Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[Quickstatus]

19/5/16

QF1 has not yet departed from SYD. It is anticipated that this will occur at 1930hrs some 3.66 hours behind schedule. Similar delay to arrival into DXB.

The severely delayed VH-OJS operating as Tuesday's B744 QF12 and which departed at 0324 hrs (PDT) was diverted to BNE finally arriving into SYD at 1141 (AEST) some 5.3 hours behind schedule.

It then turned around just 2 hours later as QF73 about 1.75 hours late.

Maybe the diversion was a crew hours limitation???

 

[jb747]

One question is when a crew member (say cabin crew) comes down with a virus or diarrhea at an hotel in a location where an airline does not have available other staff (because of mandatory rest minima for the others who have come off separate flights for their slips), can an A380 or B747 flight run with (say) one less cabin crew member due to extenuating circumstances or is a delay mandatory until the full staffing complement can be achieved?

The minimum crew number is one per door. The actual number is greater than this, so yes you can go with missing crew.

 

[Quickstatus]

The minimum crew number is one per door. The actual number is greater than this, so yes you can go with missing crew.

Would the actual number be greater due to the long haul nature of the operation or just the presence of premium cabins?

 

[jb747]

Would the actual number be greater due to the long haul nature of the operation or just the presence of premium cabins?

Like everything...a combination of factors. I'd expect an LCC to be closer to the minimum.

 

[Melburnian1]

The minimum crew number is one per door. The actual number is greater than this, so yes you can go with missing crew.

Thank you. Isn't there also - at least domestically - a minimum requirement of one cabin crew member per 36 passengers or similar?

Does that particular ratio not apply on international flights ex or to Oz?

The delayed QF1 departed from SYD at 1915 hours, a little better than Quickstatus had relayed above, with Friday super early morning DXB arrival suggested as 0320 hours instead of 0025, so half an hour is expected to be picked up gate to gate. It will naturally be late into LHR, perhaps around the 0930 hours mark but should not - all being well with the turnaround - delay the Friday 20 May afternoon QF10 as the latter is not timetabled to depart until 1305 hours.

 

[milehighclub]

The A380 has a minimum crew of 18 even though it has 16 doors.

When QF used to fly to Mumbai it wasn't uncommon for more than 1 crew member to get an upset stomach, so I had a few trips where the 2nd officer would sit at the door to meet minimum requirements.

 

[Melburnian1]

When QF used to fly to Mumbai it wasn't uncommon for more than 1 crew member to get an upset stomach, so I had a few trips where the 2nd officer would sit at the door to meet minimum requirements.

Thank you milehighclub. Very funny, the more so because it has greater than a slight ring of truth about it. Have you considered a part time career as a comedian(enne?) Many of us might be fairly to very widely travelled but I bet large numbers of AFFers have not been to India. Call it incorrect perceptions, but when I named some crowded locations in Argentina, Brazil, mainland China, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan, USA and Vietnam to which I'd ventured, friends continually retorted 'none have got anything on Indian cities.' This and food hygiene worries may be two reasons (security of young women travelling alone may be a third) why there is a relatively low level of Australian visitation to what will soon be the most populous nation worldwide.

That QF's Indian flights failed to make money even when rerouted to start and end in SIN says it all about the relative low place in outbound business and leisure travel India occupies in foreign markets for Australians, and probably the heavy competition for what demand there is - SQ and UL via SIN account for some of the travellers. There are many migrants ex India and some international students but arguably both are price sensitive and happy to travel indirectly if it means saving dollars or rupees, so it is hard to see QF resuming flights there soon (if ever.)

 

[kermatu]

That QF's Indian flights failed to make money even when rerouted to start and end in SIN says it all about the relative low place in outbound business and leisure travel India occupies in foreign markets for Australians, and probably the heavy competition for what demand there is - SQ and UL via SIN account for some of the travellers. There are many migrants ex India and some international students but arguably both are price sensitive and happy to travel indirectly if it means saving dollars or rupees, so it is hard to see QF resuming flights there soon (if ever.)

