Merged: QF Delays/Serviceabilities - Add entries here
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Today in Crikey.com
Ben Sandilands' article:
This week’s stand offs between angry passengers and Qantas has seen air travel cross the same threshold of ugliness it did in America , the UK and much of Europe years ago.
It is close to war between some carriers and their customers abroad, with the loathing that exists between British Airways and the mob scenes of its top tier frequent flyer members throwing their cards in disgust on the floor of Heathrow Airport indicative of what happens when incompetence becomes entrenched in service delivery.
But now an Australian airline has started using security and police to protect itself from outraged punters who don’t get what they paid for, which is punctuality, civility and cleanliness.
The invasion of a Qantas Club lounge at Sydney’s international terminal on Monday by passengers who had been completely screwed by a cumulative 24-hour delay on a flight to London really isn’t the amusing incident it was reported as being in some quarters.
It was a rupture of trust that is very dangerous for Qantas, and a clear warning to Virgin Blue and Tiger.
That incident and others that followed this week arise from the inability of Qantas to maintain its fleet in reliable working order.
Pre the lounge invasion Qantas and Jetstar have dumped jetloads of hundreds of passengers at a time in terminals, even outside locked terminals, in Sydney, Perth, Hobart and Honolulu among others as aircraft broke down and staff dithered over the arrangements or obligations needed to accommodate them.
Passengers have been left sleeping on bus shed benches in some cases.
Qantas no longer has enough spare parts nor qualified maintenance staff on duty, to perform the necessary pre-flight or turnaround checks, or carry out what in a full service carrier would be otherwise routine running repairs or rectifications.
It goes beyond the current overtime bans by maintenance workers too. Most of the screw ups in Qantas and Jetstar flights this year have happened before the bans were applied.
The forced withdrawal from service of four aged 747s and several seriously unreliable senior 767s just announced by Qantas will make things much worse. These jets aren’t worth the heavy maintenance they need to remain safe and legal, but the replacements Qantas thought it was getting through a large order of Boeing "Dreamliners" isn’t going to happen this year, as planned, or even next year, as more recently promised by the maker, and possibly not until 2011. The Dudliner hasn’t even flown yet. It is still in pieces in Seattle, being wired together.
Yet the maintenance union claims Qantas gutted its engineering resources in Australia in anticipation of outsourcing even more of the work overseas as it introduces new wide bodied jets including the giant Airbus A380s and the Dreamliners and now seems unable to cope with their late deliveries.
Whatever management and the unions say about their respective positions is lost on alienated customers.
The brand is trashing itself as management finds itself trapped by aircraft makers that can’t deliver, and maintenance arrangements that can’t cope.
This week’s stand offs between angry passengers and Qantas has seen air travel cross the same threshold of ugliness it did in America , the UK and much of Europe years ago.
It is close to war between some carriers and their customers abroad, with the loathing that exists between British Airways and the mob scenes of its top tier frequent flyer members throwing their cards in disgust on the floor of Heathrow Airport indicative of what happens when incompetence becomes entrenched in service delivery.
But now an Australian airline has started using security and police to protect itself from outraged punters who don’t get what they paid for, which is punctuality, civility and cleanliness.
The invasion of a Qantas Club lounge at Sydney’s international terminal on Monday by passengers who had been completely screwed by a cumulative 24-hour delay on a flight to London really isn’t the amusing incident it was reported as being in some quarters.
It was a rupture of trust that is very dangerous for Qantas, and a clear warning to Virgin Blue and Tiger.
That incident and others that followed this week arise from the inability of Qantas to maintain its fleet in reliable working order.
Pre the lounge invasion Qantas and Jetstar have dumped jetloads of hundreds of passengers at a time in terminals, even outside locked terminals, in Sydney, Perth, Hobart and Honolulu among others as aircraft broke down and staff dithered over the arrangements or obligations needed to accommodate them.
Passengers have been left sleeping on bus shed benches in some cases.
Qantas no longer has enough spare parts nor qualified maintenance staff on duty, to perform the necessary pre-flight or turnaround checks, or carry out what in a full service carrier would be otherwise routine running repairs or rectifications.
It goes beyond the current overtime bans by maintenance workers too. Most of the screw ups in Qantas and Jetstar flights this year have happened before the bans were applied.
The forced withdrawal from service of four aged 747s and several seriously unreliable senior 767s just announced by Qantas will make things much worse. These jets aren’t worth the heavy maintenance they need to remain safe and legal, but the replacements Qantas thought it was getting through a large order of Boeing "Dreamliners" isn’t going to happen this year, as planned, or even next year, as more recently promised by the maker, and possibly not until 2011. The Dudliner hasn’t even flown yet. It is still in pieces in Seattle, being wired together.
Yet the maintenance union claims Qantas gutted its engineering resources in Australia in anticipation of outsourcing even more of the work overseas as it introduces new wide bodied jets including the giant Airbus A380s and the Dreamliners and now seems unable to cope with their late deliveries.
Whatever management and the unions say about their respective positions is lost on alienated customers.
The brand is trashing itself as management finds itself trapped by aircraft makers that can’t deliver, and maintenance arrangements that can’t cope.
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Flight cancelled about 1000 local, pax offloaded to other flights, crew disembarked. Looks like this delay had nothing to do with the ALAEA campaign. Just bad luck with weather.
Nunc est bibendum
But the blatant dishonesty to keep the punters quiet is a pretty low act.
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relax
Quote:
Originally Posted by Driver 242
You are just so stupid! If you want to have industrial action, just do it. Make a statement and the rest of the employees will support you 100% To just have an unofficial go slow is worse than doing nothing. It plays right into managements hands, allowing GD to put the delays on you, and imply that a highly skilled work force is incompetent and needs replacing. By just having a go slow puts enormous pressure on the flight crew, extending what was a 12 hour day into a 13 hour day. It does have an effect on the safety of the flight. Yes I am one of the flight crew that is effected by these go slows. Yes I support your case, but I do in no way condone pi55ing off thousands of passengers, who on many cases are setting of on a holiday that that have been saving for for years.
If you want to go on strike, do it. Passengers will understand.
To just delay everything with unofficial actions just makes you appear incompetent.
Maaaate....... We are not on a go slow, we just have a **** load less people avail to carry out the work. Remember when your at the gate usally there is a sh*t load more that is happening everywhere else. Aircraft are getting grounded because they are unserviceable and UNSAFE. I thank you for your support..... please be patient. 99% of engineers normally give up to 120% due to most of us have a professional conscience. There are a lot of aircraft that are getting older and things are now piling up. The remaining engineers on shift are now not giving the normal 120% just doing their job. If GD was'nt so bloody arrogant and came to meetings when he was supposed to maybe this whole thing would be sorted out by now. I hear your your complaints but unfortunately I dont agree with you. I applaud the crews for being understanding and believe it or not there are a lot of passengers who are also behind us (not just our mums). GD is making a fool of himself evertime he gets interviewed. He seems to forget what he has told one media group and goes and contradicts himself in another ............. tut tut tut
Be patient my friend, maybe everyone in QF will get to benefit
Originally Posted by Driver 242
You are just so stupid! If you want to have industrial action, just do it. Make a statement and the rest of the employees will support you 100% To just have an unofficial go slow is worse than doing nothing. It plays right into managements hands, allowing GD to put the delays on you, and imply that a highly skilled work force is incompetent and needs replacing. By just having a go slow puts enormous pressure on the flight crew, extending what was a 12 hour day into a 13 hour day. It does have an effect on the safety of the flight. Yes I am one of the flight crew that is effected by these go slows. Yes I support your case, but I do in no way condone pi55ing off thousands of passengers, who on many cases are setting of on a holiday that that have been saving for for years.
If you want to go on strike, do it. Passengers will understand.
To just delay everything with unofficial actions just makes you appear incompetent.
Maaaate....... We are not on a go slow, we just have a **** load less people avail to carry out the work. Remember when your at the gate usally there is a sh*t load more that is happening everywhere else. Aircraft are getting grounded because they are unserviceable and UNSAFE. I thank you for your support..... please be patient. 99% of engineers normally give up to 120% due to most of us have a professional conscience. There are a lot of aircraft that are getting older and things are now piling up. The remaining engineers on shift are now not giving the normal 120% just doing their job. If GD was'nt so bloody arrogant and came to meetings when he was supposed to maybe this whole thing would be sorted out by now. I hear your your complaints but unfortunately I dont agree with you. I applaud the crews for being understanding and believe it or not there are a lot of passengers who are also behind us (not just our mums). GD is making a fool of himself evertime he gets interviewed. He seems to forget what he has told one media group and goes and contradicts himself in another ............. tut tut tut
Be patient my friend, maybe everyone in QF will get to benefit
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Sorry boys, it was me, i confess, it was me who blocked the toilet,haven't been eating my roughage lately and I dropped the mother of all turds...................
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From the perspective of a DJ employee its a horrible position to be in. Inexcusable behaviour. Yes maybe there was a surplus of engineers years ago, alas its hard to strike any interest in people wanting to be LAME's etc.
Friends who are BNE engineers have been working on 767 by themselves with a handful of new trainees over the last 12 months to repair and maintain these aircraft.
More engineers = more qualified staff = more repairs and maintenance completed professionally.
The additional $$ the engineers would have reeped from the % raise has most probably been lost in the striking action which occurred. (Please hold your fire with the numbers im about to pull out) The difference of 1-2% from what QF was offering to the % unions asked for.
So the loss of that % increase seems not to the be issue but to have professional engineers (more than 1 per an aircraft) to ensure safety of the planes, passengers and the engineers liability.
I do hope DJ do not go down this track ever.
I wish the best for those guys in the midst of all the sh*t.
Friends who are BNE engineers have been working on 767 by themselves with a handful of new trainees over the last 12 months to repair and maintain these aircraft.
More engineers = more qualified staff = more repairs and maintenance completed professionally.
The additional $$ the engineers would have reeped from the % raise has most probably been lost in the striking action which occurred. (Please hold your fire with the numbers im about to pull out) The difference of 1-2% from what QF was offering to the % unions asked for.
So the loss of that % increase seems not to the be issue but to have professional engineers (more than 1 per an aircraft) to ensure safety of the planes, passengers and the engineers liability.
I do hope DJ do not go down this track ever.
I wish the best for those guys in the midst of all the sh*t.
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I have never, ever come across a Captain that has lied to the passengers to 'keep them quiet'. I've had times where we've been fed incorrect information by the people on the other end of the radio and we've relayed that only to find out it was incorrect but that is a very different thing to stating that crew would be complicit in lying to our passengers.
And it's a little bit of a stretch to say no Captain has ever told porkys about why a flight is late!
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10 Qantas domestic flights departing from Sydney were cancelled yesterday. Two possible reasons for that. They either didn't have enough serviceable aircraft, or their yield management planning went berserk. If it's the former, management have messed up - still flying plane beyond their used by date or a lack of personnel to fix them. If it's the latter, demand for flights has deteriorated at an amazing rate - an announcement should be made to the market. Which is it Geoff? The silence is deafening!
Nunc est bibendum
And it's a little bit of a stretch to say no Captain has ever told porkys about why a flight is late!
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QF planning went into meltdown today over possible compliance breaches, 767 fleet is having serious issues.
Tuesday is expected to be crunch day when many planes could be grounded what a mess!
Tuesday is expected to be crunch day when many planes could be grounded what a mess!
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767 straight out of heavy maintenance in BNE on Thursday and straight into a revenue service - result: air turnback with Leading Edge Slat Assymetry and then a thrust reverser carks it during the landing roll.
I think any future ATSB report will detail 'multiple systemic failures'.
I heard QF called Ansett 99 the other day... very true!
I think any future ATSB report will detail 'multiple systemic failures'.
I heard QF called Ansett 99 the other day... very true!
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wanty: Sorry boys, it was me, i confess, it was me who blocked the toilet,haven't been eating my roughage lately and I dropped the mother of all turds................... Yesterday 23:46
What's that Wanty,
You gave birth to a Geoff!
No wonder the toilet rejected it and gave up in disgust!
Yesterday 23:46What's that Wanty,
You gave birth to a Geoff!
No wonder the toilet rejected it and gave up in disgust!
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QF planning went into meltdown today over possible compliance breaches, 767 fleet is having serious issues.
Tuesday is expected to be crunch day when many planes could be grounded what a mess!
Tuesday is expected to be crunch day when many planes could be grounded what a mess!