the deaths of 20-year-old…

Skytrans brand resurrected as owner ditches SmartLynx name

Guest authors
February 10, 2026
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Skytrans, which took the SmartLynx brand in July last year to bring it into alignment with other airlines in the Avia Solutions Group, has brought back its former branding following the collapse of SmartLynx Latvia at the end of November.