Interesting - I did wonder why QF ditched this flight. I know a pretty large number of folk who for both business and personal travel would be very happy to have a direct Sydney or Melbourne to Mumbai service. I had thought it may be a route for the 787s??

 

[Melburnian1]

Not a delay as such but QF6010 (A388 VH-OQB) was airborne from MNL at 0412 hours on Friday 20 May 2016 (presumably ex Lufthansa Technik maintenance there) and should arrive in SYD at about 1310 hours. Unusually, northbound QF6009 is publicly displayed on the QF website - presumably it is an empty working or as I gather the term may be 'ferry flight' - to position another A388 to MNL for attention. Departure of the latter is indicated as 1810 hours with an 0020 Saturday 21 May arrival. Presumably the crew may 'pax' back on the QF19 departing MNL at 2005 hours on Saturday evening.

If there are no unexpected breakdowns, this works well, but at times as AFF member JohnPhelan wisely pointed out months ago, having one plane in planned maintenance with the remaining fleet of 11 fully committed on some days can lead at times to what he termed 'rolling 24 hour delays.' Some flights - MEL or SYD to LAX and return in particular - appear to be fairly easily substitutable if a spare QF B744 can be found, but that is apparently harder at short notice for the SYD/MEL - DXB - LHR routes, as one of our esteemed contributors explained many pages back. While not discussed at the time, it may not be practical for the SYD - DFW route which by all accounts has been a QF success story, although with the downturn in the resources industry and greater TransPacific airline competition perhaps bookings on even that sector may be suffering. QF7 and QF8 (SYD - DFW - SYD) are rarely late, probably helped by how unlike the flights to or ex LAX they do not connect to or from 'own metal' QF JFK flights, which reasonably often run late due to weather among other causes.

 

[jb747]

Not a delay as such but QF6010 (A388 VH-OQB) was airborne from MNL at 0412 hours on Friday 20 May 2016 (presumably ex Lufthansa Technik maintenance there) and should arrive in SYD at about 1310 hours. Unusually, northbound QF6009 is publicly displayed on the QF website - presumably it is an empty working or as I gather the term may be 'ferry flight' - to position another A388 to MNL for attention. Departure of the latter is indicated as 1810 hours with an 0020 Saturday 21 May arrival. Presumably the crew may 'pax' back on the QF19 departing MNL at 2005 hours on Saturday evening.

As explained previously, you can't have two 380s on the ground at Manila simultaneously, so you always pick the aircraft up, before delivering the new one.

 

[Quickstatus]

The reliable QF8 which departed less than 2 hours ago (DFW 20May) and currently traversing New Mexico has been diverted (according to FA and FR) to BNE. Departure was on schedule.

This is probably one of those early planned diversions with a planned routing just south of Hilo before aiming for the very aussie waypoint MULET just NE of BNE.

This route is the more northerly than the shorter Great Circle presumably the prevailing westerly winds is less powerful at least for this flight

 

[Melburnian1]

Quickstatus, great pickup. Indeed this flight is mostly 'reliable', unlike its LAX colleagues. The QF website suggests that Sunday 22 May arrival of QF8 in BNE will be at 0555, compared with the normal SYD arrival of 0605. It only departed DFW three minutes late at 2218 hours on Friday 20. I'm guessing a SYD arrival between 0830 and 0900 hours on Sunday assuming an hour or so on the ground in BNE, but as one of our pilot contributors recently observed, on occasion this can be brought down a bit.

Touch wood, this should not delay any returning Oz - USA QF A388 flights.

 

[Quickstatus]

Speculating that the similar predicted arrival into BNE c/w SYD suggests that aircraft might be battling headwinds slowing its ground speed and causing it do a "splash and dash" in BNE as JB747 calls it

I wonder if any pax whose final destination is BNE will be allowed off?

 

[Lonely Flyer]

Speculating that the similar predicted arrival into BNE c/w SYD suggests that aircraft might be battling headwinds slowing its ground speed and causing it do a "splash and dash" in BNE as JB747 calls it

I wonder if any pax whose final destination is BNE will be allowed off?

