Adrian is Auckland bureau chief for Aviation Week, based in New Zealand. He covers commercial aviation in the Asia-Pacific region.
Adrian was previously based in Aviation Week’s Washington office for nine years, writing for a range of the group’s publications and covering many aspects of the commercial aviation industry. He has won Australasian and international awards for his aviation writing.
Prior to joining Aviation Week in 2002, Adrian covered aviation industry and policy issues for two other publishing companies in Washington. He has also worked for newspapers in Texas and New Zealand, covering a wide range of topics. Adrian graduated from Auckland University with a degree in history and English in 1992.
FAA yesterday launched an audit on all carriers in the wake of the highly publicized lapses in Southwest’s aircraft inspection program. FAA Acting Administrator Robert Sturgell directed the agency’s aviation inspectors to “reconfirm that commercial carriers operating within the United States have complied with all airworthiness directives.” One recent failure — by Southwest — to comply with a directive prompted Sturgell to “validate that all other carriers are in full compliance.”
The U.S. Transportation Dept. and the European Commission are launching a study to find out what effect the U.S./EU open-skies agreement — which goes into effect this month — has on airline competition.
At least four of the major U.S. airlines yesterday either announced plans to reduce capacity or warned they are considering cuts, as the industry looks to fight through a weakening economy and rising oil prices.
