Alaska Airlines will exercise options to purchase 52 more 737 MAX jets from US planemaker Boeing as the carrier phases out Airbus aircraft from its fleet, the company said on Wednesday. The multi-billion dollar deal for the jets, which are due to be delivered between 2024 and 2027, will expand Alaska's MAX fleet to 146 from 94. The airline has also secured rights for 105 more planes through 2030. The deal is the latest narrowbody order for Boeing this year and underscores strong demand for the jets as airlines tap into a resurgence in travel. The carrier said the order includes Boeing's 737-10 jets, a new variant of the best-selling MAX family that may miss the year-end deadline to gain approval from the US regulator. The planemaker will have to rehaul the MAX 10's cockpits under a 2020 law if it misses that deadline, unless that requirement is waived by US Congress. Alaska said it could operate over 250 new 737 MAX jets by 2030. The carrier added it was on track to sunset European planemaker Airbus' aircraft by 2023-end.<br/>
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The highly anticipated Qantas service direct from Perth to Johannesburg will once again begin to take off on 1 November despite earlier biosecurity disputes. However, it will be suspended indefinitely in March 2023. The service, as well as the new direct flight from Perth to Jakarta that was similarly due to launch on 30 November, were both “temporarily paused” earlier this month as the airline looked to solve biosecurity and customs conditions with government departments. Both flights were announced in a joint press conference held by WA Premier Mark McGowen and Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, a pair who have previously shared their differences over travel restrictions. Now, the Johannesburg service will run for a limited time, whilst the Jakarta flight will be scrapped altogether. The two flights were to be introduced as part of Western Australia’s $185m ‘Reconnect WA’ package that hoped to turn Perth airport into a hub for international travel. During the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns, WA was known for having some of the strictest border restrictions in the country, with the new package hoping to restore Perth’s international tourism. Whilst the state government’s website says that “There are no longer any restrictions on travel to WA…”, the state still maintains strict biosecurity legislation. The issue with the new services is that Terminal 3 of Perth airport lacks the infrastructure to meet the biosecurity screening standards for higher-risk destinations such as South Africa."<br/>