I would think they would not want to unload any luggage on a quick stop.

 

[Quickstatus]

I would think they would not want to unload any luggage on a quick stop.

That is absolutely true, however the airline have unloaded passengers whose final destination is the same as the divert in the past with the luggage remaining in the hold which then get scanned/examined at the planned international port and then sent to passenger at their final destination.

Happened to me when I did QF94 (LAX-MEL) with a connection to SYD. Flight got diverted to SYD, I and some others got off (via stairs and bus) and bags followed the next day - it got delivered to my house FOC. Fantastic going through SYD immigration, customs and quarantine with only hand luggage and nothing to declare when 200kg of luggage gets couriered to my house. (I was travelling with family member in J).Even got original routing SC for the cancelled MEL-SYD flight!

 

[FlyboyAl]

That is absolutely true, however the airline have unloaded passengers whose final destination is the same as the divert in the past with the luggage remaining in the hold which then get scanned/examined at the planned international port and then sent to passenger at their final destination.

Happened to me when I did QF94 (LAX-MEL) with a connection to SYD. Flight got diverted to SYD, I and some others got off (via stairs and bus) and bags followed the next day - it got delivered to my house FOC. Fantastic going through SYD immigration, customs and quarantine with only hand luggage and nothing to declare when 200kg of luggage gets couriered to my house. (I was travelling with family member in J).Even got original routing SC for the cancelled MEL-SYD flight!

We've had the exact same experience when diverted from MEL to SYD from LAX, and we were going to fly up to SYD anyway! Bags went to Adelaide the next day, when we went to Adelaide, and we collected them at Adl airport.
Everything worked out brilliantly for us at the time.

 

[Melburnian1]

The diverted QF8 (A388 VH-OQL) arrived in BNE at 0658 on Sunday 22 May, later than QF had predicted. It has yet to depart for SYD as far as I can see.

QF94 (A388 VH-OQH) is arriving in MEL at about 0810, 70 minutes late ex LAX. QF93 on Sunday 22 will be delayed until an expected 1000 in its departure - a fairly tight turnaround of an hour and 50 minutes - instead of 0915 hours. LAX arrival is suggested as 0700, only 25 minutes behind.

 

[Quickstatus]

It seems that I was wrong all along...

FA/FR24/SYD now both state that QF8 flew direct to SYD and did not "splash and dash" in BNE.

Interestingly only the desktop versions of FA/FR24 still has the "Diverted to BNE"

[Speculation]Maybe the fuel status during the flight was favourable enough to continue to SYD?. Or maybe all a glitch all along. [/speculation]

It arrived at 0650.

Melburnian1 - thats why it did not take off again after "arriving" at 0658hr







VH-OQH changed its avatar from QF 94 to QF93 in about 2.5 hrs slightly more than the 2 hrs allocated. Departure for LOTFAP delayed by about 1.5 hrs, FL20 now.

 

[Melburnian1]

Thank you Quickstatus for the clarification. Interestingly, the QF website was showing a 'BNE' arrival for QF8 this morning (Sunday 22 May) not a 'SYD' one, so even the 'own metal' website got it wrong. I was looking at this on a desktop PC, not a laptop, tablet or smartphone.

 

[Melburnian1]

It appears that Sunday's QF63 may have been airborne from SYD at 1225 today - much later than its scheduled pushback of 1050 hours - but then touched down back in SYD at 1427, with a revised planned takeoff at about 1640 hours, which was a few minutes ago as I write. JNB arrival may be at about 2115, which will delay departure of the 22 May QF64 from its timetabled 1910 hours until at least 2300, meaning a post 1900 hours Monday 23 May arrival in SYD.

Did some unfortunate soul on board have a heart attack or other serious medical problem, or was there a mechanical or electrical, or other, reason for this apparent return to SYD? Aircraft may be VH-OJM, the usual B744.

It depends what this aircraft is rostered on for Monday evening but this may cause a delay to a flight ex Oz tomorrow.

The 1550 hours SYD to DXB and LHR, QF1, has been delayed in departing from 1550 hours to a suggested 1730.