Go Back  PPRuNe Forums > PPRuNe Worldwide > Australia, New Zealand & the Pacific
Reload this Page >

So you need a new fleet Leigh?

Wikiposts
Search
Australia, New Zealand & the Pacific Airline and RPT Rumours & News in Australia, enZed and the Pacific

So you need a new fleet Leigh?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 5th Jan 2019, 21:08
  #701 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Wherever I can log on.
Posts: 1,871
Received 8 Likes on 6 Posts
Thumbs down

Originally Posted by Dee Vee
So, whats happening with Qantas, currently Sydney airport showing 5 international departures for tonight, only 1 is "on time" but is actually 3 hours delayed, 2 are delayed until tomorrow, including QF25 and the other 2 delayed 2 or 3 hours. Sounds like a major SNAFU.
It appears that most of the international delays are caused by one B747 being in HKG for unscheduled maintenance (that should have been able to be done in-house). As it is now a small fleet, there is not much flexibility to juggle the remaining aircraft onto all the services.

As the Haneda (Tokyo) services normally involve the aircraft remaining on the ground all day, it is the only route where they can catch up some time. This is done by delaying the departure until the afternoon of the following day so that it arrives in HND at 10pm and is turned around immediately for the southbound service. I expect this will continue to happen until OJU returns from HKG maintenance.

Going Boeing is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2019, 21:10
  #702 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Europe
Posts: 1,674
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Dee Vee
So, whats happening with Qantas, currently Sydney airport showing 5 international departures for tonight, only 1 is "on time" but is actually 3 hours delayed, 2 are delayed until tomorrow, including QF25 and the other 2 delayed 2 or 3 hours. Sounds like a major SNAFU?

Hard to believe all the press are bribed with Chairman's Lounge access.....

Only Qantas affected, all others (reasonably) on time....

What is being witnessed are signs that operationally the business is struggling.
Qantas will not divulge the genesis of the problem.
The quiet money and given the experience of the front line staff, is on cuts in search of a 'KPI saving' progressing too far.
As is noted, all other airlines are reasonably on time.
Thus, it is not a weather related event it is possibility a reliability related event.

Is it a lack of crew?
Is it a lack of maintenance personnel?
Is it a lack of inventory spares?


It appears that most of the international delays are caused by one B747 being in HKG for unscheduled maintenance (that should have been able to be done in-house). As it is now a small fleet, there is not much flexibility to juggle the remaining aircraft onto all the services.



It thus appears to be evidence of a fleet deprived of capital. One aircraft with an 'unexpected' problem and the system lacks sufficient capacity to absorb what is a common event. Both the ICCT stated and Mr Roger Montgomery highlighted: Qantas Capital expenditure has been diverted to management largess, $2 billion buys a lot of fleet. That the strategic management of the fleet 'transition' is so disjointed is suggestive of a deep malaise.
As Australia wakes to a Sunday morning, the architect of this dysfunction, has put on his swimwear and is taking his bucket and spade to the beach.
Rated De is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2019, 21:35
  #703 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Canberra
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Going Boeing
As the Haneda (Tokyo) services normally involve the aircraft remaining on the ground all day, it is the only route where they can catch up some time. This is done by delaying the departure until the afternoon of the following day so that it arrives in HND at 10pm and is turned around immediately for the southbound service. I expect this will continue to happen until OJU returns from HKG maintenance.
Forgive me if this is a silly question, but how does delaying QF25 18 hours, ex Sydney, actually catch up any time?

Apart from delaying/angering your customers who probably have onward flights and holidays arranged at the original landing time, many of which will likely will be missed.

Doesn't it just move the time on the ground from Haneda to Sydney, or is the B747 used on another route during the day, so its not actually on the ground in SYD all that time?
Dee Vee is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2019, 21:57
  #704 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: Sydney
Age: 60
Posts: 1,542
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Dee Vee
Forgive me if this is a silly question, but how does delaying QF25 18 hours, ex Sydney, actually catch up any time?

Apart from delaying/angering your customers who probably have onward flights and holidays arranged at the original landing time, many of which will likely will be missed.

