Is Jetstar handing the market to DJ?
Interesting times good people.
Jetstar has leapt onto the scene with exactly the same approach as Impulse. Agents out of the loop without adding "fee for service" was the way Impulse tried to infiltrate the market. Didn't work then. Why should it work now?
If Virgin spends a mozza, gets a bucketload of extra bandwidth and server ports, they are about to hit the jackpot.
Tens of thousands of Travel professionals Australia Wide are already offering the DJ services at 7% commission over the "add your fee" Jetstar services.
The distressing thing is the loss of "full service" to a heap of ports. LST HBA OOL and the list goes on deprives punters of full service aeroplanes on the vast majority of services, and this will no doubt go to 100% with dislodgement of staff, redundancies and implantation of contract labour in the medium term thanks to 'Da Wally" and his axemen.
One more step down the gurgler - IF it works.
Despite server problems today with both discount carriers, all queries from punters that we could get online to handle wound up on DJ for the cheapies.
They got the seat, we get the commission (miniscule as it may be on a $29.00 fare) and retain client loyalty.
Someone needs to tell da Wally and his mates that you cannot import the Euro or Southwest blueprint into this market, and we will NOT do an airline's dirty work in pushing the fee for service model.
Advertise your butts off - make all the razzamatazz you can Jetstar - there are tens of thousands of us out here selling DJ like there was no tomorrow - and good luck - youse is gunna need it!!
For heavens sake - if the rat generates a 300+ million half year profit, then it aint broke!!
Why try to fix it.
From the point of view of my little Agency, the ripples will be few due to it's high care corporate nature, so I feel I can wade in on the basis of years loving Airlines I worked for and their culture. I do despair at what the industry is becoming and what is happening to the good people within the airlines.
When the 100,000 seats are sold, and the regular fares are on sale, then it will be very interesting to see how things go.
Here endeth the sermon - after Jetstar sold 30,000 seats today and DJ sold 60,000. Well there you go!!
Maybe they should have named the airline Impulse Mk II.
Best regards all
EWL
Ron