An artist's impression of an S-70i Firehawk in the colours of the LA County Fire Department.

From March 25, Qantas will start flying Boeing 787-9s, including VH-ZNB (c/n 39039), non-stop between London and Perth. The carrier has plans to fly direct services to Australia's eastern and southern coasts.

THERE HAS been further airline industry change in Europe after the International Airlines Group (IAG) agreed to buy the assets of the Austrian carrier NIKI from the Air Berlin Group's administrators. The deal, which is subject to European Commission (EC) competition approval, will see IAG pay €20 million for assets, including up to 15 A320 Family aircraft and slots at Vienna, Dusseldorf, Munich, Palma and Zurich, and provide liquidity to NIKI of up to €16.5 million.

Airbus Helicopter's third H160 prototype PT3 is now painted in a high-gloss livery dubbed by the company as carbon and designed as a nod to the second Airbus A350 XWB flight-test aircraft F-WWCF (msn 002). The link between the two types: both are produced using advanced composite materials supplied by Airbus' long-term partner Hexcel. The H160 is the first civil helicopter equipped with a full composite fuselage

The first H145 in Japan, JA903H in the colours of the Doctor-Heli EMS network.

JANUARY 2018 SAW Southwest Airlines exercise options to buy 40 more 737 MAX 8s and defer deliveries of 23 smaller 737 MAX 7s. Southwest said the new purchase would, "support future growth opportunities and fleet modernisation at favourable economics". The airline will now receive a further 15 737 MAX 8s in 2019 and 25 in 2020. Deliveries of the 23 737 MAX 7s have been pushed back from 2019 through 2021 to 2023 (12 aircraft) and 2024 (the other 11 jets).

At 385ft the Stratolaunch has the widest wingspan of any aircraft ever built.

A twin fuselage is one of the most distinctive features of the Stratolaunch, pictured here on the Mojave Air and Space Sport runway during its first taxi test.

The Stratolaunch is designed to carry an Orbital ATK Pegasus XL vehicle into orbit, which will be carried between the two fuselage sections.

An artist's impression of the future CityAirbus battery-powered vertical take-off and landing quadcopter.

The Aerion AS2 has a wing span of 77ft, an overall length of 170ft, with a tail height of 22ft.

An artist's impression of the AS2’s interior shows a spacious, airy cabin.

Luxaviation UK's new Cessna 560XL Citation XLS+ G-GAAL.