Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[jb747]

While not the first time that this lengthy flight has made an intermediate stop in BNE, it is extremely unusual for QF8 to be seven hours late into SYD. On previous observed occasions, the delay in BNE has been less on the ground, but today may have been a case where the weather was suddenly worse than anticipated around SYD and the crew made a relatively late decision to divert. FR24 suggests that the A388 was roughly east of Port Macquarie NSW when it turned and commenced heading towards BNE.

A late diversion would burn all of the crew's available hours, so you'd need to get hold of a new one.....

 

[Melburnian1]

A late diversion would burn all of the crew's available hours, so you'd need to get hold of a new one.....

Yes, thanks: I had surmised that in the previous paragraph.

Continuing with a stormy afternoon in SYD on 6 November, QF432, the 1230 hours MEL - SYD (B738 VH-VZS) was airborne at 1255 (only about 10 - 15 minutes late) but as at 1354 was continuing to hold west of Goulburn NSW, so arrival will be at 1434, 39 minutes late, or beyond that given the number of aircraft wanting to land.

The following QF434, the 1300 hours ex the southern capital took off ahead of time at 1306 hours (B738 VH-VXF) but was also holding at 1357 hours.

QF616 (1210 hours lunchtime MEL north to BNE, B738 VH-VXA) took off at 1305 hours, and should arrive at approximately 1403 hours, 43 minutes late.

Q400 VH-QOJ on the 1205 hours CBR up to SYD took off at 1310 (about 55 minutes late) but was also held enroute, so arrival is likely at 1427, 87 minutes late.

Another Q400, VH-QON is on the 1305 hours CFS down to SYD QF2109 that was in the sky at 1322. Arrival should be 35 late at 1455 mid afternoon.

QF529, the 1206 hours very early afternoon BNE down to SYD was pointing skywards at 1308; arrival should be at 1529 hours, 49 minutes late. QF859, the not consecutively numbered scheduled 1230 hours departure on the same southbound route took off at 1333. VH-VYB should arrive at 1550 hours, 50 minutes late.

Vh-VYI on QF863 (1050 hours morning OOL - SYD that took off at 1322 hours) is worse, with suggested arrival in the Australian mainland harbour city at about 1542 hours, 142 minutes behind schedule.

The CBR up to BNE QF1546 (B717 VH-YQU) was airborne at 1339 hours, 89 minutes after timetabled pushback. Accordingly, projected arrival is 1410 hours, 75 minutes late.

QF2023 (scheduled 1350 hours ARM - SYD, Q300 VH-TQZ) was pointing skywards at 1458. Estimated arrival is 1610 hours, an hour late.

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with Monday 6 November, QF2042 (1725 hours SYD - DBO) has been cancelled. So has QF1578, the 1740 hours from SYD up tpo MCY. These may be related to the ongoing 'protected industrial action' involving Cobham Aviation and National Jet Systems flight crews who (basically) want more money.

Mainline QF552 (2000 hours SYD - BNE) is also a casualty. The competing VA flight has also got the boot.

QF5 (late afternoon 1645 hours SYD - SIN) departed 23 minutes late at 1708 hours but Lion City arrival is estimated an hour late at 2255 this evening local time.

At 1955 AEDT, the much delayed QF28 from SCL to SYD (B744 VH-OJT) was just south of Queenstown NZ so it may arrive at its SYD gate by 2235 or 2240 tonight.

 

[Melburnian1]

In further on 6 November, the 1855 hours from CBR across to ADL, QF719 took off at 2012, so arrival should be at 2116 hours tonight, 46 late for aircraft B738 VH-VZT.

A332 VH-EBJ on QF571 (1745 hours late afternoon SYD transcontinental to PER that took off at 2000 hours even) is showing as arriving 90 minutes tardy at 2110 hours.

QF1553 (1915 hours early evening BNE down to CBR that was in the sky at 2109 with B717 VH-YQV) should arrive at roughly 2344 hours, 99 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

On Melbourne Cup Day, Tuesday 7 November, the LAX - BNE QF16 (B744 VH-OEH) should arrive at around 0805 hours, 50 minutes tardy.

QF568, the 2315 hours Monday 6 November PER - SYD transcontinental with A332 VH-EBA did not take off until 0208 hours on Tuesday 7, so arrival has become an estimated 0907 hours, 162 minutes late.

The 0900 hours SYD - CBR, QF1467, has been cancelled.

The 0900 hours from MEL up to CBR, QF814 (B738 VH-VZR) was in the sky at 0940; arrival is suggested at 1036 hours, 31 minutes tardy.

 

[Melburnian1]

Continuing with Tuesday 7 November, QF80 (A333 VH-QPD) arrived a little early in MEL.

