When people talk about full service airlines and discount airlines, I am beginning to contemplate the difference.
As they try to reduce costs, the so called full service airlines reduce their customer service to levels that are near that of the no frills airlines, and still charge like they did when they provided quality service!!
How is that a competant stratergy?
Full service now means getting a cardboard box handed to you by an FA who knows all too well that what she is handing out is an insult to passengers!!
I always flew Ansett as my preferred airline back in the days of the duopoly because their food and service was better than the competition. Then one day they changed both, almost overnight the a rse dropped out of their service and their food portions were reduced to rubble. Their ticket prices remained the same.
I never flew Ansett again, wrote to them and told them why, and the rest is history. I bet there were thousands like me.
I see QF making the same error here, but in a much worse manner. If QF were to go the opposite way, supplying the best of service at a higher yet competitive price to Virgin, they would get that thing called customer loyalty back. I wish they could see that.
In the airline game food and service are cheap to provide, and they are part of the overall product for a "full service" carrier. Save money by limiting un-necessary capital expenditure (they talk about it but still spend like there's no tomorrow), dont add that extra layer of middle management, whose only desire is to add an extra layer beneath them, instead make an investment instead in pleasing the customers with a well rounded value for money product that they will want to go back for again and again............there's my two cents worth yet again
