As Rex has limped on in administration over the past half-year, with prospects for a sale dimming, the question has occasionally been asked: might the government step in more forcefully to keep its essential services in the air?

Now we have our answer: if the administrators can’t find a buyer, the government is looking at the option to buy Rex itself, which would make the carrier the first in Australia to be publicly owned since the privatisation of Qantas around 30 years ago. But what would await the government if it were to stump up the cash for the ailing airline – and is it a good idea in the first place?

Adam and Jake discuss what might be behind the decision, and whether it’s scuppered any chance for a commercial sale.

Plus, with the ACCC looking to wave the Qatar deal through, are Virgin Australia flights to Doha now all but inevitable?

The news came like an assassin in the night: Paul Jones, the long-rumoured frontrunner to replace Jayne Hrdlicka as CEO of Virgin Australia, was out of contention following pushback by the powerful TWU.

With no further word on who might be under consideration for the top job – and with Hrdlicka still saying she intends to leave the airline – when might we know who will sit in the captain’s chair of Australia’s second-largest airline group?

Adam and Jake discuss what might be next for Virgin as the CEO search continues.

Plus, will a Finnair pilots’ strike throw a spanner in Qantas’ works?

It’s been a few months since the announcement of one of the biggest deals in recent Australian commercial aviation history: the purchase of 25 per cent of Virgin Australia by Qatar Airways, and with it, the return of Virgin international wide-body services through a wet-lease agreement for flights to Doha.

Approval for those services currently rests with the International Air Services Commission, a government body that will decide whether to award Virgin the necessary 28 flights per week to Qatar – and Virgin has said in a letter to the IASC that there is essentially no reason to block the proposal, which has received widespread support and is not being contested.

Adam and Jake revisit the politics at play and ask when the airlines – and punters – could see the new flights greenlit.

Plus, is the federal government on a path to nationalising Rex, and could we see the return of commercial supersonic travel sooner than we expected?