Romulus, you would be correct if the message really did resonate with the public. My take on it is that it failed miserably, partially due to the fact that people are probably more worried about external factors at the moment.
I do think that the very fact that they tried it means they are running out of ideas about how to distract away from the AIPA message of "Qantas pilots for Qantas flights."
On a side note, I got cheered by a punter as I came through the terminal a few days ago. Definitely a first!