Doesn't it just move the time on the ground from Haneda to Sydney, or is the B747 used on another route during the day, so its not actually on the ground in SYD all that time?
The aircraft will arive from another port later in the day. This is the same reason other airlines have fewer problems, they only have one or two aircraft arriving and departing a few hours later.
Tankengine is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2019, 22:43
  #705 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sydney
Posts: 1,624
Received 600 Likes on 170 Posts
It can’t arrive in Haneda u till 2200 or later due to slot restrictions,they would love to get it there earlier as its due to depart at 2200 for Sydney again. So, it departs about midnight arrives in Sydney 2 hours late which generally means the Joburg flight will also be late.
dragon man is offline  
Old 5th Jan 2019, 23:50
  #706 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sydney
Posts: 1,624
Received 600 Likes on 170 Posts
Honolulu on the 747 has now been extended thru till September. A moving feast, or lurching Titanic?
dragon man is offline  
Old 6th Jan 2019, 08:02
  #707 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Australia
Posts: 616
Received 151 Likes on 47 Posts
Oh god, listen to you all panicking over a few disrupted flights like it spells the end of the airline, talk about drama queens.

The reality is there are spare long haul aircraft sitting around during most of the year to plug the holes when unexpected maintenance crops up. However, the international side of the airline makes nearly all its profit during the Christmas holiday break so they push all the aircraft into service, as you would expect. This means disruptions are harder to handle and you need more creative solutions and you’ll piss off more passengers but that is what running an airline is all about.

Look around, all airlines deal with this stuff. Even Air NZ who bought a new fleet are scrambling to find aircraft to operate their services as the new aircraft can’t fly due to unforeseen maintenance issues. It’s part of running an airline.
Beer Baron is offline  
Old 6th Jan 2019, 08:53
  #708 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Europe
Posts: 1,674
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
The Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 Package C engines used on most of the airline's Dreamliners are part of a global alert and it could take 12 months to work through the problems, he said. (ANZ CEO Luxon 22 August 2018.)
ANZ CEO Luxon 22 August 2018.

'Drama' would actually be trying to equate an unscheduled maintenance event with an almost fleet wide propulsion problem. The apparent inability to structure the fleet, maintenance and peak utilisation matrix to cope with a 'solitary point of unexpected failure' results in substantial disruption, is point in fact, suggestive of systemic problems.
Rated De is offline  
Old 6th Jan 2019, 09:43
  #709 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: Sydney
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Rated De
ANZ CEO Luxon 22 August 2018.

The apparent inability to structure the fleet, maintenance and peak utilisation matrix to cope with a 'solitary point of unexpected failure' results in substantial disruption, is point in fact, suggestive of systemic problems.
Or, it just indicates that Qantas consciously plans to push its fleet to the limit during peak periods, in an effort to get as many paying customers as possible to their destinations. Which was precisely Beer Baron's point.

And, even then, Qantas has kept a significant block of downtime in the 747 fleet's schedule, which means it can substantially recover from one of its jumbos going tech within 24-48 hours - and is.
PlasticFantastic is offline  
Old 6th Jan 2019, 09:53
  #710 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Australia
Posts: 616
Received 151 Likes on 47 Posts
Plenty of highfalutin language there but it is simply suggestive of running an airline. Planes break, flights get cancelled, life goes on.

It is common for pilots to on these forums to get frustrated when media take fairly routine aviation incidents and try to blow them up into more serious issues. Now we have pilots (and armchair-experts) doing the very same thing.
Beer Baron is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 00:25
  #711 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Canberra
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Beer Baron
Planes break, flights get cancelled, life goes on.
Passengers are devastated and their holidays ruined, all good according to BB though. Qantas still gets their airfare, and the little leprechaun gets his bonus for a job well done.

More of the same scheduled for tomorrow and the day after and next week.
Dee Vee is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 01:05
  #712 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Dec 2018
Location: Sydney
Posts: 50
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
A single plane going tech during peak season is hardly evidence that Qantas is a basket case. Yes, that has consequences for passengers. But, that is part of the reality of travel - things don't always go to plan. VA had a complete meltdown in SYD over the weekend; Bestjet went into administration just before Christmas; Frontier had an A320 take off with an unsealed door on Christmas morning, which led to passengers not arriving until nearly 4am on Boxing Day.

