After a brief period of open borders, this week, airlines have again been forced to cancel hundreds of flights and slash their flight schedules as the Omicron surge continues to send staff into isolation. In this episode of the Australian Aviation Podcast, host Adam Thorn and reporter Hannah Dowling discuss Virgin’s proactive decision to announce dramatic flight schedule changes amid ongoing staff shortages, that are sure to be similarly impacting the other airlines. Plus, the team talks about Qantas’ major decision to pivot away from previously preferred planemaker Boeing, and head towards a nearly all-Airbus fleet over the next two decades. Finally, Adam eagerly raises the topic of Labour’s new plan to make the lucrative Golden Triangle redundant, by means of high-speed rail.