Originally Posted by
PoppaJo
It really depends on the Airport and the business available. In the past they have operated out of places like Alice Springs where Tiger only ran 4 flights a week. That's a maximum of 12hrs a week for the ground crew. Compared to the Tiger Melbourne base which has flights leaving every half hour or so.
Above is spot on, the carriers have the final say. I remember back to when Tiger Airways started and they refused to buy those Mobile Lift Machines for the handicapped, something about passengers crawling down stairs would be cheaper than buying these thousand dollar machines that go up and down. Needless to say the lawyers were lining up quick smart and Aerocare was told to buy the lifts before they were sued.
It comes down to you get what you pay for... take security for example. AAA is mandatory for international but not for domestic (pax and bag match is mandatory but the technology and regulation requiring bag manifests is not). NO LCC I know of, nor VA which is supposed to be a premium carrier use it domestically but QF does. Now, that says to me that QF spend money on decent technology which among other things, stops baggage handlers and ramp personnel from having to take every container off an aircraft to find a bag, rather, knowing exactly where it is because of AAA. That's why it costs more to travel much of the time on QF as opposed to TT. I will NEVER fly TT, I only use VA if it's getting rid of points. If I was stuck somewhere and TT was the only option, I'd hire a car and drive or catch a train.