Flugbegleiter,
Yes, you are on to something there. I believe not much will change at AO until the IR changes become law. When it does, you'll probably see the AO brand go (sadly) and the a/c to be painted in QF colours once again. AO crew will become qantas working on AO award (which will be legal).
Your point about QF longhaul moving onto AO award is interesting, as AO crew operate very differently to QF L/H. AO crew dont have a seniorty system and no bidding system, allowances payed in our pay, unlimited overseas bases,etc. I think if it was to happen, it would be hard for QF crew to take all at once, though Qantas will probably change more than that when they know what to do with the IR changes.