QF79, the 0920 hours MEL - NRT was observed taxiing at 0950 but may have returned to its gate as QF is advising that its arrival time in Japan will be 1940 tonight, 115 minutes late. The aircraft may have switched off its transponder. The Melbourne Airport website is showing a new time of 1020 for this flight: the QF website has not changed beyond a claimed 0935 hours departure.

Passengers on either QF80 (NRT - MEL) or QF62 (NRT - BNE) tonight can expect to be late. Some nights these inbound flights QF61 and QF79 swap over in NRT with the ex-BNE aircraft going to MEL and vice versa; on other nights, QF61 goes back to BNE as QF62 and QF79 turns into QF80.

UPDATE: QF79 took off to the south at 1100 from MEL. NRT arrival time has been revised to an expected 1905 hours, 80 minutes late.

 

[JohnK]

QF553 the 6:35pm BNE-SYD cancelled early due to maintenance issues.

Anyone we know on that flight?

 

[Melburnian1]

QF97 (Tuesday 7 November 0940 hours BNE - HKG, A333 VH-QPC) departed at 0944 and took off at 1002, hardly late at all, but arrival has been delayed until a predicted 1726 hours, 56 late, presumably due to adverse winds.

 

[Melburnian1]

On Tuesday 7 November 2017, a helicopter crash unfortunately resulting in loss of a life has shut down HBA during the evening:

No Cookies | The Mercury

QF1509 from MEL and QF1585 from SYD will be affected.

UPDATE: QF1509 has been cancelled. While today's is outside the control of QF, it nevertheless is the thrd time in five nights that QF1509 has been cancelled. The other two cancellations may have been due to the ongoing protected industrial action involving Cobham Aviation (and National Jet Systems) flight crew who claim that they are underpaid compared with QantasLink equivalent staff.
QF1685 does not appear to have departed from SYD as at 2025 but FR24 (probably incorrectly) implies it is still operating.

I'm not sure why these flights could not operate to and from LST and passengers be bussed between HBA and LST. Then overnight dependent on crew availability the flights could operate empty from LST to HBA if forming early morning departures from the Tasmanian capital.

 

[Melburnian1]

Monday 6 November's QF8, the 2000 hours DFW - SYD that departed at 2018 is on a planned diversion to BNE, where QF estimates it will stop from about 0511 to 0630 hours on Wednesday 6 November for eventual SYD arrival at about 0905 hours, three hours late. One assumes that this is a refuelling stop necessitated by adverse winds.

Due to the HBA helicopter crash (see above), the Wednesday 8 November QF1582 (0650 hours HBA to SYD) has been cancelled.

 

[Strategic Aviation]

Apropos of CBR/SYD cancellations (mentioned here and here), but specifically in relation to Qantas:-

Qantas adjusts domestic flights to improve Canberra reliability - Canberra Times

"To improve levels of reliability, we have made adjustments to parts of our domestic schedule. These include consolidating flights during non-peak times to free up aircraft and putting larger aircraft on key routes to maintain capacity.

 

[Melburnian1]

Strategic Aviation, thanks: as usual, you are completely on the ball. If I recall correctly, quite a few years ago (i.e. before 2001, showing my age) the then AN, and QF used to operate more B737s as they were at the time to and from CBR. It was more common for flights to operate MEL - CBR - SYD or vice versa (not that it occurred with every flight) and my vague memory is that there were nearly always passengers travelling MEL - SYD or v.v. via CBR on the same B737.

It will be interesting to see if these schedule changes work.

Clearly QF managers have had a few emails, texts or calls from Qantas Business Travel or similar passing on what the Federal Government departments and authorities feel about the huge number of cancellations and delays, given that logic suggests almost every agency would have had officers' travel plans disrupted. Not every delay can be blamed on the airlines, but many can.

The other question is that with a finite number of aircraft, where is QF obtaining any extra B717s or B738s for the altered timetables, and what does it now do with the displaced smaller aircraft that are allegedly to operate fewer CBR - SYD (or to a lesser extent, since it was never as frequent) CBR - MEL flights?

 

[Melburnian1]

On Wednesday 8 November, as a result of the helicopter crash at HBA last night (see above), QF1582 (0650 hours HBA up to SYD) was cancelled. Our prayers and thoughts are with the gentleman fighting for his life and the family of the other male who sadly is deceased.

Tuesday 7's QF64 (1850 hours JNB to PER with the recently delay prone B744 VH-OJT) did not depart until 2015 (despite QF63 inbound being punctual), but is diverting to PER on Wednesday 8 with its stay to be from an estimated 1024 to 1115 hours. Is this a medical diversion? SYD arrival is estimated at 1815 hours, 165 minutes late.

