The way we were - Ansett, TAA, Qantas
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 472
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Qantas too, had great service and food at the pointy end. During the late 60's,, my new wife and I travelled 1st class to and from London. Silver service, wonderful wines and very comfortable seats on the 707 at that time.
No in flight entertainment then, but you didn't miss what you never had, and the staff made you feel quite special during the flight. Nothing was too much trouble.
Not as many people travelling in those days and everyone was well dressed, even in economy. No business class then.
Fortunate to have been given the trip as wedding present, so it was just fabulous and a great start to a long marriage.
No in flight entertainment then, but you didn't miss what you never had, and the staff made you feel quite special during the flight. Nothing was too much trouble.
Not as many people travelling in those days and everyone was well dressed, even in economy. No business class then.
Fortunate to have been given the trip as wedding present, so it was just fabulous and a great start to a long marriage.
Moderator
Have had a variety of fine pax trips on QF and AN (both international and domestic) in years gone by.
However, for a number of years, I was contracting with ANZ in Auckland and commuting to/from Melbourne. On those occasions that the ladies saw fit to wake me for the meal, it was invariably delightful.
However, for a number of years, I was contracting with ANZ in Auckland and commuting to/from Melbourne. On those occasions that the ladies saw fit to wake me for the meal, it was invariably delightful.
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Brisbane
Age: 77
Posts: 1,406
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
A little off topic maybe, but hey it was a Mod that brought it up. 
I too have had meals/cabin service of various quality over the decades, but without doubt the best cabin service I ever had as a passenger was on Air New Zealand, on my last International flight returning from the USA after that Ansett contract.
It was in business class, but unbelievable service.
It was only after we arrived in Auckland that I found out why, the Guy I was seated next to all that way was the NZ Rugby Coach, and they had to really look after me as they did him, VERY well.
I too have had meals/cabin service of various quality over the decades, but without doubt the best cabin service I ever had as a passenger was on Air New Zealand, on my last International flight returning from the USA after that Ansett contract.
It was in business class, but unbelievable service.
It was only after we arrived in Auckland that I found out why, the Guy I was seated next to all that way was the NZ Rugby Coach, and they had to really look after me as they did him, VERY well.
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Perth
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
TAA, Ansett and Qantas
Awesome thread. On the subject of days gone by in Aussie Aviation, I have a website dedicated to many of the Airlines referenced in the thread. Check it out at Aussie Airline Uniforms and Collectibles. Hope it is of interest.
Daz
Daz
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: New Zealand
Age: 71
Posts: 1,475
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Oh yes, the food!! I remember having some ball tearing meals particularly on ANZ, but Ansett served up some good dishes. Up front you would even get deserts, tasty meals including meat you could identify, proper cutlery, napkins and even cups, saucers and glasses with AN emblem on them
I loved first flights of the day also, the interior of the aircraft would smell crisp and clean, it would actually look clean after a quality job from her overnight clean. Unlike today when you jump onboard and there is slop over the floor, you pull out the inflight mag and get gum and old hairs on your hands, and occasionally there will be spew or residual food embedded under your lap belt sash.
When paxing I enjoyed the cloth aircraft seats, not too worn and comfy. Cigarette ashtray ready to be filled throughout the journey and if you had to take a quick wee break rarely would you step into the toilet with a floor covered in urine!
You had time to sign on for shift, no overly rushed pre-flight walk around, you could look and admire your machine for the day. Hell, if you did have a delay you could even use some extra fuel burn to make up a few minutes for the punters, without getting a kick in the arse from management.
Thems were the days
I loved first flights of the day also, the interior of the aircraft would smell crisp and clean, it would actually look clean after a quality job from her overnight clean. Unlike today when you jump onboard and there is slop over the floor, you pull out the inflight mag and get gum and old hairs on your hands, and occasionally there will be spew or residual food embedded under your lap belt sash.
When paxing I enjoyed the cloth aircraft seats, not too worn and comfy. Cigarette ashtray ready to be filled throughout the journey and if you had to take a quick wee break rarely would you step into the toilet with a floor covered in urine!
