Will and Kate in Maldives sans baby George

Prince William and Kate are holidaying in the Maldives ahead of their three-week tour Down Under. Source: AAP

PRINCE William and Kate have jetted off to the Maldives for a week-long holiday just a month out from their three-week tour of New Zealand and Australia.

British tabloids report the couple have left Prince George with Kate's parents, Michael and Carole Middleton, at their Berkshire mansion west of London.

The royal couple reportedly took a commercial flight to Male before a private hydroplane whisked them off to a paradise isle.

"The Duke and Duchess are staying at one of the most exclusive resorts in the Indian Ocean - the five-star Cheval Blanc Randheli Hotel on Noonu Atoll," the Daily Mail reported on Friday.

Prince William is meant to be completing an intensive 10-week agricultural management course at Cambridge University in preparation for managing the Duchy of Cornwall estate. Reports suggest there's a short break in classes.

Kate recently enjoyed a week-long family holiday with Prince George in Mustique in the Caribbean.

The Queen has given special permission for William and baby George to travel to Australia on the same plane in April.

Multiple heirs are not normally allowed on the same flight in case of an accident.

After touring New Zealand the royal family will visit Sydney, Brisbane, Uluru, Adelaide and Canberra from April 16 to 25.

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Australians on board missing plane

A search and rescue mission is underway for a Malaysia Airlines flight, which has lost contact with air traffic control.

Flight with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board missing ... Malaysia Airlines service bound for Beijing lost. Source: Supplied

• Beijing-bound flight loses contact at 5.40am AEDT
• 239 passengers missing
• Six or seven Australians were on board
• DFAT hotline: 1300 555 135 or 02 6261 3305

SIX or seven Australians are among the 239 people on board a Malaysia Airlines flight that lost contact with air traffic control and may have gone down in the Gulf of Thailand.

The Beijing-bound Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, a Boeing 777-200 aircraft, lost contact with Subang Air Traffic Control at 5.40am (AEST).

"The flight was carrying 227 passengers (including two infants), 12 crew members," the airline said in a statement.

Malaysia Airlines said the passengers were from 14 different nationalities. Initial reports stated seven passangers were Australians but a subsequent statement from the airline put the number at six. Two were from New Zealand.

Grim news ... Malaysian Airlines Group CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya addresses the media near Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Picture: Manan Vatsyayana Source: AFP

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the government

"fears the worst" for those aboard the flight, and that they had so far confirmed the names of six Australians on the flight's passenger manifest.

"Australian consular officials are in contact with family members living in Australia of those believed to be on the flight and will continue to provide the families with all possible consular assistance," the spokesperson said.

"Australian consular officials are in urgent and ongoing contact with Malaysia Airlines.

Malaysia Airlines has advised that it is contacting relatives of the passengers on the flight."

The airline has established a call centre – phone +60 37884 1234 – for those seeking more information.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's 24 hour Consular Emergency Centre is contactable on 1 300 555 135, or +61 2 6261 3305 (if calling from overseas).

A total of 153 passengers were Chinese nationals.

There were also 38 from Malaysia, 12 from Indonesia, three from France, two from New Zealand, four from the USA, two from Ukraine, two Canadians, two Russians, one Italian, one from Taiwan, one from The Netherlands and one from Austria.

Reports on Twitter appeared to show a list of names of passengers on board the flight, but this had not been confirmed.

Yahoo News quoted local newspaper reports that the Vietnamese Navy said the plane went down into the sea about 153 miles south of Phu Quoc Island, just off the coast of the Vietnamese / Cambodian border.

According to the reports, Vietnamese military radar recorded the plane crashing into the sea.

There was no confirmation of the report from Malaysia Airlines, however.

Other media outlets reported that the Chinese Navy had deployed two vessels to the South China Sea to search for the missing plane.

"Malaysia Airlines is currently working with the authorities who have activated their search and rescue team to locate the aircraft," Malaysia Airlines said.

Search and rescue under way ... a map of the Malaysia Airlines flight's approximate flight path to Beijing. Source: Supplied

China's state news agency reported that the Malaysia Airlines aircraft lost contact over Vietnam while an unconfirmed report on a flight tracking website said the aircraft had plunged 200m and changed course shortly before all contact was lost.

The route would have taken the plane across the Malaysian mainland in a north easterly direction and then across the Gulf of Thailand.

