I do not have the privelege of being QF or Ex QF, so I fly myself, or buy a ticket QF, DJ etc, and thats fine, but the staff rate is well below a standard average rate the consumer pays, and that is fine too. I do not think anybody working in a Jam factory getting free jam would think differently.
However if there are growing fuel costs you should expect a slight increase in your "donation" to costs, if the real fuel cost increase was say $6.57 well make the increase $7 or $8, but I have to agree $22 is a bit steep...... but maybe not. You need to have the real proven costs, and often that is a bigger surprise than you would otherwise believe, in any business.
Why don't you take some facts and figures to management and put your cards on the table and expect they do the same?
Now in defense of the QF staff, just a few weeks ago, a friend of mine was removed from a QF 737 BNE-SYD flight after it was "filled up" from an earlier cancelled flight (wonder why it was cancelled...mech fault or poor loading????). They were taking the last of a few spare seats anyway, and they were asked to get off. Excuse was being overweight. Now in my plane 3 too many bodies is overweight, but when they do not weigh everybody how can they judge 3 people who were grossing 200kg. Their luggage stayed on and went to Sydney. The 200kg would have made no difference.
next they had two more flights that night, but guess what no available seats........ So check into a motel at 10pm......no chance...drive 1.5 hours home and back at 5a.m. the next day to try to catch up with their luggage and make a connecting flight elsewhere.
Does not sound like the way you should treat one of your retired senior captains of 35 years of service flying longhaul all the time.
I think the staff travel should be improved like booked as a stand by and 24 hours prior if the flight is not full, you get confirmed, just like Joe Public.
Brings me to another point. All the QF frequent flyer points I have I can rarely use unless I book 12 months in advance. Have done that recently. they must have a huge liability on their books and if they allowed yo to trade points for a stand by seat more people would use them, and the flights would be utilised and the liability reduced. Happier customers etc. Sure if you want to have a confirmed seat you book one of the (few) assigned FF seats, but if yuo are prepared to wait and risk it, burn the equal points!
Now this seems like good common sense...... pick it to pieces now!
J
