Albeit in the context of an approaching state election in Queensland, an interesting take on the Heavy Maintenance Question in the Courier Mail Today.......
400 jobs on the line in Qantas overhaul in Brisbane
by: Darrell Giles From: The Sunday Mail (Qld) March 18, 2012 12:00AM
BRISBANE is looking increasingly likely to lose its Qantas heavy maintenance operations and 400 jobs in major restructuring by the national air carrier.
Only a month ago, union bosses tipped a purpose-built facility at Brisbane Airport to be chosen as the sole survivor of a plan to reduce maintenance facilities across the country from three to one.
But sources told The Sunday Mail Qantas was now leaning towards consolidation at Avalon, Victoria. A final decision is expected in late April.
A move to Victoria would be a blow to the Sunshine State after the unemployment rate jumped from 5.4 to 5.7 per cent in February, reflecting significant turbulence in the local retail, manufacturing and banking industries.
The rate was 0.5 per cent above the national average.
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce announced a review of the heavy maintenance facilities last month after a big plunge in profits for the airline - an 83 per cent drop down to $42 million.
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"There is simply not enough heavy maintenance work to justify the three facilities in Melbourne, Brisbane and Avalon," Mr Joyce said.
"Do we need to go to two or go to one? We can't maintain all three."
In its two-month review, Qantas has considered:
* Consolidation into Melbourne.
* Consolidation into Avalon.
* Consolidation into Brisbane.
* Consolidation into the Brisbane facility, with Boeing 747s maintained in Avalon.
* Boeing 737s maintained in Brisbane, Boeing 747s and 767s in Avalon.
Brisbane's multi-million-dollar heavy maintenance facility was completed in 2005 to service Qantas's Boeing 767 and Airbus A330 fleet.
The Melbourne option has all but been ruled out because it has the oldest facility, built in 1970, and it has narrow-body hangars for Boeing 737s. Big money would have to be spent to fit the wide-body fleet.
A Qantas spokesman said yesterday the operations would remain in Australia and not move offshore.
Sadly, from this article it would appear Tulla is dead.
A mistake of monumental proportions.
However, IF Avalon comes to the fore of managerial thinking, hopefully some of the vast 737 expertise that is currently there may not be totally lost.