400ER,
Great post, the SYSTEM let the crews (Virgin and Qantas) down and both crews did a great job.
Most people on here and the media have been focusing on Virgin's fuel state, but the links below, prove Virgin diverted to MIA first with Qantas following. Based on this information, Virgin would have been in the circuit area first but for some reason they let Qantas land first. If you look at the QFA735 history it shows they held to the east of Adelaide before following Virgin to Mildura, so perhaps their fuel state was a bit more critical then Virgin when they arrived at Mildura.
The ATSB have stated they will be looking at the data and interviewing the crew of other aircraft, so I'm sure the ATSB will be able to find out why the Qantas 737 landed first.
I'm sure the Mildura refueler will know how much fuel was on board both aircraft.
Potentially we could be looking at 2 B737's that were in very similar situations and if that is the case the ATSB needs to find out how these crews were let down by the system(s).
Flight Track Log ? QFA735 ? 18-Jun-2013 ? YSSY / SYD - YPAD / ADL ? FlightAware
Flight Track Log ? VOZ1384 ? 18-Jun-2013 ? YBBN / BNE - YPAD / ADL ? FlightAware