Does Qantas cancel international flights due to low loads?

[I love to travel]

Just wondering whether anyone has any data points regarding this. Loads to North America in July are very light so wondering if Qantas may consolidate some flights. When would it likely happen and how good are they going to be at transferring to other flights especially if on a J rewards tickets.

 

[RichardMEL]

What makes you think July (a total peak demand time) loads are "light" ? You write it as a statement.

And if they are as light as you're saying then surely no issue moving to a J seat on another flight no?

 

[drron]

And in July there are school holidays. So why aren't patriotic Australians flocking to the national airline with much better aircraft and services than any other airline. Well according to one particular poster.

 

[I love to travel]

What makes you think July (a total peak demand time) loads are "light" ? You write it as a statement.

And if they are as light as you're saying then surely no issue moving to a J seat on another flight no?

When expert flyer has a 9 next to every cabin class including F and J. I was looking for some informed data points. A9 F9 I 9 is unusual.

 

[RooFlyer]

the national airline

I hope you were standing rigidly to attention while you were typing that!

 

[dajop]

Are loads low in both directions for that particular route?

 

[RichardMEL]

If you want "informed" comment, that's commercial in confidence..

That said, yes, sure, a lot of 9's out there looking at various rabdom dates in zjuly for MEL/SYD/BNE - but not all. I saw some A4's and more limited I and W inventory on some sectors.

Some "experienced" points to keep in mind.

1. EF shows what they will sell in one transaction.
2. These flights all have return sectors to fly with bookings. Lower loads(maybe) may not equate to lower loads on the return. Plus we're talking flights carrying hundreds of pax each way.
3. They also carry cargo

I fully understand the REAL question here is "Do QF consolidate flights for international - specifically USA - as (it is alleged) they do on domestic, and if so what are the chances the flights I am booked on will get cancelled and chance to retain J seats if so?"

I really do not think this is a thing. It's not like the next flight is in 30mins or an hour, and potentially hundreds of pax (including return sectors) affected would probably cost more than anything saved due to a "consolidation cancel"

The reality us that operational reliability ussues are more than likely a far bigger thing to worry about than potential flight consolidation.

This view may not be as "informed" as you would like, but anyone in the actual know almost certainly is not going to post on a public forum.

 

[I love to travel]

Are loads low in both directions for that particular route?

Yes

 

[RichardMEL]

A QF A380 with 485 seats could be booked to 80% (ie 388) and still probably be selling at 9's across the board.

Even a half loaded 380 is more than a QF 787 load full.

I'm not too sure how you want to define "low loads" but keep that in mind in terms of actual numbers potentially involved.

 

[elanshin]

They're not going to consolidate the a380 out. If anything the "consolidation" has already occurred. We've already had a bunch of scheduled flights canned and consolidated.

At this point they likely won't mess around too much more besides IRROPs situation. It costs them a fair amount of work ($$) to rebook everyone too if they want to mess around with schedules.

 

[Kerrodt]

Not to mention cancelling a flight will take that aircraft out of sync in the cycle that it operates with all other aircraft in its cycle which has the risk of creating downstream impacts on other flights and schedules.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

And also freight! A lighter pax load means they can carry more freight and make $$ that way.

 

[opusman]

The ramifications of cancelling the single (as it generally is) flight a day to a longhaul destination, which would also imply cancelling its return, would be far more significant than cancelling a short domestic flight that's usually one of multiple. I'd be surprised if they would ever do that simply because the loadings were light (and these days I doubt the loadings on international are ever "light").

 

[Jenya]

QF16 cancelled today?

 

[Lynda2475]

Do QF international flights to /from US sometimes get cancelled - Yes but rarely. Is it due to low loads - No.

Much more likely due to be due to mechanical issues or delays with positioning aircraft given to the impact it has to subsequent flights.

Otoh Domestically on high frequency routes it happens often.

 

[Eastwick20]

9's across the board does not mean the flight is empty, it just means they are willing to sell you a seat in any fare bucket/tier
I flew to Los Angeles in February on UA and Hong Kong a few weeks ago on CX,
Both showed wide open the day before but in reality were fully booked when the aircraft doors closed.

 

[TheInsider]

QF16 cancelled today?
View attachment 388465

QF website doesn't even have this as a scheduled service that I can see? Maybe BNE has old data?

 

[A220HubAndSpoke]

Employeee scheduling alone is a good enough reason not to cancel a flight.

The cost of a poor operation is far more expensive than a good one.

 

[loveremoval]

QF95 MEL-LAX on 18/6 and 20/6 both cancelled. Rebooked through Sydney.

20/6 flight still had plenty of seats available yesterday.

Smells very suspiciously like "load balancing"

 

[TheInsider]

QF95 MEL-LAX on 18/6 and 20/6 both cancelled. Rebooked through Sydney.

20/6 flight still had plenty of seats available yesterday.

Smells very suspiciously like "load balancing"

No. It's due to a 787 being put out of service. <redacted>