Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[Melburnian1]

QF28, the Sunday 11 June 2017 1330 SCL - SYD looks to have been delayed overnight with departure changed to a projected 1200 'high noon' local time on Monday 12. This means SYD arrival at an estimated 1600 hours on Tuesday 13 rather than 1740 hours today, so 22 hours and 40 minutes late. Aircraft is B744 VH-OJM.

The Sunday 11 June MU736 from SYD to PVG (which is also a codeshare with QF - QF303) got as far south as Bulli (near Wollongong NSW) but had damage to an engine and had to return to SYD:

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/china-eastern-airlines-plane-forced-to-land-back-in-sydney-as-passengers-stranded/news-story/5d66d41e9cadaae99585518992c7be85

Notably the article suggests that there were only 'about three to four' English speaking passengers on the flight.

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with Monday 12 June, B738 ZK-ZQA, QF121, the 0930 hours SYD - ZQN took off at 1053 hours, an hour late.

QF23 (A333 VH-QPD, the 0950 hours SYD - BKK) was still in the queue for departure at 1128, having departed its gate at 1111 hours, so it will be at least 70 minutes late into BKK at an estimated 1750. This will delay QF24 tonight back to SYD.

UPDATE: The estimated arrival of QF23 in BKK has become 1800, 80 minutes tardy.

 

[Steady]

QF682 ADL - MEL delayed due to late arrival of incoming aircraft, looking like it will only be 15-20 minutes though

 

[Melburnian1]

The Monday 12 June QF1516 from CBR up to SYD (B717 Vh-YQT) is arriving 70 minutes late at 1200 hours 'high noon.'

B738 VH-VZE, the 1100 SYD - MEL took off at 1155 so it is at least half an hour late given takeoff is on 34R to the north.

QF1504 (B717 VH-YQX, the 1200 'high noon' HBA - MEL) did not become airborne until 1306 hours. Arrival is predicted as 1410 hours, 50 minutes late. In turn this will delay departure of the 1400 hours MEL - HBA (QF1505) for at least 40 minutes.

The 1205 BNE down to SYD, QF505 took off at 1312 hours (VH-VYE) with forecast arrival at 1440, an even hour late.

Longhaul QF7, the A388 from SYD to DFW is suggested as departing at 1330, an hour behind while B744-operated QF73 from SYD to SFO is incurring a forecast two hour delay, departing at 1500 not 1300 hours on 12 June.

 

[milehighclub]

The QF8 went to BNE and terminated there. Think was due to fog

 

[Melburnian1]

The QF8 went to BNE and terminated there. Think was due to fog

milehighclub, yes - fog in SYD as I noted from a post at around 0500 this morning.

What is the mystery, and where you may be able to assist, is why did it not just continue down to SYD (ex BNE) with passengers rather than as a 'ferry flight' that as mentioned above took off from BNE at 0939 hours?

Was it a crew hours being exceeded issue?

 

[milehighclub]

milehighclub, yes - fog in SYD as I noted from a post at around 0500 this morning.

What is the mystery, and where you may be able to assist, is why did it not just continue down to SYD (ex BNE) with passengers rather than as a 'ferry flight' that as mentioned above took off from BNE at 0939 hours?

Was it a crew hours being exceeded issue?

So you did! Didn't scroll that far back.

Crew would have run out of hours and because we don't have pilots or cabin crew based in BNE for 380, the pilots would have had to of come up on a flight this morning from SYD, therefore much quicker to put passengers onto other domestic and international flights.

There has been instances when a full crew has been flown to BNE because of known weather to allow the continuation of the flight incase it does divert, but unplanned or last minute weather changes after departure pretty much guarantee that if the QF8 diverts the crew will run out of hours.

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with what was earlier in SYD a foggy Monday 12 June, QF2190 (Q300 VH-SBB, the 1210 hours lunchtime SYD up to MRZ) did not manage to take off until 1412 this afternoon. Arrival should be at 1539, 114 minutes tardy.

QF73 (1300 hours SYD - SFO, B744 VH-OEI) took off at 1552 so arrival is predicted at 1140 hours, 130 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

In further on 12 June, QF632 (1825 hours early evening MEL - BNE) has got the flick.

B738 VH-VZW on cross continent QF718 (1535 hours mid afternoon PER across to CBR that took off only about five minutes late at 1555) is arriving at approximately 2159 tonight, 34 late.

 

[Melburnian1]

Given yesterday's late QF23 (fog in SYD), QF24 into SYD on Tuesday 13 June should arrive at 0748 hours, 33 late with A333 VH-QPD on its flight from BKK.

The HKG - MEL redeye, QF30 is 38 minutes behind schedule with an 0818 arrival estimated for A333 VH-QPF.

B738 VH-XZK on QF569, the scheduled 1635 hours Monday 12 June SYD - PER had to offload about 40 passengers, and eventually arrived PER at about 2036, 56 minutes late:

http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/p...ause-plane-was-too-heavy-20170612-gwpomu.html

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with Tuesday 13 June 2017, QF11, the 0950 hours SYD - LAX (B744 VH-OEF, a flight on which if there is ever to be a B744 it is most likely on Tuesdays given that is traditionally the lowest patronised day of the week on many international routes) took off at 1040 from SYD. Arrival has been delayed 48 minutes to a forecast same day 0718 hours. This is likely to delay the QF11 second sector to JFK, the scheduled 0820 hours ex LAX.

 

[Himeno]

(B744 VH-OEF, a flight on which if there is ever to be a B744 it is most likely on Tuesdays given that is traditionally the lowest patronised day of the week on many international routes)

um... QF11/12 SYD-LAX was changed from an A380 to 744 on Tuesdays to allow DFW to go daily A380 (from the 6 weekly that the QF9/10 retime allowed).

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with Tuesday 13 June 2017, QF478 (1845 hours early evening MEL - SYD) has been cancelled as was QF447, the 1600 hours SYD - MEL.

QF2054 (the scheduled 1505 hours mid afternoon arrival in MEL ex DPO) also got the gong.

 

[Melburnian1]

On Wednesday 14 June, QF82 from SIN to SYD (A332 VH-EBO) should arrive 35 minutes late at 0640 hours.

Yesterday there was a typhoon in HKG so there may still have been residual delays. QF30, the redeye from it down to MEL (A333 VH-QPG) is suggested as arriving on Wednesday 14 June at around 0854 hours, 74 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

During the evening of Wednesday 14 June, QF598, the 1220 hours lunchtime ex PER for BNE that was not in the sky with A332 VH-EBV until 1323 should arrive at around 1930, 50 minutes late.

Tuesday 13 June's QF12 from JFK departed 45 minutes late at 1855, arriving in LAX at 2239, 99 minutes tardy. The A388-operated second sector commenced pushing back in LAX at 2350, 80 minutes late but is predicted to make up a lot of time on a gate-to-gate basis with suggested Thursday 15 June arrival at 0655 hours, 35 minutes tardy.

Meanwhile QF16 departed LAX on Wednesday (today) at 0111 hours, 111 minutes late with Thursday 15 arrival estimated at around 0725 hours, 75 minutes late.

The fairly frequent late running of these two flights (by 'late' I mean more than half an hour, although the accepted definition is 'more than 15 minutes late') is not good. Unfortunately it is a result of the relatively tight turnarounds QF11, and then QF12 to QF16 have with the B744. If QF11 ex SYD or QF93 ex MEL is late (QF93 also has a tight turnaround at the Australian end), then on many occasions the B744 is delayed for its transcontinental USA flight.

AA, DL, UA and VA do not appear to suffer from quite as much unpunctuality on their nonstop TransPacific offerings as QF (but none are perfect.) Some of the more savvy travellers may notice this.

It will be interesting to observe in 2018 if the new QF B789 rotations from and to MEL (LHR - PER - MEL - LAX if I recall) improve this situation or (heaven forbid) worsen it. However returning to Oz QF94 at present can often depart LAX on time if QF12 ex JFK is badly late, as QF presumably views it as an imperative to try to keep the QF94 to QF93 turnaround in MEL pretty much on schedule. If there are many connecting JFK - LAX - MEL passengers and not many (or no) spare seats on QF12 or QF16 ex LAX for Australia, it is more problematical to allow QF94 to depart on time.

 

[Melburnian1]

One of the two HKG - SYD redeyes, QF128 (B744 VH-OEI) arriving on Thursday 15 June should do so at around 0752, 42 minutes tardy as it did not take off on Wednesday 14's evening until 2113 despite a timetabled departure of 2015 hours.

QF400 (A332 VH-EBG), the first of the morning at a scheduled 0600 hours from MEL to SYD is expected to depart at around 0715 hours while QF404 (B738 VH-VXP), the 0630 hours is delayed until 0815. Meanwhile QF406, the 0645 hours from MEL is predicted to depart at 0830 while QF408, the 0700 becomes a projected 0840 hours departure.

Delays of this magnitude on Australia's busiest air routes will mean multiple flights later in the day are late. QF also carries many passengers ex MEL connecting to international flights in SYD so in a worst case some of QFi offerings may suffer a knock-on delay.

Unlike at AVV, there does not seem to be fog at MEL (although I am a long way from the airport) and flights like QF600, the 0600 hours from MEL to BNE have departed. JQ, TT and VA flights from MEL to SYD are also estimated to be late by varying amounts. Has there been a power failure at MEL or are these simply new controlled departure times issued by ATC due to network congestion?

QF804, the 0700 hours MEL - CBR is predicted to instead depart at around 0855 which one assumes is due to fog in CBR.

Unusually, the overnight QF2 from DXB to SYD (and previously from LHR) diverted to MEL with A388 VH-OQJ arriving at 0432 hours on Thursday 15 June in the southern capital after deoarting DXB 18 minutes late on Wednesday 14. It then departed MEL at 0553 with SYD arrival estimated at 0725 instead of the timetabled 0510, or 135 minutes tardy.

 

[Quickstatus]

SYD Fog. The other range anxiety flight QF8 splashed and will soon dash via BNE

 

[Simo]

The fun of Fog on the network makes everything run late for the day...

 

[Melburnian1]

SYD Fog. The other range anxiety flight QF8 splashed and will soon dash via BNE

QF8 (A388 VH-OQB) took off from BNE at 0657 hours and so should arrive in SYD at about 0820 hours, 135 minutes late. It was in BNE from 0545 hours until 0641, but is somehow managing to operate as a passenger flight rather than being cancelled and flying down as an empty working ('ferry flight') as it did earlier this week due to crews exceeding hours and no A388 crew based in BNE.

 

[Quickstatus]

I live at 200m above sea level and no fog . The fog is around 100m and 30m

QF12 landed because it had legs to hover if required.

fog cleared as of 0715