A year is a long time in aviation, and 2025 has seemed a longer year than most – what with the long-running Rex administration; Qantas' ongoing travails; Virgin Australia's tie-up with Qatar Airways and subsequent IPO; fleet renewals aplenty; and a deluge of other news.

Looking ahead, 2026 looms as what will doubtless be another huge year for the sector, including the opening of Western Sydney International Airport, the delivery of Qantas' first Project Sunrise jets, and the potential entry of new airlines to Australia's skies.

On the final regular Australian Aviation Podcast for this year, Jake and David reflect on what 2025 brought and what 2026 is set to bring – and wish you all the best for the holiday season.

Plus, a truly astonishing escape for a Queensland skydiver, and Qantas' newly-returned A380 is grounded again.

If there's one issue that never really goes away for Australia's aviation sector, it's airfares. Massive demand has pushed prices up, according to the ACCC, with October airfares at their highest since 2022, despite both Qantas Group and Virgin Australia adding extra capacity. To make matters worse for those out west, the WA government is set to increase caps for regional airfares during "high-demand" periods, while the spectre of rising airfares also appears to have spooked Canberra into nixing plans for an EU-style "pay-on-delay" scheme. On this week's Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake and David look at the factors putting the squeeze on Australian travellers' wallets, and whether newer, larger, and more efficient aircraft might bring some relief. Plus, the last Qantas A380 comes home, skydiving instructors jump off the job, and is Australia playing catch-up on border processing technology?

If you were looking to fly anywhere in Australia this past weekend: we're so sorry to hear it. Between a fire at Melbourne Airport, the grounding of half of Jetstar's A320 fleet, and a nationwide passport processing outage, delays and cancellations plagued travellers for three days straight.

Now that everything has (thankfully) returned to normal, what exactly was the deal with that Airbus software update – and what does it mean for the workhorse A320, one of the most popular passenger aircraft types in the world?

On this week's podcast, Jake, David and Bethany sift through the ashes of a chaotic weekend in the skies, and analyse the aftermath of the A320 grounding.

Plus, Virgin's flirtation with ChatGPT, international traffic continues to surge, and how safe is it to step on board a hot-air balloon?

With outdated and confusing systems and processes common across the aviation industry, safety and compliance can be a thorny problem for many businesses, with "data silos" holding up procedures.

OneReg, a New Zealand-based company, aims to change all that, moving businesses away from cluttered folders of Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, and PDFs to centralise compliance on one easy-to-use platform.

With customers across Australia, New Zealand, the UK and EU, and the Middle East, OneReg is looking to enable industry-wide data sharing to help the aviation sector move away from tick-box compliance and into a new "gold standard".

On this podcast, Jake Nelson talks to Clint Cardozo and Carly Waddleton from OneReg on the perils of data silos in aviation, and how to streamline the regulatory compliance process.

After months in the works, it's official – from December, you'll be banned from using or charging your portable power bank on flights with any major airline in Australia.

Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin, which already require power banks to be carried in cabin baggage and kept within easy reach, will now prohibit passengers from using them entirely – instead, you'll need to use in-seat power if available, or simply go without.

On this week's podcast, as the start dates loom, Jake and David revisit the airlines' power bank ban and examine the safety issues that have driven it.

Plus, does Western Sydney Airport need more support to get its lofty ambitions off the ground?

It's said that every accident makes aviation safer – but that doesn't happen on its own. Across the globe, air incident investigators are on the scene whenever something goes wrong with an aircraft, finding out the root of the problem and making sure it doesn't happen again.

But what skills are most important to investigators: aviation experience, or scientific training and critical thinking? What does an investigation team need to be certain they've got it right?

In this podcast, Professor Brett Molesworth, head of UNSW School of Aviation, hosts a wide-ranging conversation on the fundamental tension between traditional aviation expertise and scientific methodology in incident investigation.

Join him in this fascinating panel discussion with Wing Commander Clare Fry, Defence Flight Safety Bureau; Dr Curtis Calabrese, United Airlines captain, director of operations for Skyways Charter, former FAA Inspector and U.S. Navy Reconnaissance pilot; Dr David Wilson, senior transport safety investigator, ATSB; and James Barnett, manager group investigations, Qantas.

It's only been a few months since the end of Jetstar Asia, but now Jetstar is looking to make a bigger push back into the Singapore market. Starting next March, the low-cost carrier will fly between the Lion City and Bali … but that won't be the end of the journey.

In an interesting twist, the Singapore–Bali services will only be one leg on direct routes connecting through to the Sunshine Coast and Newcastle, a pair of smaller airports in regional cities that wouldn't normally expect to see Singapore services – so, what's the plan for Jetstar?

On this week's Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake, David and Bethany take a look at Jetstar's new Singapore routes, what they might do for the cities they serve, and what might be next.

Plus, the plan to link Western Sydney Airport to high-speed rail – will it ever happen, and what will come of it if it does?

A few short years ago, Project Sunrise – Qantas' plan to fly non-stop from the east coast to London and New York – was a mere gleam in Alan Joyce's eye. Now, however, as the first A350-1000ULR gets ready to have its engines fitted, those marathon flights are looking closer than ever.

While there's still a lot of work to be done, including extensive test flights, before the plane can be delivered in 2026 ahead of Project Sunrise's planned 2027 launch, there's now something undeniably concrete about the Flying Kangaroo's ultra-long-haul ambitions – but will they succeed?

On this week's Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake and Bethany discuss the milestone and what it might be like to spend upwards of 22 straight hours in the sky.

Plus, Avalon Airport is set to return to international flights – is Melbourne's second gateway finally seeing some love?

Last month, a remarkable journey came to an end when 16-year-old Byron Waller touched down at Brisbane Airport following 67 days circumnavigating the globe in a light aircraft.

Covering 41,700km in his Sling TSi, Byron's odyssey through the skies took him over oceans, deserts, ice fields, and everything in between, including a landing at the Grand Canyon and guest appearances at big airshows.

It was a monumental effort from a young aviator who just a few years ago was bedridden with chronic illnesses, and turned to flying – including becoming the youngest pilot to circumnavigate Australia, at age 14 – to make his dreams a reality.

On this week's Australian Aviation Podcast, Jake talks to Byron and his mum Jeni about his incredible achievement – and his future aviation ambitions.

After more than a year fossilised in amber, Australia's third largest airline looks to have avoided extinction – American firm Air T has agreed to buy Rex, prompting roars of approval from government and industry as well as the best name for any corporate buyout in history.

But while Air T brings with it plenty of Saab 340 parts to resurrect Rex's dinosaur planes, will fleet renewal still be on the menu – and will creditors get their money back?

Jake, David, and graduate journalist Bethany Alvaro make approximately too many Jurassic Park references as they dissect Air T's Rex purchase and what it might mean for the regional airline's future.

Plus, the first jet lands at Western Sydney Airport; ex-Virgin boss Paul Scurrah returns to aviation; and what, scientifically, is an "RBH"?