Grief ... A possible relative cries at the Beijing Airport. Picture: Mark Ralston Source: AFP

Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted Chinese aviation authorities saying the plane did not enter China's air traffic control sphere.

China's foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement: "We are very concerned learning this news."

"We are contacting relevant authorities and are trying to confirm relevant information.''

Malaysia Airlines vice president told CNN that the missing plane had enough fuel for seven hours.

In shock ... A woman, center, surrounded by media covers her mouth on her arrival at a hotel which is prepared for relatives or friends of passengers aboard the missing plane, in Beijing. Picture: Andy Wong Source: AP

Malaysia Airlines' Chief Executive Officer Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said in a statement: "We deeply regret that we have lost all contacts with flight MH370 which departed Kuala Lumpur at 12.41am earlier this morning bound for Beijing."

MORE: PLANE CRASHES THAT CHANGED AVIATION HISTORY

Seven Australians have been confirmed to be on board a Malaysian Airlines flight which has gone missing.

"The aircraft was scheduled to land at Beijing International Airport at 6.30am local Beijing time (9.30am AEST).

Subang Air Traffic Control reported that it lost contact at 2.40am (local Malaysia time) today.

Flight MH370 was operated on a Boeing B777-200 aircraft," he said.

"The flight was carrying a total number of 239 passengers and crew — comprising 227 passengers (including 2 infants), 12 crew members. The passengers were of 13 different nationalities."

Recording the grief ... media hover over a possible relative of a passenger on the Malaysia Airlines flight. Picture: Mark Ralston Source: AFP

The pilot was 53 year old captain Zahari Ahmad Shah, who joined the airline in 1981 and had over 18,000 flying hours.

An interesting Tweet from The Daily Telegraph's Beijing correspondent shows Beijing Airport full of police but no one waiting for the plane to arrive.

"Malaysia Airlines is currently working with the authorities who have activated their Search and Rescue team to locate the aircraft," Mr Yahya said..

"We deeply regret that we have lost all contacts with flight MH370 which departed Kuala Lumpur at 12.41am earlier this morning bound for Beijing.

"Our team is currently calling the next-of-kin of passengers and crew.

"Focus of the airline is to work with the emergency responders and authorities and mobilise its full support.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with all affected passengers and crew and their family members."

Fearing the worst ... Chinese police stand beside the arrival board showing the flight MH370 (top red) at Beijing Airport. Picture: Mark Ralston Source: AFP

Follow Malaysia Airlines on the incident on Facebook

Showing the strain ... a Malaysian policeman stands guard outside a reception centre for family and friends at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport. Picture: Manan Vatsyayana Source: AFP

Malaysia Airlines is the national carrier of Malaysia and one of Asia's largest, flying nearly 37,000 passengers daily to some 80 destinations worldwide.

Malaysia Airlines has 15 777 planes in the fleet and is an experienced operator of this type of aircraft.

Aviation Week reported that the missing plane was a 777-2H6ER with tail number 9M-MRO and serial number 28420. It had been built in 2002 and had been used by Malaysian Airlines since that time.

The last major crash of Malaysia Airlines flight was in 1995, when a Fokker 50 (9M-MGH) crashed during approach in Tawau, Sabah, Malaysia, killing 34 people.

In 1977, a Malaysia Airlines flight was hijacked and crashed in Tanjung Kupang, Johor, Malaysia, killing all 100 people aboard.

Anyone wanting more information on the flight should call the airline on +60-378841234.

Commercial flight missing ... The image from @flightaware shows the last known track of flight MH370 over southern Asia. Picture: Flightaware.com Source: Supplied

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WA sailor's mystery death investigated

THE mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of a sailor off the West Australian coast are being investigated by the state's water police.

The body of 69-year-old Roger Liebmann was found floating near his catamaran on Thursday morning after a major search.

Mr Liebmann left the Koombana Bay Sailing Club at Bunbury in his 18-foot catamaran about noon (WST) on Wednesday.

The search began when there was no sign of him by nightfall.

Five vessels, three helicopters and one aircraft scoured an area 250 square nautical miles off Koombana Bay.

About 9.35 (WST) on Thursday, a rescue aircraft found the catamaran and Mr Liebmann's body floating close by.

Acting Inspector Mark Smith said the family was devastated by the tragedy.

"It is way too premature to speculate on the cause of death, but we can confirm he was in the water with the vessel," Insp Smith said.

No emergency beacon was detected by authorities, and the sea conditions were favourable.

