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View Full Version : why doesn't Qantas have freighters


applehead
29th Jun 2005, 06:32
Given that air freight is growing at a much higher rate than passenger movements, when will Qantas finally decide to add a freighter arm? Most other big airlines have one, and yes I know they own half of AAE. Maybe a job for the clapped out 744s?

spinout
29th Jun 2005, 06:41
I think Qantas the Australian Airline contracts out to Atlas Air.... American??

Buster Hyman
29th Jun 2005, 06:45
They had a choice between Freighters & Customer Service...It'll be a while!:rolleyes:

hotnhigh
29th Jun 2005, 07:36
Got to protect the bonus. Cannot possibly think of growing the overall mainline product or jobs. Nah, %^&* em. Just get ATLAS to repaint a few in qf colours. You'd think with the early model -400's getting long in the tooth they might think of going and reconfig. some of them and getting the mainline boys to fly them so as to bring down unit costs down because they are doing all of the work. As I said, f#$% em!
But don't worry I'm sure every one has the big long term plan for the classics which will save us all.
Thanks G%$^&, bloody great long term vision.:mad:
P.S. How's this years bonus looking?:mad: And I see the growth in the share price has reflected the excellent navigation skills that have been displayed in the last 4-5 years. NOT!

spinout
29th Jun 2005, 09:03
maybe after June 30, they might be able to replace some of the people that have left... funny how every thing stops in the second half of the year... bonus time

scrubed
29th Jun 2005, 09:04
They had a choice between Freighters & Customer ServiceWhen will we know which way they decide to go..... :rolleyes:

Going Boeing
29th Jun 2005, 09:56
Given that air freight is growing at a much higher rate than passenger movements, when will Qantas finally decide to add a freighter arm?

Most of the large American Freight operators have a strong market (with very significant revenue) for freight from Asia to America with very little in the return direction. Qantas is able to lease the "back load" capability of these aircraft (US - OZ - Asia) at a rate that is significantly cheaper than operating its own dedicated freighter aircraft. It's sad that this part of the operation is outsourced but the economics are very clear. The freight arm of Qantas (Qantas Freight) has been experiencing a very high growth rate but unfortunately it doesn't mean growth in pilot numbers. GB

speedbirdhouse
29th Jun 2005, 09:57
Who was it that said, "there's no money in freight"?

Eastwest Loco
29th Jun 2005, 11:57
Freight is worth big bucks, but when you are the majority PSGR operator out of Australia with your own aeroplanes, then you have freight capacity to burn.

The only things QF miss out on are the ugly large consignments that require nose loading on a 744F or Antonov.

Freight has and will always pay better than the SLF,but if you have the capacity on your RPT services, why run a dedicated freighter?

Best all.

EWL

Capt Fathom
29th Jun 2005, 13:51
They are into freight...big time...via Atlas and Polar. They operate all over the world using QF flight numbers!!

B772
30th Jun 2005, 01:01
hotnhigh is correct about the descent of the QF share price. The actual price currently is back to where it was in 1999.

The total average investment returns to 29 June 2005 are as follows:

1 Year 0.1%
3 Years -5.2%
5 Years 7.5%

As a matter of interest the total VB return over the past 12 months is -16.2%.

Why invest in airlines ???, try a bank such as Suncorp-Metway with the following average annual returns.

1 Year 48.8%
3 Years 23.6%
5 Years 24.2%
7 Years 26.6%

ginjockey
30th Jun 2005, 05:02
Is it typical to reconfigure airframes into freighters when they get old? I would have throught that freight ops would be much arder on an airframe than pax ops anyway. Very heavy take offs every time, heavy landings every time.

Is it finacially worth the structural worries of modifying an already fatigued airframe to operate in that environment while it's late in it's life?

It's not just a case of pulling out the seats and dropping some plywood down on the floor is it?

Metro man
30th Jun 2005, 05:47
Depends on the type of aircraft, on the Metro it's basically as you describe. There is a large rear cargo door and mounting points for nets so it's not a big deal. Some operators use a liner to protect the interior if the aircraft is used in both cargo and pax operations. Freight is VERY hard on interiors and it soon ends up looking scruffy inside.

On larger types a great deal more work is required, possibly comprising the installation of a cargo door and tracks for the containers to ride on.

As passenger appeal is of no consideration, older aircraft with a much lower capital cost can be used. However fuel consumption and maintenance costs are higher. Take offs and landings are usually at max weights. Utilisation and cycles are generally lower than pax operations. Reliability is very important as airfreight is more expensive than surface transport, your load is time critical. Start missing flights and things go haywire regarding connections, a package can easily change planes four times going across the country.

At the end of the day men in offices using spread sheets work it all out to make sure it pays.