Well I wouldn't include a day off downroute as being a day off. I don't truly relax anywhere except in my own bed, in my own apartment. It's the only place I truly feel off duty. There are so many things you can only do in the comfort of your own home. Cook a proper meal, invite family and friends over, grocery shop for the week etc..Sure LA might be exciting for the first two rosters but after that....?
I heard shorthaul patterns may include the longer domestic\regional sectors as well where a return would be possible in a single day.
As for standby downroute, so what will the pattern be? Operate there, extra layover day in which you are on standby then operate back when another crew turn up to replace you?
Cleaning a plane at the end of a 14hr duty? Harsh is one word I can't post the other I have for it...
Also counterproductive. Crew do not clean planes the way a professional cleaning crew do, especially at the end of a 14hr duty and can you blame them? If you're going to compete with the top name legacy carriers you don't call pulling stuff out of seat pockets cleaning. That carpet needs to be vacummed and steam cleaned, the toilets need to be properly cleaned, the aircraft needs to be restocked. You can't tell me QF and SIA have their crew scrubbing the decks while downroute.
I think it would be a big mistake to confuse the identity of V Australia with Virgin Blue. They are two completely different products and should remain so. Who wants to buy a business class fare to LA on an airline they associate with budget travel? Will Virgin Blue passengers then be disappointed with the 737s once they have done a Syd-Mel on a more luxuriously equipped plane for the same price? At the moment V Australia is beginning to look like Virgin Blue on a bigger plane. Nothing wrong with that if that's what you're going for.... but I thought that wasn't what they were going for.
