NJS to Telfer

[topend3]

Heard NJS had lost the Newcrest contract to Telfer from Perth. True??? Skywest have won the contract?

Also heard FMG are on the verge of ripping up the Skywest contract to Cloud Break due to unreliability...

[BAe32EP-Chief]

1. Yes 99% sure
2. Doubtful I heard majority of the problems lie with Skippers?

[Brasilian Bird]

How about, XR sick of Cloudbreak pax running amok and being abusive to hosties on flights... hear they now have won the worst rep from the boys at Newman!!!!

heard the same info re: Telfer- my sources tell me XR have it also

[Capn Bloggs]

Heard NJS had lost the Newcrest contract to Telfer from Perth. True???
Well it was in the paper last week TE3. I know you're a long way away from the action but...:}

Pretty simple really: where he goes the contracts follow. There are none so blind as those who will not see.:ugh:

[topend3]

i dont read newspapers bloggsy, it's environmentally unfriendly...

[topend3]

found it....


National Jet Systems, pilots wrangle over work conditions Font Size: Decrease Increase Print Page: Print Geoffrey Thomas | December 14, 2007
THE long-running negotiations between National Jet Systems and its pilots - which could head off major disruptions to the extensive fly-in/fly-out resource industry charters and RPT services in four states - are poised on a knife edge.

At stake are the operations of 11 106-seat Boeing 717s operated for QantasLink and 11 70-seat BAe146s in Western Australia, South Australia, Northern Territory and Queensland.

Those aircraft serve hundreds of resources companies, thousands of resource subcontractors in critical fly-in/fly-out operations and tens of thousands of passengers on RPT (regular public transport) services.

The airline's pilots are due to vote in January on a collective agreement that restores some conditions, including a CPI increase, but leaves others such as rostering protocols and promotional issues unresolved, according to the Transport Workers Union (TWU).

Another sticking point is understood to be that the agreement, while collective, will not be under the umbrella of the TWU and will be for five years, restricting pilot flexibility.

NJS CEO Peter Nottage said the airline and its pilots "are making good progress on a new employee collective agreement and the company is in close consultation with pilots ahead of January's formal vote on the proposed agreement".

"We have covered a lot of ground since the beginning of this matter and, consistent with our commitment to our pilots have dealt in good faith with their concerns and objectives," he added.

"Pilots also have responded in good faith and are working with the company to produce an outcome that is fair and equitable for all. We are confident that we will soon achieve a mutual agreement."

But any such mutual agreement will have taken a long time.

Over the past year more than 115 NJS pilots have joined the TWU in an attempt to sort out problems with individual contracts (Australian Workplace Agreements, or AWAs).

According to TWU airlines organiser Rick Burton, most of the pilots were unhappy with the AWAs and told NJS and the TWU that they wanted a collective TWU agreement.

More than a year ago 30 pilots contacted the government's Office of Workplace Services (OWS) about "serious breaches of their AWAs", according to the TWU.

The TWU maintained that the pilots were frustrated that the dispute had been allowed to drag on for so long.

In August, NJS pilots voted to empower the TWU to apply to take industrial action after NJS refused to negotiate a collective agreement for staff on AWAs. A major thrust of the pilots' demands were for CPI increases, rather than a flat 2 per cent offered at the time by the company.

An A-scale NJS 717 or BAe146 captain earns $131,000 while the new B-scale captains earn just $105,000 - less than Skippers Aviation and Network captains who fly 36-seat Dash 8s and 30-seat Brasilia prop-jets in Western Australia.

According to the TWU's Mr Burton the B-scale pilots' package failed the Work Choices fairness test.

In September, NJS's Mr Nottage addressed pilots' concerns and frustrations through the company's weekly Landings newsletter, promising to "redress the slow progress (of negotiations) and to work in good faith towards a mutually acceptable outcome".

He also warned pilots that the potential of industrial action could damage relationships with resource clients, who made up the majority of the airline's business.

However, in early October the TWU lodged an application in the Australian Industrial Relations Commission for an industrial action secret ballot.

In the meantime, NJS settled before a scheduled October five-day court hearing over allegations that it underpaid 30 pilots.

According to Mr Burton, although NJS paid the CPI increases, the Work Choices Ombudsman is still reviewing prosecution.

Further charges of forcing two pilots to sign workplace agreements were still before the courts, he said.

