Skimpy based at Tulla.

[Buster Hyman]

Cut-price airline will boost jobs
November 26, 2003


Qantas will base its new cut-price airline in Melbourne, Victorian Premier Steve Bracks said today.

Mr Bracks said the airline would create 1,000 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs and would be based at Melbourne Airport's former Ansett terminal.

He said the government had fought off competition from other states to secure the airline's headquarters in Melbourne.




Bracksy's done a Beattie!!!!! How much did QF get for basing Skimpy in MEL??? I bet Stoddart can't wait to get here, especially with our back stabbing state governments willing to cut each others throat!!! Pitiful really.:hmm:

[Wirraway]

AAP

Cut-price Qantas to base in Melbourne
November 26, 2003 - 12:05PM

Qantas will base its new cut-price airline in Melbourne, Victorian Premier Steve Bracks says.

Mr Bracks said the airline would create 1,000 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs and would be based at Melbourne Airport's former Ansett terminal.

He said the government had fought off competition from other states to secure the airline's headquarters in Melbourne.

"We have been fighting for this one and we have won," Mr Bracks said.

"That's fantastic from my point of view when we had to support, obviously with the head office of Ansett going, to have the head office of the new airline based here in Melbourne.

"It will be great for the economy and for tourism."

Mr Bracks and Qantas chairman Margaret Jackson are due to officially announce the new airline about 1215 (AEDT).

Mr Bracks said he did not know whether the announcement would affect plans by Formula One team owner Paul Stoddart to establish another cut-price airline in Melbourne.

"Paul obviously needs to look at the viability of the financial arrangements," he said.


"I have talked to him, my department is working with them, my understanding is that there's a good chance it will come to Melbourne, if it occurs.

"I don't know really what this decision of Qantas will mean for Paul Stoddart ... I guess that's really a commercial matter for him to work out."

©2003 AAP

===========================================

[Hellsbells]

Media Release
Qantas Airways Limited ABN 16 009 661 901

MELBOURNE, 26 November 2003: Qantas announced today that the City of Melbourne had been selected as the headquarters for its new domestic low cost airline.

The Chief Executive Officer of Qantas, Geoff Dixon, said that Melbourne was chosen because it offered the most attractive package including excellent facilities, a skilled workforce and incentives.

“I would like to thank the Victorian Government for its support of this project,” Mr Dixon said.

“The new airline will start flying to leisure destinations in Australia from May next year and, with its headquarters in Melbourne, it will grow to employ about 1,000 Victorians over the next few years.

“While the new low cost carrier is good news for the whole Australian tourism industry, today’s announcement means that Qantas will further expand its commitment to the Victorian economy and Victorian tourism, building on a partnership that has been in place for more than 60 years.

“Qantas currently employs more than 6,500 people in Victoria and is a major supporter of a range of community, sports and arts organisations including the Royal Children’s Hospital, the Victorian Institute for the Blind, the Melbourne International Festival of the
Arts, the Australian Formula One Grand Prix and the Australian Tennis Open.

“Qantas has also recently invested $9.8 million in the refurbishment of Hangar 4 at Avalon Airport, which will grow to employ 300 skilled workers, and entered into a joint venture with
Patrick Corporation to acquire the former Ansett engine maintenance facility at Garden Drive, Tullamarine.

“We also recently expanded our flight training facility at Airport West, at a cost of $70 million. This facility now houses our Boeing 737-300, 737-400, 737-800, Airbus A330 and Emergency Procedures simulator.”

Mr Dixon said that further information relating to the low cost carrier – including its name, livery and fleet – would be announced next week.

[Wirraway]

Dow Jones

Qantas/Discount Carrier: Secures Fincl Incentives

MELBOURNE (Dow Jones)--Australia's largest airline Qantas Airways Ltd. confirmed Wednesday that its local budget offshoot will be based in Melbourne, Victoria state.

Qantas Chairwoman Margaret Jackson said the airline, which is still without a name, livery and fleet, will hire 1,000 staff over the next few years.

The airline will be run by former Aer Lingus and Ansett Australia executive Alan Joyce and include a team of former senior executives from Europe's low cost carrier Ryanair.

Jackson said the carrier will start flying from May 2004 as previously announced to the market.

Qantas Chief Executive Geoff Dixon was upbeat about the group's future.

"The new airline will start flying to leisure destinations in Australia from May next year and, with its headquarters in Melbourne, it will grow to employ about 1,000 Victorians over the next few years," Dixon said.

Victorian Premier Steve Bracks said at a joint media briefing that the state government gave Qantas "modest financial incentives" to base the new carrier in Melbourne.

