JQ25 MEL - CNS warning....

[jase05]

Would you choose Tiger over Jetstar?

I would personally.
Even in Vietnam recently I chose Vietjet over JQ for couple of internal flights and anyone who has flown with Vietjet will fully understand how average they are

 

[Rich]

I would personally.
Even in Vietnam recently I chose Vietjet over JQ for couple of internal flights and anyone who has flown with Vietjet will fully understand how average they are

Fair enough. I don't fly heaps and haven't had a bad experience with either. I was put off Tiger years ago when they left people stranded in Tasmania for a couple of days. I figure Jetstar should be a safer bet if a flight is cancelled since they have more services all round. Maybe I am naive!

 

[stm1sydney]

Travelers buying a LCC, JQ ticket and expecting a QF experience are going to sadly disappointed too many times.

Sounds like, if you buy a JQ ticket, you probably won't even get an LCC experience!

 

[nlagalle]

well you didn't miss out much on that Qantas first class lounge-been there recently and I can tell you that-uncomfortable chairs -pathetic food-got a run to the loo because of their eggs Benedict -only serve breakfast till late so you miss out lunch if your flight departs before midday.The massage was mediocre the pacific islander woman nearly broke my neck.never again!-Also because guys like you who want a cheap ticket and all the perks of a first class experience the lounge is quite busy-first class should strictly limited to those who really fly first class-not the freeloaders!

Not a fan????

Having said that I’ve never had an issue with the eggs Benedict... well worth the early morning start

 

[Princess Fiona]

Please have pity therefore on those of us who fly out of newcastle airport. QantasLink has a flight to brisbane during the day, otherwise it’s all Jetstar flights to brisbane and Melbourne. Nightmare stuff

My personal approach to this is I only take QF to BNE and drive down the M1 for every other departure
NTL is ok for VA though.

 

[Melburnian1]

As someone who worked for 20+ years in the media I can assure you this isn’t newsworthy. Not even a blip.

You think they are an aircraft “short” but don’t know that for sure. You only have some cancelled flights. And unless JQ has a massive number of cancellations in a month that causes all sorts of issues an editor is not going to be interested in heresy

You may mean 'hearsay' not 'heresy.'

Even when there are multiple QF long haul cancellations - recently there was an A388 hit by a catering truck in LAX, and on top of that unexpected event, there were two A388s unavailable due to maintenance in Dresden and Abu Dhabi, so multiple long haul flights cancelled as QF requires 10 A388s for its timetables but had only nine, the lazy Australian media didn't even realise or report it. The number of passengers affected would have been in the low thousands.

If you took the time to read the JQ cancellations thread, you'd observe that there's a semi-regular pattern of B788 cancellations, that as MEL_Traveller states appear to be rotated between various flight numbers.

Largely, Australia's mainstream media is too scared of losing advertising revenue (or freebies for their travel section writers) to criticise powerful companies like Qantas Group. A few thousand passengers being delayed by a minimum of a few hours (and in some cases more) is newsworthy.

 

[Cool Cat Phil]

Please have pity therefore on those of us who fly out of newcastle airport. QantasLink has a flight to brisbane during the day, otherwise it’s all Jetstar flights to brisbane and Melbourne. Nightmare stuff

MEL > NTL is our most frequently flown route ( flying 12+ flights per year) , and I too feel your pain.

I would really love QF to fly this route.

The VA once per day flight (middle of the day= total waste of a day ) does not cut it, and we have little alternative other than to fly JQ on this route.

Apparently, yield is the reason QF don’t fly MEL > NTL, although I reckon an early morning departure flight leaving NTL , and evening flight departing MEL on weekdays , would translate into the demographic and yield QF are looking for.

Whilst certainly not a scientific observation, I see plenty of QF status coasters (and VA status bag tags for that matter) on plenty of other pax hand luggage + checked bags flying this sector- I’m blown away why QF have not jumped onto this.

 

[nlagalle]

You may mean 'hearsay' not 'heresy.'

Blame autocorrect on my phone..

Even when there are multiple QF long haul cancellations - recently there was an A388 hit by a catering truck in LAX, and on top of that unexpected event, there were two A388s unavailable due to maintenance in Dresden and Abu Dhabi, so multiple long haul flights cancelled as QF requires 10 A388s for its timetables but had only nine, the lazy Australian media didn't even realise or report it. The number of passengers affected would have been in the low thousands.

Once again it isn’t lazy, it’s not newsworthy. While yes it is of interest to a select group of people (namely frequent flyers), it’s still not worth writing a story on it.