Rescuers said they found the catamaran in an upright position with its mast broken.

Mr Liebmann's family were too distraught to comment, but Koombana Bay Sailing Club Commodore David Doherty said the loss of Mr Liebmann was a very sad day for the club and the community.

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Labor goes on attack over Qantas safety

LABOR has been taken to task by the government for questioning whether allowing Qantas to send its maintenance operations offshore will lead to safety problems.

The new line of attack came as laws to remove the 49 per cent cap on foreign ownership of the airline passed the House of Representatives within four hours of being introduced.

Transport Minister Warren Truss introduced the amendment to the Qantas Sale Act on Thursday morning.

"This bill means Qantas will no longer compete at a competitive disadvantage," Mr Truss said.

But in a surprise move, rather than let the legislation routinely sit on the table for a week or more, Labor successfully moved for it to be brought on for debate immediately.

Leader of the House Christopher Pyne then fast-tracked the debate and, after some delaying tactics by the opposition and a speech by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, it was put to a vote which the government won 83-53.

"It's taken 94 years to build Qantas, it's taken the Abbott government 94 minutes to tear Qantas down. Shame," Mr Shorten told parliament.

The opposition later asked the government whether it had conducted a risk analysis of allowing Qantas - considered one of the world's safest airlines - to move its maintenance operations offshore.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Qantas' safety record did not depend on whether or not it was foreign-owned.

"It's reckless of the leader of the opposition to suggest it does," Mr Abbott said.

Independent MP Bob Katter weighed into the debate, asking how a "cut-rate, cheap-jack, overseas-based workforce" could be trusted to keep Qantas aircraft safe.

Mr Truss said the government was talking to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority about the airline's plan to cut 5000 staff over three years to save $2 billion in costs.

The minister told parliament the government would not be changing the Air Navigation Act, which would ensure Qantas' international operations would need to remain majority Australian-owned and based onshore.

The legislation is expected to fail in the Senate, with Labor and the Greens opposing it.

The Senate on Thursday set up two inquiries - one to examine the bill and a second to hear from Qantas executives, workers and the government on what initiatives the government could take to ensure the airline remains a strong national carrier.

Both inquiries will report later this month.

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NZX record-breaking rally continues

NEW Zealand's NZX 50 Index has extended its record-breaking rally as investors are drawn to a market with robust economic growth.

The benchmark index rose 39.829 points, or about 0.8 per cent, to 5073.090 on Wednesday.

Within the index, 21 stocks rose, seven fell and 14 were unchanged. Turnover was $148.1 million.

Auckland Airport rose 1.9 per cent to record high of $3.85.

Air New Zealand increased 2.2 per cent to $1.855 and Fletcher Building, the country's largest listed company, gained 1.1 per cent to $9.65.

"The local market is really rallying on expectations on what is going to be improving economic growth," said Grant Williamson director at Hamilton Hindin Greene.

There was a "relief rally on international markets" overnight after Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country would not invade Ukraine, Mr Williamson said.

Local gains were also helped by figures showing stronger than expected Australian economic growth.

Restaurant Brands New Zealand rose 2.1 per cent to $2.86. The nation's largest food operator said fourth-quarter sales rose at a faster pace reflecting the contribution of the Carl's Jr burger chain.

Z Energy rose 2.1 per cent to $3.81, after saying it will save $50 million on new storage facilities after cutting a deal with BP and operators of the Marsden Point oil refinery.

Ryman Healthcare rose 1.6 per cent to $8.19, extending a six day rally as investors returned to the stock after a month of profit taking, Mr Williamson said.

NZX fell 0.3 per cent to $1.27. New Zealand's stock market operator said activity on the bourse grew for the 18th month in a row in February, though transaction value was lower than the same month a year earlier.

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Manus, Nauru detention under UN spotlight

AUSTRALIA is set to face a high-level international call to review its offshore asylum seeker detainment arrangements after the death of an Iranian man on Manus Island.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay will deliver her annual report, which outlines issues of global concern, in Geneva on Thursday.

Australia gets a mention.

"Recent violence in the regional processing centre on Manus Island ... has underscored the need to review the regional resettlement arrangements," Dr Pillay will say.

The review was necessary to ensure that the human rights of migrants and asylum seekers were fully protected in accordance with international law.

Reza Berati, 23, died on February 17 when violent riots erupted at the Manus Island centre, leaving scores of other people injured.