In late October, the pilots voted to approve protected industrial action against NJS, and the TWU then had 30 days to initiate action that could range from "work to rule" limitations to a 48-hour stoppage. Mr Nottage again appealed to the pilots, saying that he was committed to a solution without industrial action and warned in a company letter that the "secret ballot application has caused a great deal of concern with our customers".

That appeal was heeded and the pilots only adopted a work to rule on their rostered days off. This apparently resulted in up to three QantasLink 717 flights being cancelled on the weekend of December 1-2.

Pilots said this action "fast tracked" the package that was now before them.

Mr Nottage, however, denied any suggestion that three flight cancellations in early December were part of a concerted industrial campaign. "Of the 350 weekly services we fly for QantasLink, there were disruptions to three services on the weekend of December 1-2 as a result of staff illness."

The Australian also understands that Rio Tinto - one of NJS's biggest customers - has warned the airline that no more contacts will be renewed till the issues with the pilots are finalised, although Rio Tinto was coy about this assertion. Rio Tinto has chartered a 70-seat EMB-170, which is stationed at Perth Airport, as a contingency against any industrial action.

A Rio Tinto spokesman said that "given the importance of the fly-in/fly-out and the need to get our people home, we have to protect against a disruption".

"In the event of the stoppage we also have other charter options available," he added.

For NJS and its arch-rivals, such as Skywest Airlines, the stakes are high in relation to fly-in/fly-out operations.

Rio Tinto alone recently announced a $30 billion plan to treble its iron ore production from the Pilbara region to 600 million tonnes by 2017.

The company has 11 operational mines, and 39 potential mining operations taking about 14.2 billion tonnes of iron ore.

BHP Billiton produced 100 million tonnes of iron ore in fiscal 2007.

It also has plans to treble its production to 300 million tonnes by 2015.

One resource customer has recently deserted NJS.

Newcrest Mining - which the company has held since 1996 - has terminated its contract.

Mr Nottage took the opportunity in late November to remind staff that "the loss serves to remind us of the highly competitive nature of business".

[Ref + 10]

Thanks topend. Hope you didn't have to type that all out yourself.

Geoffrey Thomas got a couple of his numbers wrong though. Network Bras captains don't get 105k and I don't know how true it is that Skippers Dash drivers get that either. I had heard one rumour that a Bras captain at Skippers accepted 120k to stay instead of going elsewhere but I think that he is a one-off.

Is Skywest getting Telfer confirmed yet? I had heard that Alliance were looking good for it as they already do the once a week crew change from Brisbane and that Newmont liked them. Their not having the third 100 over here yet may have affected the decision I would have thought.

[The Voice]

Their not having the third 100 over here I gather you're referring to QQ with that .. I'd suggest that if QQ were in the frame, considering where the bases are it wouldn't be too hard to FIFO in/out each way .. in fact it may be quite a lucrative thing to offer....

If there is one thing QQ has, it is flexibility in their thinking and another is their fleet maneuverability.

[topend3]

yes i thought GT may have been a bit out on the numbers...

i am sure if QQ were in the mix they could come to a solution re a 3rd perth based F100....like cross-hiring an XR one in the interim:E

when xr won cloud break they didnt have an aircraft to do it so ran a 146 in there x-hired from NJS

[Icarus2001]

when xr won cloud break they didnt have an aircraft to do it so ran a 146 in there x-hired from NJS ...and what is the bet that the same thing will happen with the Telfer contract.:hmm:

[Ref + 10]

Apparently XR are training their little hearts out on the 100 but it will still take time to get enough crew up and running in order to run five or six of them.

[topend3]

would be quite ironic if XR won it and then ran the first service with an NJS 146.

[Skystar320]

would be quite ironic if XR won it and then ran the first service with an NJS 146.

It would but isnt Skywest obtaining three more Fokker F100's :mad::mad::mad:

And there is that other operator RED Link with BAe 146's

[727ace]

Well, Mr Nottage you are slowly bringing NJS to a hard reality landing, with the biggest losers its employees, typically the 'bully boy' mentality of the majority of the management both past and present will finally bring a curtain on what was a good /reliable charter and RPT operation. in hinesight if NJS made an effort to keep industrial harmony and keep key position personnell who had served them well like HD (of skywest now) NJS would still be holding all the aces, also the foresight of updating the 146 fleet to the F100 as the new backbone of the company as we now see with other operators !!! Actually as a former employee it brings a tear to my eye to see what has been done to NJS by these incompetent Managers.
The list reads
reduced 146 fleet
reduced 727 fleet
soon to be reduced B717 fleet
Adelaide Maintenance Base work reduction and an idea they can compete JHAS who have risen from the Ansett ashes!!!

