Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[Melburnian1]

Also on Friday 29, QF2213 (Q300 VH-SBJ, the 1630 hours SYD down to ABX) did not take off until 1749 so arrival should be at around 1854, 49 minutes tardy. This was the aircraft that ran QF1409 but was earlier diverted to ABX as per dylarr's two posts above.

 

[Melburnian1]

Despite the Victorian Government removing all areas of Sydney from its silly imposed 'Code Red', far fewer flights are continuing to be operated between Sydney and Melbourne compared with a year ago on a similar day, when at a guess there would have been in excess of 20 southbounds.

Saturday 30 January 2021 sees the following SYD - MEL QFd own metal flights axed: QF415 (0800 hours), QF417 (0830), QF425 (1030), QF427 (1100), QF431 (1200 'high noon'), QF439 (1400 hours), QF455 (1500), QF471 (1700) and QF453 (1730).

This only leaves southbound flights departing SYD at a timetabled 0700, 1000, 1300, 1600 and 1900 hours.

 

[dylarr]

The Bendigo issues yesterday made it into the local rag:

Wild weather forces Qantas plane back to Sydney

The plane tried to land in Bendigo on two separate occasions on Friday.

www.bendigoadvertiser.com.au

 

[Melburnian1]

In more on Saturday 30 January 2021, QF1437 (1435 hours SYD down to CBR) departed at 1526, arriving at 1637, 67 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

QF109 may be a 'ferry' working to form Australian Government-subsidised repatriation flight today (Saturday 30 January 2021) ex LHR to DRW. This morning, QF109 (B789 VH-ZNF) arrived LHR at 0542 hours, 37 minutes late. It had taken off from DRW at 2134 on Friday 29, only nine minutes after scheduled pushback at 2125 hours mid evening.

QF110 has a relatively short turnaround for LHR flights, being scheduled to depart shortly at 0905 hours.

 

[Melburnian1]

Q300 VH-SBG on Sunday 31 January 2021 finds itself on QF2057, the mid afternoon 1515 hours from MEL down to famous for its ferry DPO. Takeoff was not until 1707 hours so the predicted 1806 hours arrival will be 96 minutes tardy.

B738 VH-VXJ is on QF625 (1430 hours BNE - MEL up up and away at 1517) so its at gate arrival is suggested as 1828 hours early this evening, 48 minutes behind schedule.

 

[Melburnian1]

Also on 31 January, B738 VH-VXJ on QF632 (1820 hours MEL - BNE) took off at 1908 hours, as QF625 (see above), its previous flight, arrived at gate at 1826. The northbound should arrive BNE 40 minutes tardy at 2000 hours.

 

[Melburnian1]

The second QF109 in two days that was scheduled to depart DRW at 2125 hours last night, Saturday 30 January, for LHR to form QF110 back to DRW (repatriation flight subsidised by the Australian Government) was cancelled. QF110 from LHR at 0905 hours on Monday 1 February is showing as operating on the FR24 website, bound for DRW.

Any cancellations from LHR may be due to the so-called 'UK coronavirus variant' that has seen EK cancel some/all flights between LHR and DXB.

PER's airport website appears to have crashed due to the sudden announcement by the WA Premier today of a five-day lockdown. 'The Australian' states that mining company flights (tomorrow?) have been cancelled even though the Pilbara is not included in the lockdown area.

 

[Melburnian1]

Kicking off the days of February 2021, QF1077 (1030 hours midmorning ISA down to BNE, B738 VH-VXG) was airborne at 1246 hours so estimated at gate arrival has become 1448, 118 minute sbehind the timetable.

 

[Melburnian1]

QFi has been operating very few international passenger flights in recent months - usually only repatriation ones that have been partly paid for by the Australian Government. Some have been to unusual destinations such as Mumbai (Bombay).

On Friday 5 February 2021, the 10`0 hours SYD - AKL is operating but an 0835 hours QF1010 from SYD to NAN has been cancelled.

There are a large number of domestic cancellations: 42, as opposed to a remaining 40 QFd flights ex SYD at this stage.

The flights that have been flicked mean there's just one remaining QFd 'own metal' SYD - ADL flight today and only six from SYD down to MEL on what's normally the second busiest domestic air route worldwide.

A 50 per cent cancellation rate is extraordinary, particularly when timetabled flights had already been slashed compared to what would have been the case on a 'normal' Friday February a year ago pre-COVID-19. It reflects border restrictions/closures plus the unwillingness of many to travel interstate lest they get stranded by some instant 'shut' decision from the likes of Andrews, Gutwein, McGowan, Marshall or Palusczuk.

From Sydney, QF401, QF409, QF419, QF439, QF463, QF475 and QF483, respectively the 0600, 0700, 0800, 1400, 1600, 1730 and 1830 hours to MEL have got the boot.

