Later on 28 January 2020, QF1 departed SYD at 2008, 188 minutes behind its 1700 hours schedule, becoming airborne quickly at 2022, a fair bit faster than usual for this large aircraft. The SIN stop should be from 0049 to 0200 on Wednesday 29 (125 late) with arrival in LHR at about 0825, 130 late. Based on observations, the length of stop shown for SIN may be somewhat optimistic.
VH-OQI had been in Sydney since this morning at 0813 hours with a 22 minute ahead of timetable arrival as QF12 from LAX, so not sure why the delay tonight. It isn't unusual for QF1 to have a half hour to hour long delay, but three hours is less common.
A388 VH-OQD on QF8 departed DFW at 0045 hours on Monday 27 (360 late) with SYD Wednesday arrival expected at 1046, 281 late. Yet it had arrived in DFW on 'the 7' at 1309 hours, only 14 minutes late. VH-OQJ had however been several hours late the previous day, arriving at the DFW gate at 2020 hours rather than the timetabled 1255 hours, so the flight crew must not have had minimum stipulated rest in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Earlier, QF35, the lunchtime MEL - SIN A388 due off blocks at 1210 took until 1526 mid afternoon for this to occur. Arrival is suggested as 1955 hours, 170 minutes tardy. Aircraft A388 VH-OQC had arrived from LAX on QF94 at 1126 hours, 96 minutes late. In theory it should have been able to depart at about 1310 hours if it had achieved the minimum turnaround time.
In consequence, QF36 is forecast to depart SIN tonight mid evening at 2145, 125 late for Wednesday arrival at 0810, 130 late. QFi hasn't publicly allocated the gate numbers for QF93 and QF35 but usual practice for 'the 36' is to form QF93, the 1040 hours MEL to LAX. Even though QF36 will be tardy, it should still (in theory) have sufficient time to punctually depart as QF93, but QFi isn't always able to 'reverse' these aircraft quikly. Any further delay between QF35 and QF36 tonight in SIN won't be helpful to 'the 93' passengers booked tomorrow morning ex MEL.
QF43 (A332 VH-EBV), the Tuesday 1650 hours afternoon SYD - DPS pushed back 80 late, so tonight's arrival in the holiday haven has become 2050 as an estimate, 50 late.
The AKL - BNE QF126 (B789 VH-ZNC) arrived 68 late at 1818 hours.
VH-VZT (B738) on QF582, the 1350 hours from PER to SYD up up and away at 1432 hours should be at its arrival gate at about 2132, 32 late. In the opposite direction, A332 VH-EBG on QF571, the 1740 hours in the air at 2101 is worse, as its aerobridge arrival should be 2235 hours, three hours late. EBG must be substituting for another A332, as it arrived in SYD on QF146 (ex AKL) at 1855, an hour late. It is not normal for an aircraft timetabled to arrive at 1800 to form a scheduled 1740 hours pushback.
The 1855 hours CBR - PER (a route on which the QF Group now has a monopoly since VA withdrew, meaning fares are likely to have risen) took off at 1944 hours so B738 VH-VXD should arrive at 2107 mid evening, 37 behind.
QF9, also a 1650 hours departure but from down south in MEL is unusually delayed until a predicted 2115 hours mid evening (265 minutes late.) The PER intermediate stop should be 2205 to 2330 with Wednesday LHR arrival 0920 hours, 255 minutes behind the timetable. FR24 implies that B789 VH-ZNI was to operate this flight: it has been in MEL since arrival on 28 January early morning (0655 hours, 10 minutes late) as QF50 ex SFO.
VH-ZNA has also been in MEL all day while ZNF arrived only a minute late at 2026 hours this evening on QF10 ex PER and prior to that LHR.
The overnight QF12 departed LAX at 2315 (45 late) on Monday 27 with Wednesday 29 SYD arrival forecast as 0914 hours, 39 late.
