About the Commission

Role of the Commission | Members of the Commission | The Secretariat

Role of the Commission

The Commission was established under the International Air Services Commission Act 1992. The object of the Act is to enhance the welfare of Australians by promoting economic efficiency through competition in the provision of international air services, resulting in:

• increased responsiveness by airlines to the needs of consumers, including an increased range of choices and benefits; and
• growth in Australian tourism and trade; and
• the maintenance of Australian carriers capable of competing effectively with airlines of foreign countries

The Commission's role is to determine the outcomes of applications by existing and prospective Australian airlines for capacity and route entitlements available under air services arrangements. These determinations allocate the available capacity on a route to one or more carriers and set conditions, where these are considered appropriate. The Commission may conduct a review of a determination at any time, either at the request of the carrier concerned or if the Commission believes that there may be grounds for doing so. The Commission is also responsible for reviewing determinations after a specified period and providing advice to the Minister for Transport about any matter referred to the Commission by the Minister concerning international air operations.

In allocating capacity, the Commission assesses the merits of claims by applicants under specified public benefit criteria. These criteria are detailed in a Policy Statement issued, from time to time, by the Minister.

The Government, through the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts, continues to have the responsibility for administering and negotiating Australia's air services arrangements. In this role, the department is responsible for maintaining a Register of Available Capacity for use by the Commission and applicants. This register details the capacity available under each air services arrangement, and is updated to reflect changes in capacity entitlements arising from new negotiations and determinations by the Commission. The department is also responsible for making operational decisions that authorise carriers to fly on each route based on the Commission's determinations.

Members of the Commission

The Commission is comprised of a Chairperson and a Member, appointed on a part-time basis. Its office in Canberra is assisted by a small Secretariat.

Jane McKeon, Commissioner

Jane McKeon has experience in stakeholder engagement, regulatory affairs and governance.

Jane is an independent non-executive director of Crown Sydney and chairs the board’s Risk, Compliance and Responsible Gaming Committee. She also provides advisory consulting services to the private and public sectors, with former clients including Zurich Cover-More Travel Insurance and Western Sydney Airport Co Ltd. She has previously served on the Board of the Australian Government’s Council of Australia Latin America Relations and as a Commissioner of Tourism Western Australia. Jane had a long executive career in the airline industry, joining Ansett Australia as a management trainee in the 1990s, and subsequently working with Qantas Airways (2002 to 2010) and Virgin Australia (2010 to 2018). 

As General Manager – Government and International Relations, Jane was responsible for promoting the Qantas Group’s interests in the development of Australia’s aviation, tourism and trade policy settings and managed economic regulatory activities for Qantas’ international passenger and freighter services and the launch of Jetstar as an Australian international carrier. 

As Group Executive – Government Relations for Virgin Australia and a member of the Executive Committee, Jane led the airline’s engagement and advocacy with governments, regulators and industry bodies in Australia and internationally. From 2014 to 2017 she was Chair of the airline’s joint venture with the Samoan Government, Virgin Samoa. 

Jane holds Bachelor of Arts (First Class Honours) and Bachelor of Science degrees from the University of Melbourne and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

The Secretariat

The Commission is assisted in its work by a small secretariat. The secretariat is staffed by officers of the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts. The secretariat is headed by a Director, supported by a Senior Adviser. These officers provide advice and assistance to the Commissioners on all aspects of the Commission’s operations.