Dr Pillay will raise Australia's agreement with Papua New Guinea along with other worldwide human rights concerns including terrorism and poverty.

"Today the task of protecting and promoting human rights is as vital as it was 20 years ago," she will tell the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva.

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Aussies drawn to the Big Apple

THE Big Apple continues to seduce Aussies, topping our holiday wish lists for the second year.

According to the latest hotels.com Hotel Price Index (HPI), New York is our favourite overseas destination.

Our love for Bali is showing no sign of waning - the Indonesian island has come in as our second favourite destination, up from No 6.

Singapore and London remain popular, in third and fourth positions respectively, unchanged from the year before.

Las Vegas rounds out Australians' top five favourite places, although it's not as hot as it was in 2012, when it was in second position.

The HPI, released bi-annually, is based on hotel bookings made by Australians on hotels.com last year. Along with our favourite destinations, it looked at the cost of staying in these places.

It found that in 2013 we paid the most for a hotel room in New York - $295 a night on average, an increase of six per cent on the previous year.

It was good news for travellers to Bali. They paid on average $135 per night for accommodation - nine per cent less than in 2012.

While Singapore and London were popular, both cities were among the top 16 most expensive places to stay. Accommodation costs in Singapore (in 12th place) averaged $229 a night, a rise of five per cent, while in London (in 16th place), hotel prices averaged $223, an increase of six per cent.

Las Vegas may be king of casinos, but you don't have to be a high-roller to visit. A night there averaged $150, up three per cent.

Looking at costs internationally, not just in our favourite destinations, Phnom Penh ($69) in Cambodia was the best value for Aussie travellers in 2013.

Siem Reap ($70), also in Cambodia, and Hanoi ($70) in Vietnam, tied for second spot, followed by Cebu ($74) and then Manila ($80) in the Philippines.

In Australia, the top five best-value destinations were Alice Springs ($109), Cairns ($136), Launceston ($141), Adelaide ($146) and Townsville ($147).

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Assaults of NSW paramedics rising

THREE NSW paramedics have allegedly been assaulted in 24 hours, alarming the ambulance service, which says violence against staff is on the rise.

There have been 35 reported attacks on 47 paramedics in 2014, NSW ambulance chief Ray Creen said.

"Our paramedics are being punched, spat on, physically threatened and terrorised," he said.

"It is unconscionable that they are heading out with a view to rendering medical assistance and ending up requiring treatment themselves."

On Monday night, a paramedic was allegedly punched in the face by a 50-year-old man and taken to Ryde Hospital.

On Sunday evening, two paramedics were threatened by a 33-year-old man who tried to punch them as they treated him at a Dee Why home.

He was charged with common assault and intimidation and given bail to appear before Manly Local Court later in March.

Four other men and a woman are due before courts across the state charged with assaulting paramedics in late 2013 and early 2014.

A male paramedic was punched in the abdomen by a man who had tried to break into an ambulance at Campbelltown, another man flicked blood at a paramedic at Pagewood and two paramedics were threatened with a screwdriver by a man at Blakehurst in February.

"It is a sad indictment on society when a paramedic becomes increasingly vulnerable to attack, and it is a situation NSW ambulance will not tolerate," Mr Creen said.

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Cashed-up firms eye new workers

AT a time of high-profile job cuts, there are more tentative signs that business has the confidence to hire staff.

New figures show employment advertising jumped by more than five per cent in February, following similar strength in the federal government's job vacancies series.

The latest numbers coincide with other data on Monday showing gross operating company profits rose by 1.7 per cent in the December quarter to $68.2 billion, the largest figure in more than two years.

"Corporate Australia is well placed to spend, invest, employ ... over the next year," Commonwealth Securities chief economist Craig James says.

The profits figures will feed into Wednesday's national accounts for the December quarter.

Economists expect a relatively solid 0.7 per cent rise in gross domestic product in the final three months of 2013, although annual economic growth at 2.5 per cent will remain well below trend at just more than three per cent.

Such expectations will be taken to the Reserve Bank's board meeting on Tuesday.

Economists broadly expect the cash rate to remain at a record low of 2.5 per cent for at least another month.

A key federal parliamentary committee agrees.

The House of Representatives economics committee has tabled the findings of the RBA's twice-yearly parliamentary appearance before its members.

"The committee considers the current monetary policy settings to be appropriate," committee chair and Liberal MP Kelly O'Dwyer said.