All the best to you all for the festive season

"the ace":ok:

[topend3]

soon to be reduced B717 fleet
think you will find ace that the 717 fleet recently increased, but the rest is true...

also Skystar320 the last of the red-tail 146's went back to charter earlier in the year...

[Ref + 10]

I think you'll find that he was alluding to the imminent arrival of jetstar topend.... 2009 isn't it? That would cause a reduction in the 717 fleet!!

[topend3]

where was the official announcement of jetstar in 2009 on wa routes, must have missed that one...

[JetRacer]

Topend,

I haven't seen anything about Jetstar operating on WA routes either. There was this piece in The Australian about Jetstar opening up Perth and Darwin bases though....

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,22757241-643,00.html

Qantas to buy 188 new aircraft

November 14, 2007

QANTAS will buy up to 188 narrow body aircraft for short haul flights, expanding its brands in Australia and Asia.

The airline (ASX: QAN: quote) said the funding of the purchases won't affect its investment grade credit rating.

The new aircraft will be used to defend Qantas' minimum 65 per cent share of the Australian domestic market and to expand low cost services to South East Asia.

The plan also involves Jetstar opening new regional aviation bases in both Darwin and Perth over the next two years to serve fast growing Asian markets. (my bolding)

Most of the new aircraft will be Boeing 737-800s and Airbus A320s.

The order also includes larger A321 aircraft, which will have up to 213 seats, compared with 177 on an A320 in a Jetstar single-class configuration.

The first aircraft to arrive in February will be an A321.

"We expect to take at least 17 of those aircraft to expand Jetstar's opportunities in its fastest growing markets,'' chief executive Geoff Dixon said.

Qantas will acquire 68 A320/A321 aircraft and has 40 options and purchase rights.

It will also buy 31 B737-800 aircraft, and has 49 options and purchase rights.

"The firm aircraft will be delivered over a six year period, while options secured additional delivery slots through to 2017,'' Qantas said.

Mr Dixon said: "This decision, together with existing A380 and B787 fleet commitments, secures an order stream for next generation aircraft that will allow the group to meet long term demand growth and replace older aircraft over the next decade.

"The plan provides maximum flexibility to respond to changes in the market and competitive situation.

"In an environment where our customers have more options than ever before, this investment will ensure that Qantas and Jetstar continue to provide customers with superior network reach, choice and product.''

He said some of the Airbus aircraft would also be used to supply capacity to the group's Asian associates.

Qantas is preparing to receive its first superjumbo A380 aircraft in August 2008.

Jetstar will later launch the B787 Dreamliner to underpin the expansion of its low cost international services.

"We are confident that the orders we have placed provide the right aircraft, with the right product and right economics to ensure the continued success of Qantas and Jetstar both domestically and internationally,'' Mr Dixon said.

[Ref + 10]

Sorry guys but I had taken that Australian article and a bit of word on the street and drew my own conclusions. I had been led to believe that with the size of the mining sites and the sheer number of people that need to be moved that being able to offer 120+ seats would have been attractive to BHP and Rio. Seeing how Skywest is trying to combine both mining and RPT in Perth then I suppose I just see any new bases over here doing the same...

Maybe I'll prove to be a bit of a prophet in a year or two but I can see how I jumped a couple of steps.

[cunninglinguist]

Spot on 727, whilst NJS still has 22 jets, considering they had ( if memory serves ) around 14 or more, 10 years ago, and considering the growth of just about every other Aviation outfit in Oz, you would have to say NJS is going backwards.:uhoh:
DM and PN, take a bow, its all down to you :D

Ref, whilst most here discount Jetstar serving regional WA, if you were QF,why would'nt you?
KA, KG and BRM have more than enough capacity for the 320, which is alot cheaper/seat than the 717 and not as troublesome without those NJS pilot scallywags ;)

[topend3]

they may be going backwards but the way XR is running with reliability issues on their jet fleet maybe they are biting off more than they can chew...