You had time to sign on for shift, no overly rushed pre-flight walk around, you could look and admire your machine for the day. Hell, if you did have a delay you could even use some extra fuel burn to make up a few minutes for the punters, without getting a kick in the arse from management.
Thems were the days
ansett in 1983
I commend to you the book Beyond the Blue Horizon by kiwi journalist Alexander Frater. (Only available these days as an e-book Im afraid). In 1983 Frater decided to replicate using modern airlines the old Imperial Airways route to from London to Brisbane from the 1930s. His journey variously took him through Egypt, Iraq, the Middle East and Pakistan- where he met an Air New Zealand F27 crew on detachment to the Oman air force.
The final chapters cover his route from Darwin to Brisbane and he flies a Tillair Cessna 421 (The Conquest is crook today mate) and has lunch with Ossie Osgood of Arnhem Air Charter.
Apropos the way we were here is a section from his evening flight from Townsville to Brisbane on the Ansett B727:
Dinner was roast lamb, carrots, broccoli and potatoes, served with a quarter bottle of classie Aussie claret. The moonless Pacific turned from pearl grey to black, the sky to the west over Australia from an exuberant swirl of orange and plum to a faint luminous smudge, like the glow from live embers.
I sat immediately behind First Class and the voices, fuelled by free liquor, grew more boisterous, the laughter less restrained until it sounded as if an impromptu party was being thrown in the forward cabin.
I saw reflected in the dark window a first class meal being demolished by a sinewy brown arm with its sleeve rolled up and gold Rolex Oyster on the wrist. It worked its way through a giant chunk of pate encased in pastry and a pound or two of beef. Periodically the small hand of the stewardess stole into the window to refill his wine glass. He and his neighbour were conversing noisily about the State Mangroves Board and the butt of their jokes was an official referred to as the Commissioner of Mangroves. Could this be true? If so these two held the commissioner in very low esteem.
I wasnt in Australia at the time- in fact I was sitting on by ar$e in Nigeria trying not to get killed- but this to me evokes a time many talk about- the heyday of Australian airline service and of course some of the customers who used them.
The final chapters cover his route from Darwin to Brisbane and he flies a Tillair Cessna 421 (The Conquest is crook today mate) and has lunch with Ossie Osgood of Arnhem Air Charter.
Apropos the way we were here is a section from his evening flight from Townsville to Brisbane on the Ansett B727:
Dinner was roast lamb, carrots, broccoli and potatoes, served with a quarter bottle of classie Aussie claret. The moonless Pacific turned from pearl grey to black, the sky to the west over Australia from an exuberant swirl of orange and plum to a faint luminous smudge, like the glow from live embers.
I sat immediately behind First Class and the voices, fuelled by free liquor, grew more boisterous, the laughter less restrained until it sounded as if an impromptu party was being thrown in the forward cabin.
I saw reflected in the dark window a first class meal being demolished by a sinewy brown arm with its sleeve rolled up and gold Rolex Oyster on the wrist. It worked its way through a giant chunk of pate encased in pastry and a pound or two of beef. Periodically the small hand of the stewardess stole into the window to refill his wine glass. He and his neighbour were conversing noisily about the State Mangroves Board and the butt of their jokes was an official referred to as the Commissioner of Mangroves. Could this be true? If so these two held the commissioner in very low esteem.
I wasnt in Australia at the time- in fact I was sitting on by ar$e in Nigeria trying not to get killed- but this to me evokes a time many talk about- the heyday of Australian airline service and of course some of the customers who used them.
Last edited by airspace alpha; 2nd Feb 2014 at 03:50. Reason: spelling
An outstanding read indeed. The bits about his early experiences in the Qantas Short Class C Empire boats between Brisbane and Fiji are brilliant. Then late in the book when flying his retrace through Queensland he sits next to a female passenger who had a silver miniature on a bracelet of the very same flying boat that he knew in his childhood. Coriolanus perhaps?
Also memorable was the advice he had from Ossie Osgood as to how Ossie would insist on his pilots reading a few prescribed texts , all to do with earlier days and the lore that past pilots wrote about tellingly.