So have QF1423, QF1505, QF1509 and QF1515 at 0635, 1235, 1525 and 1835 hours to CBR and QF2221/QF2231 at xx_X and 1850 hours down to WGA. QF2002 at 0805 hours, and QF2004/QF2008 at 1240 and 1915 from SYD up to TMW are further no-shows, as is QF2020 at 0820 hours from SYD to ARM.

QF2121, a newish flight on a previously ZL monopoly route (SYD - GFF) is not to run (it was due out at 1105 hours). QF2046 at 1500 hours from SYD across to DBO is another turboprop or non-B738 that won't operate, as is its same route QF2042 in the early evening at 1820 hours ex SYD.

Turboprop-operated QF2118 from SYD to CFS at a projected departure of 1915 hours has been cancelled, as has QF2217 at 1930 hours SYD - ABX.

The Ballina route has had a huge upsurge in bookings but QF2014, the 1900 hours early evening from SYD is another casualty to BNK.

QF731 at 0735 to ADL is not running. Nor is QF735 at 0935 hours, QF743 at 1635 hours or QF745 at 1925 hours.

The 0805 hours SYD - BNE is another cancellation: QF508 as is QF530 on the same route at 1405 hours later in the day, and so is QF540, the 1705 hours SYD - BNE. Further bad news is the cancellation of QF566, 1905 hours SYD - BNE.

QF1583 and QF1585 at 0850 and 1945 hours to HBA will not operate, the same situation as for QF1539 (1005 hours SYD down to LST). The 0905 hours SYD - CNS is a further cancellation, as QF922.

The 1025 hours SYD - PER (QF581) has received the boot as have QF569 and QF583 on the same route at 1655 and 1950 hours.

SYD to holiday destination HTI QF572 at 1320 hours in the early afternoon has got the flick.

QF1578 (1900 hours SYD up to MCY) won't run.

 

[milehighclub]

I'm a bit confused by your post. You claim 4 flights have been cancelled today to CBR. Yet the Qantas website says only QF1509 has been cancelled today. You also said 6 SYD-MEL but I see 8. And this 50% cancellation? QF1509 is the only cancellation for the remainder of the day from SYD (of course others may be cancelled, but as it stands, it's the only one) That is not exactly 50%.

 

[Melburnian1]

I'm a bit confused by your post. You claim 4 flights have been cancelled today to CBR. Yet the Qantas website says only QF1509 has been cancelled today. You also said 6 SYD-MEL but I see 8. And this 50% cancellation? QF1509 is the only cancellation for the remainder of the day from SYD (of course others may be cancelled, but as it stands, it's the only one) That is not exactly 50%.

milehighclub, my source was the Sydney Airport website.

When I said '50 per cent', I was referring to how my source suggests that 42 out of 82 timetabled flights ex SYD today have been cancelled. So if true, it's actually above 50 per cent. It was an 'overall domestic percentage' to which I was referring, not by individual domestic routes.

Sometimes the SYD airport website may be incorrect but this begs the question: what incentive is there for it to give what you say is incorrect information to passengers? It doesn't do the airport's reputation any good.

Is it possible some flights have been cancelled at very short notice and your data source hasn't been updated? Last I read on the AFF site, you were no longer working for QF, so if you've been reinstated, great.

 

[milehighclub]

Is it possible some flights have been cancelled at very short notice and your data source hasn't been updated? Last I read on the AFF site, you were no longer working for QF, so if you've been reinstated, great.

I never said I left.

Sometimes the SYD airport website may be incorrect but this begs the question: what incentive is there for it to give what you say is incorrect information to passengers? It doesn't do the airport's reputation any good.

I don't know how it works, but by the looks of it, it has a lot of flights originally planned but have been pulled some time ago and reflect today as cancelled. They are cancelled, but they were cancelled sometime ago, not today. So depends how technical you want to get with cancellations. I suspect the purpose of a cancellation thread, is flights that are cancelled today.

I have taken a look at Sunday for SYD/MEL.
SYD airport says 12 flights, QF says it has 8. For JQ, SYD airport says 8 flights, but JQ say 4. So there is clearly is a lag in information. I'd say that would be on SYD Airport.

I took a look at tomorrow. It is showing 44 flights to Melbourne on the SYD airport website (but only shows 10 arrivals, of which 7 are planned), but a good portion of them already cancelled (as they would've been pulled some time ago), yet the Melbourne Airport website shows 7 arrivals from Sydney and QF is showing 7 flights scheduled.

 

[Melburnian1]

I never said I left.


I don't know how it works, but by the looks of it, it has a lot of flights originally planned but have been pulled some time ago and reflect today as cancelled. They are cancelled, but they were cancelled sometime ago, not today. So depends how technical you want to get with cancellations. I suspect the purpose of a cancellation thread, is flights that are cancelled today.

