Qantas' loop over timetable
Sat "Hobart Mercury"
Airline's loop over timetable
By NICK CLARK
27mar04
QANTAS has restored an early-morning flight from Launceston to Melbourne in the face of a sustained community campaign.
The backflip came on the day when lobby group Fairness and Equality in Airline Travel released a survey saying that 76 per cent of respondents would consider changing to rival airline Virgin Blue. Qantas's decision to bring the 1.10pm flight forward to 6.30am from May 25 comes three weeks after a similar policy reversal in Hobart. The Launceston business community had campaigned about withdrawal of the flight on the ground that business people would have to travel to Melbourne the night before to make a 9am meeting. The loss of the early flight was to have coincided with the start of operations by no-frills subsidiary Jetstar. Under Jetstar, the first flight to Melbourne would have left Launceston at 7.30 am. Qantas Airlines executive general manager John Borghetti said the new flight would be a Boeing 737 that included business class. He said Qantas had received representations from the State Government, local business and community representatives and federal politicians. In the FEAT poll of 1000 people, 85 per cent believed the loss of the flight would affect business and affect connections. However, Qantas spokesman Michael Sharp said the airline's decision was not poll-driven.
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