[Anonymous]

[MarcusUK]

Announced here in Sydney today, poor results for Qantas.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/18/2823139.htm
Australia source

Came on the same day another Qantas flight had problems & had to make an emergency landing with landing gear jammed at Sydney. Recent few years, the old Qantas aircraft have seen holes appear in fuselages, doors blow open, skidded off runways in Bangkok, collided with a bus…is a bit of a Dig in joke here.
I flew to Melbourne on a very old 734 in October, where there was yellow gaffer tape strapped to the bottom of the rigid tv screens that were set in the corridor to, stop you bumping into them.
Also the dropping of 1st class cabins on many flights announced today.
They appear to have been deeply affected by VirginBlue & palmed off many routes to major Domestic markets to their low cost Jetstar, but some of their regional routes remain very expensive & a monopoly here in Australia. VAustralia are also set to eat into their routes to JNB, as well as LAX.
Sure other Airlines now running down to Sydney have cut into their business to Europe, especially EK, EY, Qatar.

[robertinobne]

Are we really surprised about the QF loss? Everyone knows that on average, if you want to pay the highest fare in any class to any destination out of australia then QF is the way to go. The cold hard facts are there is no better service of any description in paying these higher prices. Flying with Air NZ or SQ or V australia you get more caring staff and better food and much newer planes with all the mod cons for significantly less cost. Why WOULD you fly with QF then? I’m a lifetime qantas club member but i rarely use it because of all these issues. 10 years ago the minimum fare was $400 to fly bne to syd return, but these days you can do it for $120 thanks to major competition from virgin and the like.
The other thing of course we all know is that JETSTAR will eventually take over the ENTIRE australian network AND the leisure international sectors such as thailand and bali. Qantas will eventually be just a brand we see from time to time flying to LAX or LHR. Jetstar has, since it inception kept Qantas afloat through it soaring profits at the expense of the Qantas arm.

[MarcusUK]

Hi Robert…totally agree.

Some BT members don’t realise the market down here as much, it is very different to Europe. Many more Aussies now would think of great service & luxury taking Etihad or Emirates to Europe, with i think, a big swing from going via Asia to the Middle East.
Qantas like BA, are seen as rather old hat here. BA are cutting its Sydney capacity,a prime route for any Airline, then the business has gone elsewhere.

There was a thread about national Airlines…not so sure the Aussies see Qantas as this, as they have kept prices very high domestically & still do regionally. I am sure they are fine long haul though…

[continentalclub]

I’ve just read the Qantas H1 numbers (as I’m apt to do) and they actually look rather good, an opinion that would appear to be shared by a number of analysts.

In fact, compared to the guidance notes that I read on AirFrance-KLM and Lufthansa AG on Monday, they’re actually quite exceptional.

The ASX response to the results seems to have been driven more by a number of institutional investors having pinned their hopes on some kind of rocket-powered recovery ahead in H2; hopes which Qantas have sought to manage. That, of course, and the deletion of a dividend for this reporting period.

H2 fuel costs are forecast to be higher, and the H1 figures were handicapped by a AUD48m one-off depreciation charge, but full year profits are still expected to come in somewhere in the region of AUD100m-AUD200m, with cash in hand currently standing at AUD3.5bn.

[austline]

I agree with Continental Club people should look at the figures and guidance and you will see they are in good shape compared to many of their competitors and unlike many carries they do not get handouts or government subsidies. I have dumped; SQ – dreadful J class seating, never know what aircart you are going to get, EK – J class cradle type seats rude multi national crew and let’s not go down the V Blue path – delays, aircarft canx and industrial problems. I use QF and Oneworld where ever I can, being a Platinum FF I enjoy top service in the air and on the ground. Their food and wine are superior to all Mid East, Asian carriers and V Australia.They are in the process of upgrading their fleet the A380 is stunning to fly on, their lounges in Australia are the best of any airline. I do not find their dom Y fares any less competitive than V Blue you can still get to Per from Mel for au200 and you can’t compare the service.

[Binman62]

continental club / austline…I agree with you

My only is the rather short sighted decision to remove First class not just from 747 but from the final deliveries of A380 as well.

[austline]

Agree with Binman62 – I believe it’s a little shortsighted as the lead time they are talking about is 2012 and 2013 by then J F should have recovered.

Tthe routes that they are looking at eliminating F class are SYD/JNB AUS/HKG and HKG/LHR, I would have thought all have reasonable F class traffic flows.

My other surpise is the reduction in J seats on some routes, try and get a J seat on LHR or LAX and it’s tight. The yeilds maybe a problem but the traffic is there.

[Wildgoose]

Why exactly are BA cutting capacity to Sydney? Does anyone happen to have ‘the numbers’, as in just how much traffic they take down to Sydney from London (without actually code-sharing with QF)? Would make interesting reading.
Personally, I’m off to Perth next month and am choosing between EK, CX, SQ, and MH. Any recommendations? Those suggesting BA and QF will, of course, be ignored. :o)

[Henryp1]

To Perth I would go EK, as connection times are OK and PS in 1st.

[robertinobne]

if you want a cheaper business fare from london phone SAS direct. its a scandinavian/thai combo. i paid $5000 AUD last dec for a fare in august this yr. I think its about $5800 now. HOWEVER yr flight to perth on TG is not a 777 but an A330 with old business seats. the SK sector is new and flat bed. The connections are very good in BKK enough time for a thai feed and a free massage at the lounge while you wait. O’wise emirates is dearer but with a better product. Malaysian is very good too but no idea how much they charge. And rightly so forget about QF and BA pricy and average service. SQ will be as dear as QF.
another cheap option is fly to LHR with TG to Phuket and Vaustralia to perth(both new planes.) Try paying for sectors separately too as it can be much cheaper. stay in phuket for a day or 3 and stay in Khao lak area NOT tourist infested patong area.V australia is affiliated with VS for ffpoints too.

[Binman62]

Re reductions in capaicty to SYD by BA. I can’t be certain of the actual numbers but BA cancelled flights in co operation with QF over this winter. It amounted to several hundred 747 flights in total from Oct to April and was done by both carriers as allowed by the JSA. Fares in F and J increased substantially as a result of the cuts but only on F / J fares..
If you discount the recent capacity reductions the reductions by BA in recent years have been minimal. they have only really reduced economy capacity as the 777 was put on the SIN SYD route specifically to maintain business / First capacity whilst reducing economy capacity. In addition they work hand in hand with QF (revenue is shared) on the kangaroo route and the introduction of the A380 means that overall there is probably no significant capacity chages by the JSA carriers. What I really do not understand is why BA still go to SYD at all and why they and QF do not offer better connections at BKK SIN HKG as well as LAX SFO YVR NRT or any of the other multiple city pairs in Asia to which they both operate. Seoul and Beijing in particular as both on the great circle route.
BA/QF and VS will of course clean up when the LHR SYD route can be operated non stop as only British and Australian carriers wil be able to do so under current bilateral agreements.

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