The transport minister, Catherine King, has shot down calls for her to appear before a Senate inquiry examining her decision to reject Qatar Airways’ request for extra flights to Australia, labelling the probe “a political stunt”. The Senate committee on bilateral air agreements was launched in response to outcry from the aviation and tourism sectors over the Albanese government’s decision to block a Qatar proposal to almost double its flights into major cities amid questions about the influence of key rival Qantas in the process. King and government ministers have repeatedly refused to provide reasons for the decision, citing that it was against the “national interest”. King has previously claimed public interest immunity on details around her refusal of the request. Questions about King’s meetings with former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce had been raised throughout hearings last week, with committee chair Bridget McKenzie calling for both King and Joyce to front the inquiry. But on Tuesday evening King said “it is longstanding practice that House of Representatives members do not appear before Senate committees” and noted opposition leader Peter Dutton had himself refused to appear before senate inquiries in the past. “While Senator McKenzie is wasting time on a political stunt, I am spending time doing the hard work the Coalition never did to set our aviation sector up for the future,” King said.<br/>
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Qantas FIFO pilots in WA have begun their 24-hour strike that is set to last until the end of the day. The move by the Australian Federation of Air Pilots (AFAP) against subsidiary Network Aviation will likely result in huge disruption for the state’s major mining companies, given that the Flying Kangaroo controls more than 40% of the local sector. The union previously said it was taking the action because its members were being paid “significantly” less than those at comparable carriers. The airline, in response, has criticised the AFAP for “refusing to engage in further negotiations or conciliation opportunities”. Network Aviation operates more than 300 weekly flights, with regular services from Perth Airport and charter flights for mining, corporates, and emergency freight. The strike action was announced on Friday and saw more than 99% of AFAP pilot members vote to take industrial action. In total, 209 of the 211 AFAP members eligible to participate submitted a vote.<br/>