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Qantas looks at non-stop Sydney-London flights with Airbus order

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Qantas Airways (QAN.AX) will fly non-stop from Sydney to London after ordering a dozen special Airbus (AIR.PA) jets, charging higher fares in a multi-billion dollar bet that fliers will pay a premium to save four hours on the popular route.

To be launched late in 2025, the flights will use A350-1000 planes, specially configured with extra premium seating and reduced overall capacity, to ferry up to 238 passengers in a 20-hour trip - the world's longest direct commercial flight.

Announcing plans for the service on Monday, the loss-making carrier said a strong recovery in the domestic market and signs of an improvement in international flying after the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic had given it the confidence to make a major investment on its future. Qantas forecasts a return to profit in the financial year starting this July.

The order from the European aircraft maker also includes 40 narrowbody A321XLR and A220 jets to start the replacement of Qantas' ageing domestic fleet, with deliveries spread over a decade. The airline did not disclose the value of the Airbus deal, but analysts at Barrenjoey estimated in a client note it would cost at least A$6 billion ($4.23 billion).

"Since the start of the calendar year, we have seen huge increases in demand," Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce told reporters at Sydney Airport, where an Airbus A350-1000 test plane flown from France emblazoned with the Qantas logo and "Our Spirit flies further" was parked in a hangar as a backdrop for the announcement.

Qantas shares surged as much as 5.5% on Monday to the highest level since November after it also said debt levels had fallen to pre-COVID levels faster than the market's expectations.

The A350-1000 order was the culmination of a challenge called "Project Sunrise" set for Airbus and its rival Boeing Co (BA.N) in 2017 to create aircraft capable of the record-breaking flights.

Airbus was selected as the preferred supplier in late 2019, but Qantas delayed placing an order for two years due to financial challenges during the COVID pandemic.

Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Christian Scherer said the aircraft to be used on the Sydney-London flights would offer more fuel storage than A350-1000s currently in operation with other airlines.

The Qantas planes will carry passengers across four classes and will have around 100 fewer seats than rivals British Airways (ICAG.L) and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd (0293.HK) use on their A350-1000s. The Australian carrier will dedicate more than 40% of the jets' cabins to premium seating.

CEO Joyce said demand for non-stop flights had grown since the pandemic, when complex travel rules were put in place. Rising fuel costs could be recovered through higher fares, he said, as the airline had done previously on its non-stop Perth-London flights.

In a market update, Qantas said while it expects an underlying operating loss for the financial year ending June 30, 2022, the second half would benefit from improved domestic and international demand, with free cash flow seen rising further in the current quarter.

Barrenjoey analysts forecast Qantas could achieve a 20% revenue premium on the ultra-long haul flights, which Joyce said will also go to New York from late 2025 and possible future destinations like Paris, Chicago and Rio de Janeiro.

Qantas estimated Project Sunrise would have an internal rate of return of around 15%.

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Russia fines Google more than the world’s total GDP over YouTube bans

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Russia has fined Google $2.5 decillion after the US tech giant took action against pro-Kremlin TV channels on YouTube following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Russia imposed a daily fine four years ago - a fine that has since swelled to an unprecedented level - ($20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 - a 33-digit figure).

To put this into perspective, global GDP reaches an estimated $110 thousand billion (12-digit figure), according to the IMF.

Speaking to Russia’s TASS news agency, one expert, Roman Yankovsky from the HSE Institute of Education, said Google “clearly will not pay this penalty, and the Russian Federation will not be able to recover this money from the company."

Euronews reported that a short calculation shows that he is right.

Google's holding company, Alphabet, has a market capitalisation of slightly more than $2 trillion. Even with earnings of $80.54 billion from the last quarter, the tech giant doesn’t seem to be able to afford to pay the fine.

Google first barred pro-Moscow channel Tsargrad TV, which is owned by oligarch Konstantin Malofeev, four years ago.

At the time, Google was fined a daily penalty of 100,000 roubles and warned that amount would double every 24 hours if it went unpaid.

The original fine has been compounded by further penalties after Google eventually blocked a total of 17 Russian TV channels as a result of international sanctions, The Telegraph reported.

The tech giant now owes a staggering $2.5 decillion.

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Apple launches new iPad mini with AI features

Apple said it would roll out the first set of AI features in the U.S. version of the English language this month through a software update with iPadOS 18.1.

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Apple on Tuesday launched its new generation of the iPad mini packed with AI features including writing tools and an improved Siri assistant, as the iPhone maker races to boost its devices with artificial-intelligence capabilities, Reuters reported.

The new iPad mini is powered by Apple's A17 Pro chip, which is used in the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max models. With a six-core central processing unit, the A17 Pro would boost CPU performance by 30% compared to the current generation iPad minis and is central to running Apple Intelligence, Apple's AI software.

Apple said it would roll out the first set of AI features in the U.S. version of the English language this month through a software update with iPadOS 18.1.

The features will be available for iPads with A17 Pro or M1 chips and later generations, Apple said, adding it will roll out additional features including image-generation tools, Genmoji and ChatGPT-powered capabilities over the next several months, read the report.

Apple in September unveiled its long-awaited, AI-boosted iPhone 16 lineup, but with the AI features still in test mode, the company failed to excite some investors while early sales data raised some questions around demand.

Still, research firm Canalys on Monday said the iPhone 16 would help Apple's sales in the fourth quarter and drive momentum into the first half of 2025, after Apple reached a record high third-quarter shipments.

The iPad mini, starting at $499, is available for pre-orders starting on Tuesday and will begin arriving to customers and Apple store locations next week, Apple said.

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Science & Technology

Iran sends satellites to Russia for rocket launch

In September, Iran carried out its second satellite launch this year using a rocket built by its Revolutionary Guards

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Iran has sent two locally made satellites to Russia to be put into orbit by a Russian space vehicle, the semi-official news agency Tasnim reported on Saturday, in the latest space cooperation between the two U.S.-sanctioned countries.

The development of Kowsar, a high-resolution imaging satellite, and Hodhod, a small communications satellite, is the first substantial effort by Iran's private space sector, the report said.

Russia sent Iranian satellites into orbit in February and in 2022, when U.S. officials voiced concern over space cooperation between Russia and Iran, fearing the satellite will not only help Russia in Ukraine but also help Iran monitor potential military targets in Israel and the wider Middle East, Reuters reported.

Kowsar could be used in agriculture, natural resource management, environmental monitoring, and disaster management, Tasnim said.

Hodhod is designed for satellite-based communications and could be used in remote areas with little access to terrestrial networks.

In September, Iran carried out its second satellite launch, this year using a rocket built by its Revolutionary Guards. 

The launch came as the United States and European countries accuse Tehran of transferring ballistic missiles to Russia that could be used in its war with Ukraine. Iran has denied this.

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