"But the government and the RBA must ensure that sound decisions continue to be made to ensure that Australia's economy transitioned successfully to a post-mining boom era."

The committee noted the warning by RBA governor Glenn Stevens that Australia faced considerable challenges as investment in the resources sector declined and productivity gains and investment needed to occur in non-mining sectors to sustain and increase future growth.

Mr Stevens and his economic team will face the committee again in Sydney on Friday.

The committee's deputy chairman, Labor MP Ed Husic, flagged the opposition's concern about the "excessively generous and ill-considered" decision of Treasurer Joe Hockey to make an $8.8 billion grant to replenish the bank's reserve fund.

He was also concerned about the confused and contradictory decision making of the coalition government.

"We've seen a government unable to respond to job shedding occurring under its watch," Mr Husic told parliament.

Shadow treasurer Chris Bowen quizzed Prime Minister Tony Abbott on last week's worst capital expenditure figures since the 2008/09 global financial crisis, when the coalition in opposition said companies would "unleash their balance sheets" on a change of government.

Mr Abbott said the coalition was elected to fix the economy.

"We are marching to the rescue of this nation from the wreckage that we inherited from members opposite," he told parliament.

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Golden Oscar night for two great Cates

Cate Blanchett (pic) has won the Oscar for best actress for her role in Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine. Source: AAP

THEY are Australia's golden duo, Cate Blanchett and Catherine Martin, who collected Oscars at Hollywood's biggest night and in the process etched their names in the record books.

Martin became the most prolific Australian winner at the Academy Awards, surpassing the trailblazing costume designer Orry George Kelly who claimed three Oscars in the 1950s and '60s for An American in Paris, Cole Porter's Les Girls and Some Like it Hot.

Martin left Hollywood's Dolby Theatre on Sunday with two statuettes in her hands, costume design and production design, for The Great Gatsby.

She won two in 2002 for costume design and art direction for another film directed by husband, Baz Luhrmann.

"I am speechless," said Martin, when asked about eclipsing her idol, who was known in Hollywood as Orry-Kelly.

"I don't know how I feel about it, other than very happy."

Martin's The Great Gatsby set decorator, Beverley Dunn, shared the production design Oscar.

Blanchett put an exclamation point at the tail end of the ceremony for Australia when, as expected, she won the best actress Oscar for her performance as an imploding, martini-chugging, pill-popping New York socialite in Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine.

"There is so much talent in Australia," Blanchett said.

"CM and I are just the tip of the iceberg."

Blanchett's win was also an historic moment in Australian film.

Blanchett became the first Australian actor to win more than one Oscar, setting herself apart from single winners Nicole Kidman, Geoffrey Rush, Russell Crowe, Peter Finch and Heath Ledger.

Blanchett won a supporting actress trophy in 2005 for her portrayal of screen great Katharine Hepburn in the Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator.

The 86th Academy Awards, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, was billed as a battle between 12 Years a Slave, Gravity and American Hustle.

In the end Gravity collected the most Oscars, seven mostly for technical awards, while 12 Years A Slave took the grandest, best picture, as well as adapted screenplay and supporting actress for newcomer Lupita Nyong'o.

Dallas Buyers Club duo, Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, won the best actor and supporting actor awards respectively.

The big disappointment was American Hustle, with 10 nominations but not a single win.

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Fish and chip shopfront damage in Sydney

POLICE are trying to confirm if a bullet caused damage to a fish and chip shopfront in Sydney's south.

A man opened Hooked on Seafood on the Princes Highway at Sylvania on Sunday morning to find damage to the front window.

Police tape surrounded the shop throughout most of the day and the windows were still intact.

A nearby business told AAP there was one bullet hole in the window.

Police say a crime scene was established but no forensic or ballistic evidence was located.

Investigators are trying to confirm whether a bullet, rock or another projectile caused the damage.

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Man under police guard after alleged arson

A QUEENSLAND man who allegedly set fire to a house in the state's southeast is now under police guard in hospital.

A 16-year-old girl suffered serious burns in the blaze and has been flown to Brisbane for treatment.

Police say seven people were inside the home at Oakhurst, near Maryborough, when it went up in flames on Sunday morning.

They all managed to flee before the home was gutted by fire.

Police allege a Dunmora man, 53, drove a prime-mover into the home, damaging two vehicles, before setting the house alight.

He is in Maryborough Hospital but is expected to be flown to Brisbane for burns treatment.

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