If you took the time to read the JQ cancellations thread, you'd observe that there's a semi-regular pattern of B788 cancellations, that as MEL_Traveller states appear to be rotated between various flight numbers.

Largely, Australia's mainstream media is too scared of losing advertising revenue (or freebies for their travel section writers) to criticise powerful companies like Qantas Group. A few thousand passengers being delayed by a minimum of a few hours (and in some cases more) is newsworthy.

Once again you speak about a topic you know nothing about. Editorial stories are no dictated by a “potential” loss of advertising. Why? Because it rarely happens. Qantas has been criticised plenty of times in the past when it was due.

As for your thread, no thanks. You might look at it and see some “semi-pattern” of cancellations but really you are just grasping at straws.

If you truely believe it’s systematic cancellations due to aircraft shortage, try and connect the dots. You won’t be able to.

 

[Melburnian1]

..If you truely believe it’s systematic cancellations due to aircraft shortage, try and connect the dots. You won’t be able to.

MEL_Traveller and Quickstatus are among those who'd disagree with you. It isn't just me.

If you believe it isn't due to insufficient B788s available for the published timetables, then you could provide us with the reason every JQi cancellation (or significant delay) occurs.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

If you truely believe it’s systematic cancellations due to aircraft shortage, try and connect the dots. You won’t be able to.

From several years of observations, I believe it is systematic. Can I be bothered 'joining the dots'? Nope. But I'd say it's newsworthy for the thousands of passengers each month who experience delayed and cancelled flights as a result - not just FFers. Have a look at the Qantas/jetstar facebook pages at the visitor posts. Plenty of upset pax there, but no avenue for them to take the mater forward.

It's newsworthy if the media wanted to get behind a campaign to see the introduction of an EU261 type scheme.

As for the concept of a low cost carrier - well that only ever applied to the management and operating costs of the airline. Rarely been 'low cost' for the passenger, at least in Oz. (There are some true 'low cost' airlines from a pax perspective, like easy jet and Ryaniar.)

 

[AdamR]

You may mean 'hearsay' not 'heresy.'

Even when there are multiple QF long haul cancellations - recently there was an A388 hit by a catering truck in LAX, and on top of that unexpected event, there were two A388s unavailable due to maintenance in Dresden and Abu Dhabi, so multiple long haul flights cancelled as QF requires 10 A388s for its timetables but had only nine, the lazy Australian media didn't even realise or report it. The number of passengers affected would have been in the low thousands.

If you took the time to read the JQ cancellations thread, you'd observe that there's a semi-regular pattern of B788 cancellations, that as MEL_Traveller states appear to be rotated between various flight numbers.

Largely, Australia's mainstream media is too scared of losing advertising revenue (or freebies for their travel section writers) to criticise powerful companies like Qantas Group. A few thousand passengers being delayed by a minimum of a few hours (and in some cases more) is newsworthy.

A person I know sued Jetstar over a cancellation and sought discovery of documents regarding the reasons for cancellation. He suspected that the cancellation did not fall within the Jetstar terms (as they were then, not sure if they have changed). Maybe that is one way to go - a small court action can still give a basis to get JQ to hand over explanatory documents and, if they are not consistent with the public story, they are likely to settle. That is what I would do, rather than seek publicity.

 

[Melburnian1]

A person I know sued Jetstar over a cancellation and sought discovery of documents regarding the reasons for cancellation. He suspected that the cancellation did not fall within the Jetstar terms (as they were then, not sure if they have changed). Maybe that is one way to go - a small court action can still give a basis to get JQ to hand over explanatory documents and, if they are not consistent with the public story, they are likely to settle. That is what I would do, rather than seek publicity.

I do not know the situation in other states but at the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, it has become necessary to serve an application on the other party, pushing up the cost to consumers who want to take that route.

To take action one would have to have standing. If not a booked passenger, one would lack that.

There are not many cases against airlines that one reads about, largely because as you imply, airlines with rare exceptions settle 'at the door of the Court (or Tribunal), as they neither want adverse publicity nor encouragement to others to take them on.

I gather they'll usually ask the plaintiff to sign a confidentiality clause.

Being private enterprise, they are not subject to FOI (called ROI in Queensland IIRC.)

 

[Happy Dude]

There's a lot of "never fly JQ" folk here, and thanks to being in CBR I'm one too, but like ANZ, I wonder who are their customers??

 

[MEL_Traveller]

...I wonder who are their customers??