Jackson said the size of the new local budget airline's aircraft fleet will be announced next week, but stressed no final decision has been made yet.

She said there is an "excellent opportunity" to access airplanes around the world.

According to a person close to the contract negotiations, Qantas is believed to have selected Airbus (F.ABI) A320 planes for the offshoot in preference to Boeing Co. 737-800 planes.

Joyce said the budget airline will be the lowest cost discount operator in Australia with the lowest airfares, a direct challenge to the country's only existing no-frills carrier Virgin Blue.

Virgin Blue has captured around 30% of the local market following its launch in August 2000, thanks in part to its cheap cost base and the demise of two local carriers, Ansett and Impulse Airlines.

It was given financial assistance by the Queensland state government to base its headquarters in Brisbane.

Virgin Blue, which counts Richard Branson and Australian transport group Patrick Corp. (PRK.AU) as its two biggest shareholders, is in the process of raising more than A$500 million via an initial public offering. The airline will make its debut on the Australian Stock Exchange on Dec. 8.

Joyce, who will move to Melbourne to run the carrier, said details of the airline's branding will be released in the next week or so.

In January, the group will unveil its route network and fee structure. The new carrier will start accepting bookings in February.

Jackson said the new airline will be "appropriately capitalized" and have access to the capital it needs, but declined to give any specific financial details.

She also down played concerns that the new airline will cannibalize its existing operations.

The announcement had little affect on Qantas shares.

At 0220 GMT, Qantas shares were down one cent and shares in Patrick were up 11 cents at A$14.58, while the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index was down just 1.4 points at 3190.6 points.

===========================================

[gameboy1971]

So, there is going to be an airline with A320 aircraft based in Melbourne..... why not call it Ansett? :ok:

[Buster Hyman]

The fat lady hasn't sung just yet...re the A320's!!!

There is still a small matter of Boeing looking for a launch customer for the 737-900!!! Gee, who could be doing the hard yards for a deal on that one...I wonder?;)

Also, seems that QF will be getting a shiny new livery to coincide with the A380's arrival...watch this space!

[MoFo]

You've gotta love the way Dikko thinks.

Buy A320s and base them in Melbourne. He assumes there are lots of experienced ex Ansett A320 drivers who will work for peanuts for the privilige of living in Australia, and having a job. Like some one else said:" call it Ansett."

Flight Attendants are no problemo. Don't worry about the ex Ansett jaded overpaid middle aged women. There are plenty of young hopefuls, who would work their butts off for even fewer peanuts.

The boy is thinking on his feet. But isn't he an ex journo? Stereotyping would be a natural for him.

[ur2]

Now who was that bloke who said "It was a sure thing that it would be Boeing and crewed by QF pilots" ? :O

[L G Cooper]

What I can't get is the bit in the media release that states Qantas is partnering Patrick to reno maintenance facilities at Tulla. Did I miss that part where Patrick and VB became seperate entities, or is there a conspiracy theory worthy of note here?

:confused:

[E.P.]

Is it true also that the former Chief Pilot of AN (M.R.) and the current ex-AN team running the QF 330s is heaverly bunkered down in ML??

[ur2]

Don't think so, MR with SINGair PER base, I think.

[Pete Conrad]

MR is with SQ in Perth,B777.

[Gnadenburg]

If I was Dicko, and I don't want to sound jaded, I would be careful before employing too much ex-AN management types.

Does this world have any accountability?

EK, CX & Dragon, to name a few, full of experienced Airbus managers of Australian origin, worth poaching.

I wouldn't want my low cost airline pervaded with a management culture that failed miserably and that has not been held accountable in any way, shape or form.

Rembering, the AN Flt Op's Team failed to successfully introduce a single a/c type post 89- 747 & CRJ. They also failed to introduce White Shirts. A comical but further indictment.

[Red Hot Chili Pepper]

Gnadenburg,

Ansett had no fatal accidents operating jet aircraft. This is a record few airlines can claim.

I think Ansett’s flt department may have done something right.

“failed to successfully introduce a single a/c type post 89- 747 & CRJ”.

The CRJ was introduced by the managers at KD.

Now, as for the managers at Ansett in charge of the actual business side – they should not even be selling squishies in the local quickie mart.

Frowhat I hear, the QF LCC will be A320’s mainly crewed by Ex AN pilots, including those from QF who want to, with SOME Ex Ansett flt ops people having a large input into the operation. This could result in a mighty fine little operation.

BTW, hows Virgins etops approval going, speaking of poor management.

[Gnadenburg]

RHCP

No fatal accidents in a benign air environment such as Australia should not be anything but an assumption!

