http://www.theage.com.au/news/news/r...764143184.html
Wait for it? Airlines take us on flights of fancy
Reid Sexton
January 20, 2008
THE reliability of air travel between Australia's two biggest cities has hit a record low with levels of punctuality at their worst since figures became public.
The latest statistics, released last week, show almost a third of flights between Melbourne and Sydney in November arrived more than 15 minutes late or were cancelled.
And the Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics data shows nearly four in 10 flights from Tullamarine to Sydney — a route operated by Qantas and Virgin Blue — arrived late or not at all.
Last month, The Sunday Age revealed the 2007-08 year was on track to become the worst year on record for flights between Australia's two biggest cities.
While the November cancellations are slightly below the 2007-08 average, a huge increase in delayed planes means 32.9% of all flights between Sydney and Melbourne were late or cancelled.
Since 2003, airlines have given their domestic performance figures to the bureau, which is part of the new Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.
The figures reflect an overall decline in the reliability of domestic air travel throughout Australia.
They show that, overall, 77.4% of flights arrived on time and 1.4% were cancelled in November — well below the four-year average of 85.6% and 0.9% .
Qantas said all domestic carriers experienced a decline in reliability in the second half of 2007 compared to the same period in 2006. A spokesman said Qantas did better than Virgin Blue throughout 2007.
However, November had been a particularly bad month for weather on the east coast of Australia. "High winds in Sydney … meant the airport was often reduced to a single runway," he said.
Virgin Blue spokeswoman Heather Jeffery said: "We can't speak for the industry but November doesn't appear to have been a stellar month for anyone.
She said several factors were at play: air traffic congestion, delays due to weather, minor unscheduled maintenance and record passenger numbers.