Taking an airline-wide perspective, Qantas has just been named as the sixth most punctual airline in the world. Even if we take OAG's findings with a grain of salt (and they quite properly note all the usual caveats), its OTP is still very strong.
PlasticFantastic is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 02:41
  #713 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sydney
Posts: 1,624
Received 600 Likes on 170 Posts
Originally Posted by Dee Vee
Passengers are devastated and their holidays ruined, all good according to BB though. Qantas still gets their airfare, and the little leprechaun gets his bonus for a job well done.

More of the same scheduled for tomorrow and the day after and next week.
Qantas care about their customers and holidays? What are you smoking?
dragon man is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 03:24
  #714 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Australia
Posts: 616
Received 151 Likes on 47 Posts
Passengers devastated and holidays ruined!
That sure would make a good tabloid headline for a truely boring story about a delayed flight. Thank you for reiterating my point.
Beer Baron is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 04:10
  #715 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sydney
Posts: 1,624
Received 600 Likes on 170 Posts
Delayed flights due to an aircraft ferried to HongKong for a fuse plug problem because it can’t be done in Sydney and now out until the 11th. Just routine stuff.
dragon man is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 11:22
  #716 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: QLD - where drivers are yet to realise that the left lane goes to their destination too.
Posts: 3,337
Received 182 Likes on 75 Posts
you’ll piss off more passengers but that is what running an airline is all about
I would have thought that NOT pissing off your passengers is what running an airline is all about, especially at a time you are charging peak fares and with little alternatives to offer in recompense.
Traffic_Is_Er_Was is offline  
Old 7th Jan 2019, 23:48
  #717 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Australia
Posts: 616
Received 151 Likes on 47 Posts
Pretty selective quoting there Traffic.
The whole quote that you trimmed was referring to managing disruptions being “what running an airline is all about”.
Beer Baron is offline  
Old 8th Jan 2019, 10:30
  #718 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: QLD - where drivers are yet to realise that the left lane goes to their destination too.
Posts: 3,337
Received 182 Likes on 75 Posts
The reality is there are spare long haul aircraft sitting around during most of the year to plug the holes when unexpected maintenance crops up. However, the international side of the airline makes nearly all its profit during the Christmas holiday break so they push all the aircraft into service, as you would expect. This means disruptions are harder to handle and you need more creative solutions and you’ll piss off more passengers but that is what running an airline is all about.
I would have thought that NOT pissing off your passengers is what running an airline is all about, especially at a time you are charging peak fares and with little alternatives to offer in recompense.
Happy now? End result is still pissed off passengers ie customers. Never good for business.
Traffic_Is_Er_Was is offline  
Old 8th Jan 2019, 12:44
  #719 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Fliegensville, Gold Coast Australia
Posts: 37
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like on 1 Post
If I may be allowed to reply...I am eligible for QF staff tkts...(I never use them)...after the 2011 'shutdown' ... well...it simply defies belief it was not pre-determined, and the man referred to here as 'Little Napoleon' has turned me off my home Country Airline for good...

In any case...I refuse to fly with the likes of Malindo Air, Lion Air, Air Asia Indonesia, Air France, or QANTAS....there is a similar thread running through all those operators...not you 'Sky Gods' mind...heaven forbid....just that without looking too hard, there are many better ways to fly not using QF....that is just a fact...and I refuse to go through he UAE....I am allowed to make decisions based on my principles...and my $ goes ways the likes of 'Little Napoleon' would not understand...
Fliegenmong is offline  
Old 8th Jan 2019, 13:37
  #720 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: sydney
Posts: 1,624
Received 600 Likes on 170 Posts
We now have a 330 stuck in HongKong, needed an engine change in Sydney but guess what they don’t have one, so 24 hour delay in HongKong. More happy punters.
dragon man is offline  


Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.