The 747 debacle was aided by latent failures in management and a silent Senior Pilot Group.

To not apportion blame to Ansett Management for the CRJ failure is why I can't bury this airline with dignity! AN managment sent young turks to introduce CRJ-inexperienced exRAAF and 5 year Commanders etc. They also sent a good degree of political interference.

A good Management team would have considered pooling the best Training Captains in Ansett, rewarding them financially(at a fraction of the cost of Canadian contract pilots) and the job would have been done.

I feel for KD pilots who had their careers adversely affected by the amatuerish political interference and the amatuerish Young Turks sent to play( the handful talented training pilots know who they are).

The AN Airbus operation hardly evolved. This is very disappointing considering AN a launch customer. The airline collapsed on the eve of when we finally caught up with the rest of the Airbus world. The manner of this catch up and less than professional introduction, a further indictment.

I won't go anywhere near LCC if it is run by exAN Management. Actually, I wont go anywhere near Australian aviation whilst you are all selling yourselves so short.

[Red Hot Chili Pepper]

Australia is not the trickiest environment to fly in, but it aint benign either.

The flt ops people mismanaging the intro of the 747 were not in flt ops when the crunch came and more importantantly will have nothing to do with QF LCC.

The CRJ training problems had taken effect before the AN guys were involved – KD senior management relying too much on the seniorority system for jet slots.

“The AN Airbus operation hardly evolved”. How do you justify this statement.

Gnad, who do you fly for now. Am interested to know.

[Gnadenburg]

Red Hot Chilli Pepper.

It is basically a Caveat Emptor warning to Geoff Dixon.

There is a bunch of ex-AN Management pilots out there at a cheap price. But you get what you pay for! Why not pay a bit more and lure Australian expertise out of world leading Airbus operators? Why employ a failed management team?

Good point. There were two generations of AN flight management. Both failed miserably.

Although I wish all well, I was not at all impressed with the poor leadership, lack of compassion, poor communication and morale sapping cronyism of former AN Flt Managers.

Airbus evolution at AN? Could list many examples but was fun to fly a FBW airliner like a DC3. Final FCOM introduction was Risky Shift mentality by management and a Gun To The Head induction on the line.

On your last paragraph my name is Rupid and not Stupid!

But I must add I carefully aspired to an airline where I would never again be affected by former AN Management.

In my time at AN I was guilty of never visiting the Flt Management
office. Too hard to find a seat anyway I here! F/O's abound-especially in the Airbus offices.

[Going Boeing]

A lot of posts so far indicate that the press reports that the A320 will be selected for skimpy but at this stage there has been no official announcement that this is so. Could it be that the "A320 selection" was intentionally leaked to force the Boeing sales persons to make a more attractive offer.

Re who will fly for the new airline - negotiations are continuing!

[Sonny Hammond]

How else can QF keep Boeing on their toes? You got it man.

[Wizofoz]

morale sapping cronyism of former AN Flt Managers.

You only have to look at the list of those selected for TESNA to find the truth in THAT statement. I would certainly ask- What exactly did AN flight management ever achieve that would qualify them as desirable to manage the new venture? I don't think they were ANs final undoing, but I'd like to know what it was that they are supposed to have done well! Morale? I didn't know what that was till I went OS (and have found it AND efficient, people friendly management elsewhere.).

RTO,

"Skimpy"= working title of Qantas' proposed Low Cost Carrier, yes a play on "Skippy", local vernacular for QF, the "Flying Kangaroo", and yes Tulla= Tullamarine=Melbourne International.

BTW, no "U" in Qantas. Sorry if we don't write threads to accommodate everyone in a Southern Hemisphere forum... Please make sure everyone says "London Stansted", "Paris CDG", "Geneva, Switzerland" etc. etc. for OUR convenience!

[Buster Hyman]

Goeing Boeing.

Trust me! It's the 737 & quite possibly the launch customer for the -900!!!

It's in the bag, baby!:ok:

[Zero_au]

I'm a ex A320 Captain, and sadly have just watched the 1100 channel 9 news and it said that good ol Marj will annouce this afternoon, that the Skimpy aircraft will be B737-800!!
AHHHHHH!!!!:{ :{ ::sad:

[Buster Hyman]

Remember...Trust a Buster for the good oil!!!!!

:ok:

I think I can hear a rather large lady, warming up her vocal chords!

[Lusimtingting]

Sorry Buster , but your "oil" is not good oil.
Name Jetstar
Initially Impulse and 717s then 23 x A320s

[Buster Hyman]

And the fat lady sings a different tune, as Buster falls on his sword...."Curses! Foiled again!" he cries!:oh: