Merged: Qantas:The Trashing Of A Brand

[lowerlobe]

I can see Darth and Mini-Me knocking on the door at Parliament House in Canberra telling the Government how desperate things are and asking if there any hand outs available....just like the car manufacturers in the US.

Did anyone else see one of the committee in Congress ask if any of the CEO's of the car manufacturers thought things were that bad and they needed help from the Government would they consider selling their corporate jets and taking a commercial flight home....not one hand was raised.

How many times over the years have we seen Darth spell imminent doom and gloom.Bookings might be slowing down and it's well known that a number of aircraft are past their best in terms of efficiency and resale value.The question is how can you tell what the real situation is.

We have seen 9/11 & SARS to mention just a few and the effect they had on aviation and the company told us the end was near and we all had to take a pay freeze,costs have to be cut,sustainable futures...etc...etc...etc...

Wait for the announcement that they are merging with BA/SIA/anyone so they can remain viable.Darth has wanted this for years and I'm sure he would love to see this at least started before he retires to run a pub in Wagga

[BeerMan]

I find the most alarmimg part of the article to be the general public comments following the story. What once may have been a sympathetic public have appeared to almost turn on their once proud national airline.

[sthaussiepilot]

Did anyone else see one of the committee in Congress ask if any of the CEO's of the car manufacturers thought things were that bad and they needed help from the Government would they consider selling their corporate jets and taking a commercial flight home....not one hand was raised.

I saw that lower, I thought it was absolute rubbish that none of them put their hands up to sell their jets!!


(I wouldnt want to either, but if they are in such a dire situation....its kind of a no brainer...)

[lowerlobe]

sthaussiepilot....Yeah that was my thought as well and you can hardly go running to the Government for help and drink expensive champagne at the same time.....well not without looking stupid.

"Sorry Senator but can we hurry this hearing up and give us our cheque because the ice for our drinks is melting in our private jets and we have a party to attend in Aspen tonight"

The irony of the board rooms today is that they all to often blame the unions for the problems they face.....

[kotoyebe]

I wonder how much of the "dire forward bookings" can be attributed to the fact we have difficulty getting a lot of our pax to their destination ontime lately? More than 24 hours to go Trans Tasman? That will instill confidence into the punters...not.

[speedbirdhouse]

Or provide them with the kind of service onboard that one would expect of a, "premium carrier".

What about the passengers booked on the A380 out of LA who, due to an aircraft change, ended up on a two class 744?

First class down graded to J/C and to top it off........

No IFE AND no reading lights for the 13 hour flight.

Evidently they just sat there for the duration like stunned mullets.

It's no wonder cabin crew seethe when the discussion of management comes up as it's we who deal, face to face with these continual service failures.

I wonder who those 400 passengers will choose NOT to fly with when next they travel?

[blow.n.gasket]

kotoyebe,
well if the latest rumour is correct, any Trans Tasman flying ,post april next year ,if late ,won't be the fault of Qantas!
Trans Tasman flying to be taken over by jetstar and jetConnect!

[tech-line]

i wonder if it wasn't for the delay from boeing and airbus would qantas domestic even exisit.
maybe city flyer but would mainlain be here?
just a thought

[framer]

well if the latest rumour is correct, any Trans Tasman flying ,post april next year ,if late ,won't be the fault of Qantas!
Trans Tasman flying to be taken over by jetstar and jetConnect!

I Find that hard to believe. The J* market is the J* market, but if they consign all "Qantas " tasman flights to 737's, many many regular pax will change to an airline that operate larger a/c. Punters just prefer the larger a/c, simple as that and 737's are seen as a pain in the butt on anything more than a one hour flight.

[capt.cynical]

LCA

My fear is that the new CEO is a "one trick pony" he only has knowledge of LCA operations.
The DUMBING DOWN will continue.

[Frank Burden]

Don't worry, CASA will ensure the safety of the operation and we can all sleep well in our beds.

[shazza26]

Flying Jetstar all the time sux, need to have the full service airline as well.

[prunezeuss]

Oz To Japan with Scum Star

With taxes etc....pretty much the same

[mrpaxing]

jetconnect/J*

will take the majority of flights on the tasman from april. our lady bus driver in auckland has been told she needs to look for another job. mostly 737-800 aussie rego will be operated by jetconnect. emirates will start flying the A380 in april to auckland. good move by qf to downgrade the aircraft, NOT

[Mstr Caution]

Jetconnect & Jetstar exclusively on the Tasman wont be happening.
QF management would otherwise be handing ANZ the business market on a silver platter.

As for the bus driver in Auckland. Sour grapes after 17 years of night driving.

[hotnhigh]

Forget ANZ, they've handed the business market straight into emirates's lap.
Quite often no business seats left on any of their services from oz to nz. And you only have to see the queue at the emirates lounge to see why qantas cant make any money on it.
Feed it and it may grow, starve it and it will die.

[amp04]

Don't let logic come into it, managements involved. Rumour heard this week is that some if not all New Zealand based Qantas ground staff have been given notice. Jetstar will have there own staff. I suspect the only Qantas wide body we will see in AKL is QF 25/26 by mid next year, but that's only my opinion.

[lowerlobe]

Mstr Caution...Simply because it would be a poor business decision does not mean it would not be made....How many times have we seen decisions taken that leave most of us shaking our head.

As for your comment about the bus driver in AKL...A bit harsh don't you think?

Someone is contracted by the company to do a job and if it is taken away all you can say is sour grapes?

She was simply saying that she has been told that she will no longer be needed....there was no malice in her words.I wonder if I could describe the complaints about the suggested move of hotel in HKG for tech crew as sour grapes....

[CaptCloudbuster]

Latest intel is Jetstar to take over the Perth - Narita service also currently serviced by Mainline B767's!

Straight from the redundant QF ground handling staff in Narita

[Ken Borough]

In the face of recalcitrant unions, I believe that Qantas appeared to have little choice but to start Jetstar if the company was to survive. A lot of you don't want to face facts but the company could not sustain the antediluvian conditions demanded to be maintained by some of its staff's unions. It still can't. As a result, Jetstar is expanding at the expense of mainline.


I hate to see the decline of what was once a great and proud airline, the likes of which most airlines aspired to emulate. The decline is as much the fault of management as it is the unions as the former did not have the courage and/or will to sit with employee groups after the QF/TN merger to develop T&Cs that were typical of the late 20th century. That they failed to do this stands them condemned and to the relief of most, this team of domestic hacks has largely if not totally departed the scene. It is probably too late to stop the rot and halt the advance of Jetstar but perhaps one day in the not too distant future, Jetstar will form the two-class section of mainline as the Qantas brand.