willadvise
Fair point! Once established in cruise we tend to get a ETA for PH and check it aginst flight planned time so you get a benchmark figure. Some speed reduction early on may put you back to long range cruise so you actually gain fuel on arrival to PH allowing more fuel for holding once you get to the holding points but the requirements to sit a minimum clean can put us towards the back of the drag curve and cause a time blow out (good for atc) and a fuel burn blowout (bad for us). If this occurs I will take off the difference with the new eta from the 15 mins and advise atc a bit closer in if it looks like holding is also going to be required.
Although atc dont want acft stacked up over Ph there is only so much you can do with maxpayload / min fuel flights. This will be compounded in summer with hot conditions not allowing the extra (mum and the kids ) fuel to be put on site and only having the bare minimum holding fuel. Add the arvo build ups over the Range and its fun and games all round.