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Yes - their particular patch du jour.An airline can only control a small patch of that area.
Yes - their particular patch du jour.An airline can only control a small patch of that area.
Sorry - you = OP, not you...
Again, I did not ask for any compensation.
I agree with Longtoo that he should direct all his complaints about Sydney Airport to Qantas, for them to pass on or make known to Sydney Airport in whatever process they have for this. It is wrong to suggest there is "nothing [Qantas] can do" about conditions at Sydney Airport. Qantas are a major tenant and pay Sydney Airport for their services - of course they can suggest improvements. He is unlikely to get a direct response or see immediate change, but both parties will make note of customer feedback in a general sense.
Also, despite comments from "TheSupposedInsider" it is totally wrong that Qantas has no influence whatsoever on what gates are used for various flights. While sometimes operational considerations can cause last-minute changes, especially if a flight is running late, Qantas clearly prioritizes certain flights for certain gates. Trans-Tasman flights very frequently use remote stands, and you will never find the SYD-AKL-JFK premium service boarding via bus, or from a gate in the 50-63 pier far away from the lounge. This is not due to some mysterious goodwill of Sydney Airport, this is specifically negotiated and planned by Qantas, with appropriate fees paid where relevant. It's perhaps not surprising that SYD-BKK, a leisure-heavy route, would be lower priority and get a remote stand/bus gate.
Complaining about it won't really change anything -
I remember at one point, TBIT had some remote stand gates with the passengers accommodated inside a large shed/hangar. You rode a bus to the hangar, and there were ramps or stairs up to the aircraft level in a totally covered area, which then led to a short jetbridge to the plane. This was way better than Sydney's setup where you have to step outside into the rain/weather (sometimes for the whole climb up the stairs, although they do seem to have more covered stairs these days).Before the TBIT expansion opened at LAX recently, QF usually boarded the BNE 787 at the bus gates (vs SYD/MEL from the main terminal).
I'm pretty sure the airport limitations are well known to QF and they in part sign off on them. Complaining about it won't really change anything - airports have master plans and will expand infrastructure as demand and resources allow. I'm sure QF would love more gates too so they didn't have to board via bus, they're just working with what they have.
It wasn't framed or described as a 'complaint' - it was feedback. Good businesses like and even encourage feedback and take note of it (even if they can't necessarily act on the individual circumstance); at the least, it demonstrates 'customer engagement'.
It may not be the individual experience that prompts some action or change, but a change in trend or volume of feedback (or complaints). Just imagine if they suddenly got a surge in feedback about ... I dunno, falls at a particular terminal or maybe pick-pocketing. You'd hope that they'd investigate to see if there was an actual issue, or something that could be improved for their customer's sake, even if the airline's operations wasn't directly responsible.
And hopefully they wouldn't just rationalise "LAX is worse, so suck it up, Princess ....".
As RooFlyer said, it's still important to let airlines know where the pain points are - the attitude of "it will never change, so I shouldn't provide feedback" is toxic. Sure, no one is building more gates at T1 tomorrow, but if they see a trend in customer feedback the airlines might adjust the priority of this in their longer-term plans. Or other steps could be taken - perhaps the airport, on behalf of its customer, the airlines, could increase the amenity of the remote stands with something like what I describe above at LAX.
Not because individual pax complain about the bus.
It's not really a mater of passenger comfort
If people are "falling" or experiencing pick-pocketing that's quite another matter.
How much another matter? Like remote gates, terminal security and safety is primarily an airport issue. If the airline's passengers start to send a lot of feedback or complaints on remote gate boarding processes, falls or theft, why wouldn't an airline take the issue up with the airport to see if the issue can be mitigated or resolved?
Straw man argument. No one is talking about individual complaints (or feedback) in this context. Both jjp42 and I specifically referred to coughulative complaints/feedback and trends. Any business who ignores an increasing trend or a spike in feedback issues - positive or negative - deserve all the problems that will inevitably follow.
Remote stands have been in use since the dawn of aviation; I fail to see the sudden spike in feedback that people don't like buses. We already know this.
You are simply not understanding the argument being made, so I'll need to spell it out. IF there is a spike or upward trend in negative feedback or complaints at some time, about remote gates, thefts or anything, then it would be a poor business that doesn't look into the spike or trend and if its 'real', try to mitigate the issue, whether or not its under their direct control.
Concerning the use of airbridges Vs busses, just say over a period of a few weeks a whole bunch more people than usual complained or commented to Qantas on poor experiences with remote stand boarding at Sydney Airport, I would hope someone would take note and think - hang on, I wonder what's causing that - what's changed? Have a look and if they can identify the issue, then fix it to what it was before. OR, if they get a flurry of positive feedback - have a look and see what or who has brought this about and then encourage or emulate it.
Not just shrug and say "Well, we've always had boarding at remote stands, nothing to see here."
If they hear about a rise or spike in pick-pocketing in their terminal, in just the same way, you'd hope someone in Qantas takes note, takes it up with the airport authorities to make sure they are taking it seriously, and addressing the issue. Not just say "Ah, someone else will care of it".
But bluntly - its about giving a damn, even if its not your 'fault'. Isn't the standard spiel of any airline "Your safety and comfort are our top priority"?
+100 to this.Qantas don't care about feedback.
At least redeem for something other than flights?I'm done with Qantas and will probably sell off my remaining QFF points.
Yes, Jetstar does this where possible (as well as gates which are not remote, but still have no jetbridges like T4 at Melbourne and gate 58/59 at SYD domestic). But remote stands still cause some operational difficulties, since all different staff who need to access the airplane as part of the "turn" have to get shuttled out by bus or car as well. I suspect this is what was meant above when it was stated Qantas doesn't like remote stands for their own reasons, regardless of passenger amenity. And the cost difference is probably not all that huge (it's not like buses come free either - it takes more staff to operate the buses than the bridges for sure).I know at some European airports the low cost carriers such as Ryanair/EasyJet actively take/choose remote stands where they can as it's a cost benefit over an airbridge gate.
I've never said anyone shouldn't submit feedback, just giving a realistic appraisal on whether its worth your time, but ultimately do as you see fit.
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I still maintain your attitude is unhelpful in general. Yes, providing feedback doesn't always get an immediate result due to various factors that means airlines and airports won't always be able to provide a perfect experience. But all airlines are at least to some degree customer focused, because people will vote with their wallet and leave them with no customers if they aren't. It should be encouraged to provide feedback so that airlines (and their suppliers, like airports) can change to meet those needs BEFORE the customers find alternatives. I got the idea you used to work for an airline(?) or are otherwise in the industry, but you are not doing your (former) employer any favours by encouraging customers not to provide feedback - customers should always be encouraged to do so, which is why many companies even incentivize it in various ways. Sure, explain the realism of why it's difficult to do something, like to provide more jetbridges (lack of space, lack of capital investment appetite, etc) , but don't just tell people to give up on making things better. It's a terrible approach to business, and a depressing way to live your life in general IMO.