Also memorable was the advice he had from Ossie Osgood as to how Ossie would insist on his pilots reading a few prescribed texts , all to do with earlier days and the lore that past pilots wrote about tellingly.
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: On the chopping board.
Posts: 929
Likes: 0
Received 4 Likes
on
2 Posts
AHHH, The Smoke.
I remember sitting in the back of cattle class smoking a pack of Winfield blue from Sydney to LA, then getting off the flight to a cold Bud. I don't know how the poor staff tolerated the smoke. I don't know how I did either.
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Brisbane
Age: 77
Posts: 1,406
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
AHHH, The Smoke.
Whatever you think of smoking I actually missed it after it was banned, NOT from having to inhale it when flying, but as an Engineer.
Why?
On more than one occasion back then it helped us troubleshoot problems, when looking for pressurisation leaks.
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Australia
Posts: 61
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Nicotine gunge
In the days of smoking allowed on aircraft one of the least favorable jobs was to clean or trouble shoot an outflow valve problem. The sticky, nicotine created, goo was horrible, and I used to smoke then too! Gave it away in 1990 though.
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Brisbane
Age: 77
Posts: 1,406
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
In the days of smoking allowed on aircraft one of the least favorable jobs was to clean or trouble shoot an outflow valve problem. The sticky, nicotine created, goo was horrible
It was though as I was saying very helpful sometimes with pressurisation problems, made it so much easier to find leaks, all the loose rivets or even small cracks in the skin of the aircraft.
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: New Zealand
Age: 71
Posts: 1,475
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
China Airlines Flight 611 crash back in 2002. The aircraft broke apart mid air due to an incorrect repair that was done a few decades earlier after a tail strike. Investigators found nicotine stains outside of the doubler plate repair patch, eventually this helped to identify a faulty repair as the root cause of the accident.
Who would have thought that cigarette smoke could help in an accident investigation?
Who would have thought that cigarette smoke could help in an accident investigation?
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Brisbane
Age: 77
Posts: 1,406
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Of course cigarette smoke was not the only human added thing that caused problems back in the olde days, hopefully not now.
Way back in the 1960s when I was an Ansett Apprentice and in heavy maintenance at the time we were the first Airline in the World to have to do a complete overhaul on our 727s, and we had all sorts of people out here from Boeing to assist etc.
I was on the engine crew at the time, so once we had the engines and APU out, we assisted with the airframe, mainly on section 48, couldn't believe all the tools we found at the bottom of it, riveting tools mainly that had obviously been dropped when building the aircraft and left there.
Myself and another Apprentice were given the very long and boring job of checking the bolts securing section 48 to section 46, a ring of bolts right around the circumference of the fuselage, until we found EVERY bolt we checked below floor level was VERY badly corroded and our boring job suddenly became VERY important, the Boeing people were concerned that IF our aircraft were typical of the 727 fleet in general, there was a strong possibility 727s MAY actually LOSE their whole section 48 in flight, that is the whole tail including all 3 engines.
Boeing determined that the problem was not foreseen earlier, and was caused by ''urine'' leaking from the rear toilets and reacting with the dissimilar metals of the bolts and the structure.
Way back in the 1960s when I was an Ansett Apprentice and in heavy maintenance at the time we were the first Airline in the World to have to do a complete overhaul on our 727s, and we had all sorts of people out here from Boeing to assist etc.
I was on the engine crew at the time, so once we had the engines and APU out, we assisted with the airframe, mainly on section 48, couldn't believe all the tools we found at the bottom of it, riveting tools mainly that had obviously been dropped when building the aircraft and left there.
Myself and another Apprentice were given the very long and boring job of checking the bolts securing section 48 to section 46, a ring of bolts right around the circumference of the fuselage, until we found EVERY bolt we checked below floor level was VERY badly corroded and our boring job suddenly became VERY important, the Boeing people were concerned that IF our aircraft were typical of the 727 fleet in general, there was a strong possibility 727s MAY actually LOSE their whole section 48 in flight, that is the whole tail including all 3 engines.
Boeing determined that the problem was not foreseen earlier, and was caused by ''urine'' leaking from the rear toilets and reacting with the dissimilar metals of the bolts and the structure.