The hard working battlers - our firefighters, ambos, nurses, carers, teachers - having saved for their once a year holiday with the kids only to be told no one is really interested or going to be held accountable when their flight is cancelled

If the cancellation of flights isn't systematic, my apologies to JQ. But I'd like to see an explanation of why they happen with such regualrity that it's almost a pattern.

Nothing against JQ on board, I think the crews are fantastic, and I really quite like the product in the front cabin. It's just the reliability of the schedule that means I am reluctant to book.

 

[Austman]

There's a lot of "never fly JQ" folk here, and thanks to being in CBR I'm one too, but like ANZ, I wonder who are their customers??

At MEL T4 (all JQ section) on Monday:

 

[Melburnian1]

Happy Dude, you'll be delighted to know that Melbourne Airport's general manager is on the public record as saying 'we got it wrong' in relation to T4 at MEL.

Lack of seating at busy times, a business model that encourages passengers to remain in the retail area until the last possible moment, no travelators down that long passageway between retail and the gates (that are on a lower level than the retail) and slow boarding and alighting without aerobridges, plus no weather protection between the terminal and the climb up or down the stairs.

In fairness the last two are not unique to MEL and JQ is supposedly a 'low cost airline' (though not always if one's booking a ticket within Oz.)

You are taking a photo during school holidays which for JQ is probably the second busiest time after pre Christmas and Easter.

A really bad time can be around 1000 in the morning on weekdays when a few flights coming in are late, hence passenger numbers waiting for a departure build...and build, with as your photo shows standing room only. Some have to stand for much longer than they do on say a suburban train or tram in Melbourne. Taxing for small children and the elderly if either cannot find seating.

 

[nlagalle]

MEL_Traveller and Quickstatus are among those who'd disagree with you. It isn't just me.

If you believe it isn't due to insufficient B788s available for the published timetables, then you could provide us with the reason every JQi cancellation (or significant delay) occurs.

wow three of you disagree with me... still doesn't make it fact.. more to what is the fact, they have very minimal slack in their scheduling which naturally leads to cancellations when something goes wrong. Did you also forget that until recently they were down a 787 which was stuck in Tokyo?

 

[nlagalle]

From several years of observations, I believe it is systematic. Can I be bothered 'joining the dots'? Nope. But I'd say it's newsworthy for the thousands of passengers each month who experience delayed and cancelled flights as a result - not just FFers. Have a look at the Qantas/jetstar facebook pages at the visitor posts. Plenty of upset pax there, but no avenue for them to take the mater forward.

It's newsworthy if the media wanted to get behind a campaign to see the introduction of an EU261 type scheme.

As for the concept of a low cost carrier - well that only ever applied to the management and operating costs of the airline. Rarely been 'low cost' for the passenger, at least in Oz. (There are some true 'low cost' airlines from a pax perspective, like easy jet and Ryaniar.)

They have cancellations.. welcome to the world of Aviation. how many flights per month are cancelled in Australia? here's a hint for you in terms of what is more newsworthy... Train cancellations affect more people closer to home than JQ cancelling a flight that you think is systematic.

 

[Melburnian1]

They have cancellations.. welcome to the world of Aviation. how many flights per month are cancelled in Australia? here's a hint for you in terms of what is more newsworthy... Train cancellations affect more people closer to home than JQ cancelling a flight that you think is systematic.

The point about airline cancellations, though, if international, is that those affected often have an increase in their journey time of several hours to in the worst cases multiple days.

 

[Happy Dude]

Happy Dude, you'll be delighted to know that Melbourne Airport's general manager is on the public record as saying 'we got it wrong' in relation to T4 at MEL.

Lack of seating at busy times, a business model that encourages passengers to remain in the retail area until the last possible moment, no travelators down that long passageway between retail and the gates (that are on a lower level than the retail) and slow boarding and alighting without aerobridges, plus no weather protection between the terminal and the climb up or down the stairs.

In fairness the last two are not unique to MEL and JQ is supposedly a 'low cost airline' (though not always if one's booking a ticket within Oz.)

You are taking a photo during school holidays which for JQ is probably the second busiest time after pre Christmas and Easter.

A really bad time can be around 1000 in the morning on weekdays when a few flights coming in are late, hence passenger numbers waiting for a departure build...and build, with as your photo shows standing room only. Some have to stand for much longer than they do on say a suburban train or tram in Melbourne. Taxing for small children and the elderly if either cannot find seating.

I can't disagree with your comments, other than to say it wasn't my photo.

@MEL_Traveller, I get that they do have a lot of customers but with all the bad publicity and FB posts about cancellations, etc, it does beg the question as to why and who. Must be a lot of gamblers and sadists out there?