The 1755 hours SYD to SFO (QF73) is forecast optimistically as a result to depart at 1940 hours.

UPDATE: QF73 was not formed by the delayed QF64 but by the punctual QF28 (ex SCL) arrival. QF73 (B744 VH-OEF) departed SYD at 2003 hours, 128 minutes tardy. SFO arrival is suggested as 1345 hours same day, 80 minutes tardy.

 

[Melburnian1]

The diverted QF64 on Wednesday 8 November had its unusual intermediate stop in PER from 1024 to 1132 and so is estimated to arrive SYD at around 1846 hours this evening, a little later than forecast above.

QF449 (1630 hours SYD down to MEL that was airborne at 1830, B738 VH-VZY) looks to be pulling in to its allocated airport gate at 1841, 36 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

Wednesday 8 November's QF36 from SIN down to MEL (A332 VH-EBA) arrived on Thursday 9 at 0812 hours, 127 minutes late, as QF35 yesterday, the 1500 hours northbound had not taken off until 1559, arriving at about 2043 in SIN, 43 late.

QF411 (0730 hours SYD - MEL that did not become airborne until 0814, about half an hour late, A332 VH-EBD) should arrive at roughly 0943, 38 minutes late. This once again demonstrates the importance of these peak period flights pushing back on time or very close to it, as if not, delays tend to compound with air traffic controllers often slowing the flight down - this flight did a little dog leg. Even though the typical 95 minute southbound SYD - MEL schedules are 10 minutes slower than the typical northbounds, when an aircraft pushes back late at a busier time it can have difficulty maintaining the gate to gate schedule even when the weather is benign, as is the case today.

0900 hours later in the working week tends to be if anything busier than 0800 hours for arriving flights but part of this may be the problems on some days that southbounds ex SYD have in departing punctually, not a problem restricted to one of our four major domestic airlines.

 

[Melburnian1]

Later on 9 November, QF35 (A332 VH-EBO, the 1225 hours MEL - SIN that was airborne at 1309 after pushing back at 1238, so quite a long taxi or waiting time to be cleared to take off) should arrive at 1755, half an hour behind time.

 

[Melburnian1]

On Wednesday 8 November, QF8 departed DFW nine minutes late at 2009; arrival on Friday 9 is likely at 0635, half an hour tardy.

QF12 (LAX - SYD) commenced its journey 61 late at 2331; Friday arrival is predicted as 0924 hours, 54 minutes behind the eight ball.

Thursday 9's QF786 (1935 hours BNE - CNS) was airborne at 2026 tonight with B738 VH-VXN. Arrival is forecast as 2225, 35 late.

QF94 on Wednesday 8 is displaying as delayed in LAX from its normal 2205 hours departure to 0200 on Thursday 9, but as I write it is 0335 hours in LAX. We don't know what time the flight (and cabin) crew(s) signed on but a delay of this magnitude can lead to a lengthy flight being cancelled as the crew run out of their normal 18 hour maximum duty limit (that from memory one of our aviators stated can be stretched to 20 hours - happy to be corrected.)

UPDATE: A388 VH-OQC on QF94 took off from LAX at 0340 hours, 335 minutes late. It is diverting to BNE where a fresh crew will presumably take the reins, having had time to travel up from SYD. BNE arrival for QF94 should be at about 1200 'high noon' AEST on Friday 10 November. If the flight continues down to MEL, it may reach there about 1630 AEDT.

 

[Melburnian1]

As at 0800 hours on Friday 10 November, QF's website still has not adjusted for how the Wednesday 8 QF94 from LAX is diverting to BNE.

The Melbourne Airport website claims that QF94 'from LAX and BNE' has been cancelled.

However the QF website suggests that QF93, the timetabled 1115 hours MEl - LAX is departing at 1730 late this afternoon with same day arrival in the United States estimated at 1235 hours, 360 minutes late. This may be somewhat optimistic. It is still showing as an A388 on FR24 so I assume that VH-OQC must be flying down from BNE to MEL at say 1345 hours or so ex BNE, but may be doing so without passengers. Further advice on this from other AFF members would be great.

VH-OQB on QF12 ex LAX is arriving about 65 minutes late in SYD on Friday 10 at 0935 hours.

QF409, the 0700 hours SYD - MEL and QF472, 0915 hours in the other direction have been cancelled.

 

[Melburnian1]

In further on Friday 10 November, QF19 (1225 hours SYD - MNL) is expected to depart at 1400 this afternoon with arrival at an estimated 1910 hours, 100 minutes late. This will delay the redeye QF20 back down to SYD.

 

[UP4014]

QF2081 Mildura to Mel delayed after the inbound flight hit a bird.

Aircraft Awaiting inspection. I'll go buy another Stella while I wait for it.