I have taken a look at Sunday for SYD/MEL.
SYD airport says 12 flights, QF says it has 8. For JQ, SYD airport says 8 flights, but JQ say 4. So there is clearly is a lag in information. I'd say that would be on SYD Airport.

I took a look at tomorrow. It is showing 44 flights to Melbourne on the SYD airport website, but a good portion of them already cancelled (as they would've been pulled some time ago), yet the Melbourne Airport website shows 7 arrivals from Sydney and QF is showing 7 flights scheduled.

mile, thanks. Maybe various airports show cancellations that (as you suggest) the airlines made a couple of days ago, or the day before. I lack the 'inside info' to deduce that.

Irrespective, the number operating is nowhere near (out of Sydney) the '60 per cent' that Mr Joyce has said QFd should be flying now. The latter is an Australia-wide figure but even though PER-based mining flights may be at close to 100 per cent - i.e. few cancellations - it's hard to see nationally how '60 per cent' has been reached.

Eight SYD - MEL southbound QFd flights on a Sunday compares to a normal around 30 from a year ago, so that alone is down to fewer than 30 per cent. And as jb747 pointed out some pages back, if some flights were previously A332s, nowadays typically having 'all B738s' except for QF409 at 0700 hours ex SYD (most if not all days an A333) means an even bigger drop in seating capacity.

Diabolical times for airlines.

 

[Melburnian1]

On Sunday 7 February 2021, QF101, an 0835 hours from SYD up to NAN has again been cancelled.

 

[milehighclub]

I assume you have used Sydney Airport website again to determine this. QF101 was never scheduled to operate today and it is not scheduled to operate on the 9th either, even though Sydney Airport says it's on time.

 

[Melburnian1]

I assume you have used Sydney Airport website again to determine this. QF101 was never scheduled to operate today and it is not scheduled to operate on the 9th either, even though Sydney Airport says it's on time.

Assumption correct! Thanks.

Why would the airport believe that a flight was meant to operate when you say it wasn't? It is unlikely to make this up. Mistakes are always possible, but logic suggests at some stage QFi must have transferred data electronically to Sydney Airport including this QF101 in today's (and tomorrow's) timetable.

I can't recall FJ operating any recent passenger flights from Nadi, so it's another origin that appears to be unserved nonstop by air to Australia for citizens wanting to repatriate.

 

[Melburnian1]

Reflecting what some suggest was the scandalous Perth/Peel (Mandurah area)/southwest WA lockdown with minimal COVID-19 cases by a Premier in Mr McGowan who shortly has an electoral test, QFd has cancelled all its six SYD - PER flights on Sunday 7 February 2021.

VA555 at 0915 hours was the only SYD - PER passenger flight today. This may not be unprecedented but it is most unusual, especially given the lockdown has ceased, although it may be hard for airlines to instantly schedule new flights - crewing placement is complex - and then there's the question of how many would be able to book each way at very short notice.

 

[milehighclub]

Why would the airport believe that a flight was meant to operate when you say it wasn't? It is unlikely to make this up.

No idea. But yesterday was a good example. It listed 44 flights to MEL yesterday, majority of which were cancelled. But these would have been cancelled sometime ago. Yet now when you look at today, it isn't showing all those flights anymore. SYD airport is showing 13 flights, some of which are cancelled, yet QF is showing 8 and that none have been cancelled today.

I am not sure how the airport systems work, but for SYD to say there are 12 arrivals today from MEL, but for MEL to say only 8 departures, would indicate there is an issue with SYD.

 

[Melburnian1]

No idea. But yesterday was a good example. It listed 44 flights to MEL yesterday, majority of which were cancelled. But these would have been cancelled sometime ago. Yet now when you look at today, it isn't showing all those flights anymore. SYD airport is showing 13 flights, some of which are cancelled, yet QF is showing 8 and that none have been cancelled today.

I am not sure how the airport systems work, but for SYD to say there are 12 arrivals today from MEL, but for MEL to say only 8 departures, would indicate there is an issue with SYD.

Fair comment. Odd!

But there may also be an issue with QFd internally, as notably the problem doesn't seem to occur so much with subsidiary JQd, as all its flights out of SYD today on that airport's website are showing as 'operating', indicating that if there were any cancellations - a certainty since flight numbers are so much fewer than normal - they were 'wiped' from whatever database of JQd 'talks' to the Sydney Airport one some time ago.

We'll never know unless an industry source chimes in.

Maybe the moral of the story is for me to rely less on that SYD airport website as authoritative, but it is Australia's number one airport (normally, though sometimes not recently) in passenger numbers domestically (and internationally).