Hero pilot Richard de Crespigny takes sides with Qantas in IR war
Veteran Qantas pilot Richard de Crespigny, at his home in Sydney yesterday, says the airline's future lies in Asia and some jobs may have to go offshore. Picture: Alan Pryke
Source: The Australian
HERO pilot Richard de Crespigny has broken ranks with his Qantas colleagues by calling for an end to "legacy practices" and declaring the airline's future lies in Asia.
The captain, who coolly landed a packed A-380 "super-jumbo" following an engine explosion after taking off from Singapore last year, has revealed that he has not joined in the pilots' industrial action against the airline, even though he belongs to the long-haul pilots' union.
As the pilot and engineering unions wage war with Qantas over job security, Captain de Crespigny told The Australian yesterday that "no pilot has job security", and he suggested that some maintenance work might need to be carried out overseas.
"I expect Qantas management to structure the business to enable a long-term competitive advantage," he said.
"If we have a higher cost base than our competitors, then we need to be more efficient. The opportunity to move some of the services into Asia where the market is booming, and have a hub and spoke (operation) out of Asia, makes sense. This growth will open up opportunities for pilots and engineers."
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Captain de Crespigny's comments clash with those of pilots union vice-president, Richard Woodward -- a fellow veteran Qantas captain -- who warned in August that "the road is paved with the tombstones of companies that have tried and failed, and we don't want Qantas to be one of them".
Captain de Crespigny said he believed 10 per cent of Qantas engineering was already done offshore, with Rolls-Royce carrying out the major servicing of engines in the A-380 fleet.
"I absolutely support Australian jobs but you can't necessarily expect 100 per cent of work to be conducted in Australia," he said.
"Some of the engineering practices we require are specialised and may need to be done overseas. Anyone who touches a Qantas aeroplane has an internationally recognised and audited licence so their qualification is of the highest standard."
A year ago, Captain de Crespigny saved 462 passengers and crew by safely landing a stricken Qantas A-380 aircraft after its engine blew up over an Indonesian island.
The pilots' union is citing the Qantas captain's "professionalism under pressure" in its current industrial campaign, which demands the airline always employs Qantas pilots.
The long-haul pilots' union yesterday launched a legal challenge to Fair Work Australia's termination of its protected industrial action, in which pilots have worn red ties and made in-flight announcements asking passengers to help "keep Qantas pilots in Qantas aircraft".
Captain de Crespigny said he was a member of the Australian and International Pilots Association, but did not take part in the industrial campaign.
"No pilot has job security," he said. "I never presume that I have job security. My job is to fly the plane so the passengers are safe.
"We must do the best we can to ensure the company benefits."
Captain de Crespigny refused to comment on last month's Qantas grounding or the dispute before Fair Work Australia, but said the airline had to "evolve" and "look at every cost".
"Qantas has been around for 90 years and we have to get rid of the old legacy practices," he said. "We don't use manual typewriters any more. We are flying the most modern aircraft in the world."
Captain de Crespigny said employees could not "take our business for granted".
"The rules have changed. Qantas operates overseas where the playing fields are not level in terms of politics, economics, industrial relations and exchange rates, so it's very difficult to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage.
"It's like a rugby game where both sides are playing using a different set of rules."
Captain de Crespigny said some Qantas pilots might wish to "transfer to Asia".
"I think there are good business reasons for using existing Qantas pilots who perhaps may wish to move to where the growth potential is," he said.
"There is no assumption that pay and conditions would change.
"The supply of pilots will not be sufficient in Asia to meet demand . . . there will be so much demand that I think salaries may go up . . . Qantas engineers and pilots are up there with the rest of the world and will be highly sought after."