Avalon: food for thought?
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Avalon: food for thought?
From today's Crikey
Avalon no paradise for poor relations on Jetstar
Ben Sandilands writes:
Avalon Airport is not just dangerous because of the sporadic manning of the control tower.
On 5 April, Crikey pointed out the insanity of not screening checked baggage on Jetstar flights for weapons and explosives.
An A320 departing Avalon with a bomb on board will make as big a bang as one that flies from Tullamarine, which is now supposed to have 100% screening like the other capital city airports.
Calls to Jetstar went unreturned this morning, but this anomaly has been tolerated ever since the highly successful and fast-growing Qantas subsidiary began flights in June 2004.
But there is a deeper issue of culture wars at play here.
Part of Qantas seems to detest Jetstar and its customers even though the low-fare carrier's contribution to its viability is acknowledged as crucial by its management (as recently as during interviews after last week’s annual profits announcement).
How else to explain Qantas having the Avalon tower manned when its jets use the airport for maintenance or training purposes but leaving the rapidly growing flow of budget travellers to mix it with small aircraft without internationally acceptable standards of traffic direction and separation?
Jetstar is branded in the market as a carrier with Qantas standards. Until the security and air space standards applied to Qantas customers are extended to Jetstar passengers this claim, at least as far as Avalon is concerned, is untrue.
Qantas implicitly puts a lower value on the lives and safety of Jetstar customers.
Ben Sandilands writes:
Avalon Airport is not just dangerous because of the sporadic manning of the control tower.
On 5 April, Crikey pointed out the insanity of not screening checked baggage on Jetstar flights for weapons and explosives.
An A320 departing Avalon with a bomb on board will make as big a bang as one that flies from Tullamarine, which is now supposed to have 100% screening like the other capital city airports.
Calls to Jetstar went unreturned this morning, but this anomaly has been tolerated ever since the highly successful and fast-growing Qantas subsidiary began flights in June 2004.
But there is a deeper issue of culture wars at play here.
Part of Qantas seems to detest Jetstar and its customers even though the low-fare carrier's contribution to its viability is acknowledged as crucial by its management (as recently as during interviews after last week’s annual profits announcement).
How else to explain Qantas having the Avalon tower manned when its jets use the airport for maintenance or training purposes but leaving the rapidly growing flow of budget travellers to mix it with small aircraft without internationally acceptable standards of traffic direction and separation?
Jetstar is branded in the market as a carrier with Qantas standards. Until the security and air space standards applied to Qantas customers are extended to Jetstar passengers this claim, at least as far as Avalon is concerned, is untrue.
Qantas implicitly puts a lower value on the lives and safety of Jetstar customers.
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But is the tower open for all Qantas group passenger related operations at Avalon Airport??
A very non lengthy and specific response (ie yes or no) will suffice.
Thanking you in anticipation.
A very non lengthy and specific response (ie yes or no) will suffice.
Thanking you in anticipation.
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Touche! 
HOWEVER (
), Please Sir, IF I were to buy a ticket on pornstar WHY am I discrimated against regarding my safety just because I choose to fly at a certain time REGARDLESS of the fact that I am still flying pornstar??
Are my dollars less worthy (yes, they have my name but what they REALLY want is my money, I suspect!) than someone who travels at more "regular" times??
Few more words than minimum required, don't give a s**t!
HOWEVER (
), Please Sir, IF I were to buy a ticket on pornstar WHY am I discrimated against regarding my safety just because I choose to fly at a certain time REGARDLESS of the fact that I am still flying pornstar??Are my dollars less worthy (yes, they have my name but what they REALLY want is my money, I suspect!) than someone who travels at more "regular" times??
Few more words than minimum required, don't give a s**t!
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If you are not screened at Avalon then what happens the the aircraft arrives at Sydney.You have pax who have not been screened disembarking through a terminal that is supposd to be sterile.
or do the J* pax disembark onto buses and have to be screened before they enter the terminal as QF link are?
or do the J* pax disembark onto buses and have to be screened before they enter the terminal as QF link are?
Nunc est bibendum
RedT, pax are screened at Avalon, checked baggage is not. There are no security threats with the pax- well, no additional threats than those that exist at every other airport in Australia where security screening is tendered out to the lowest bidder. 
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The author may as well jump up and down and harp on security standards at Qld and Tas regional airports. At least 4 towered aerodromes received regular A320s and 737s without checked bag screening. If pax from these airports change flights at Mel/Syd/Bne their bags are screened on transfer.
Despite its proximity to a capital city, Avalon is essentially a regional airport, and is equipped accordingly.
Despite its proximity to a capital city, Avalon is essentially a regional airport, and is equipped accordingly.
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Keg,Thanks for the info and that clears up what is as usual a journalistic smokescreen to get a headline.
I'm not sure if it's the same journalist but wasn't Ben Sandilands one of QF's favourite scribes when he wrote for another magazine?
I could be wrong but if it was the same person it seems the wheels have fallen off that relationship.
Yusef Danet,I understand cost is always an issue but are you saying that bags should only be screened at major airports and not regional ones?
I'm not sure if it's the same journalist but wasn't Ben Sandilands one of QF's favourite scribes when he wrote for another magazine?
I could be wrong but if it was the same person it seems the wheels have fallen off that relationship.
Yusef Danet,I understand cost is always an issue but are you saying that bags should only be screened at major airports and not regional ones?
