This was no ordinary flight for me. According to my flightmemory, it was my 950th flight ever. In addition, it was my 275th flight with Qantas and my 24th on an Airbus A330.

Booking: 9 out of 10

Qantas’ booking engine is very streamlined. Six steps take you from enquiry to payment. If you are logged in as a Qantas Frequent Flyer, then the amount of information required to be typed in is minimal. Thanks to Skyscanner, I found the same fare on another website for $249 less. This saved me almost a third of the fare. It has annoyed me in the past that unlike Department stores, airlines don’t like to match fares. Since 2012, Qantas has offered a price guarantee: if, after purchasing a Qantas flight, on the same day, you find the Same Qantas Fare (including fare conditions) for a lower, publicly available price on an Australian website, we’ll match it. Frequent Flyers can also earn 1,000 extra points.  The site I bought from was not Australian so no bonus for me! – just a nice fare saving.

After booking and paying for me seats on the external site, I chose my seats back at qantas.com. Exit row seats were available for 90 dollars which I could not be bothered paying.  I opted for a seat as close as possible to the front of economy. I initially got  25 two rows behind the front Economy Row. 23, I looked every couple of days to see if the front row had become free. It did not.

Check in: 7 out of 10

I found Qantas online check in a little frustrating. It is supposed to be a five easy step process! For a  start,  why do I have to enter the same personal information for migration authorities every time I check in? Why cannot Qantas use my already entered name, and store my date of birth and passport information. I get tired of typing in passport number multiple times.  I also found that I could not complete the check in on my Ipad as a check box refused to respond to my response. After multiple times, I switched to a lap top and started all over again.    Still no seats available in row 23, sadly.

The use of the online check in meant I bypassed all of the queues at Sydney airport. The Economy line was crazy long. Even business class check in lines were long. Thanks to an express card obtained from a roving check in agent I got from airport entrance to Qantas lounge in just nine minutes.

Lounge: 7 out of 10

I was interested that I was recognised by three of the lounge staff. This was probably the result of some of those 275 flights! The Qantas business lounge was full. I commented on this to one of the staff and he told me this was the direct  result of the change of Qantas hub from Singapore to Dubai. He noted that the Asian flights now depart earlier in the morning, along with the Dubai flights. As a result there is now a mad morning rush in the lounges, followed by a lull until the US bound flights depart and then the afternoons are quiet. When I was in the lounge, seats were scarce, it was noisy and there were lines for the food. It was not exactly a restful expereince.

One of the the lounge staff changed me into a seat in row 23  and assured me that there would be no one next to me – he was right.

Boarding: 10 out of 10

I walked down to gate from the Lounge as late as I could so I missed out on most of the scrum. We were welcomed very warmly as we stepped onto the craft. I strolled to my seat in row 23 and settled in. Moments later,  I was greeted with a fresh orange juice, as was my neighbour across the aisle.  This is something I would get from time to time as Platinum customer. I was not sure how I won the honour on this occasion.

Takeoff

We departed a mere three minutes after the scheduled time. Take off was very smooth and we turned into the north-west bearing for Bangkok.

On board: 7 out of 10

I am not a fan of the A330, at the best of times. To me, it  feels  one of the more cramped of the Airbus family.   The 267 Economy  seats are arranged 2-4-2. They have a pitch (distance between seats) of 31″ and a width of 17″ . The 30 Business class seats arranged 2-2-2 have a pitch of 60″ and a width of 21.5.  Qantas has not had rave reviews over their economy seats. They are adequate. There are six lavatories  in economy and three in business class.

There was a tiny (and I mean tiny) amenity kit on each seat. The kit  includes a foul tasting tooth paste, cheap tooth brush and eye mask.  The kit reflects the continuing diminishing of  Qantas customer service. Once upon a time, there was more in the kit.

I asked a member of the Cabin crew if she could ask the pilot to sign my boarding pass for my 950th flight. I was very touched that Captain Pattison came down to see me and present me with a signed boarding pass.

Entertainment System: 7 out of 10

Both Economy and Business  have a seatback Audio and Video on Demand System. Qantas  has 20 Radio Channels, 120 CDS, 30 Movies, 120 TV programs including destination guides and 10 games. In Business, there are an additional 30 movies available. Found the selection, a little more disappointing than I have on previous occasions and found that I had seen all of the TV shows that I have any interest in. The system was a little slow in its responses when buttons were pressed.

While there is a power outlet in every business seat, there are no power outlets in economy which is a grave oversight in today’s world.   This distressed a fellow passenger who (almost tearfully) said that they had a full nine-hour work schedule to complete on the laptop and needed it charged. When the laptop’s battery flattened, the crew took the laptop and charged it in business class and returned it to the passenger who watched movies on it for the Rest of the flight! (not sure what happened to the work?)

Qantas has no on-board wi-fi. They cancelled the wi-fi program after a six month trial which saw five per cent of passengers using the wi-fi. Interestingly, Qantas’ new partner Emirates is continuing to roll out their wi-fi.

Meals: 8 out of 10

The crew provided a very attractive menu card, soon after take off. I chose a beef dish which was very nice. Fresh fruit available with drinks from the galley throughout the flight.
A small pizza sub was offered just before landing. Good selection of alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks, although the whites were not very exciting.

Landing

We had a very gentle landing into Bangkok, almost 30 minutes early.  I was met at the airport by a greeter service -part of the Fast Track service. They got me from gate through customs and immigration to the railway station entrance in seven minutes! (I had no checked luggage) I will use that service again!

The Verdict

My Flight Rating: Overall 80% (4 out of 5).

My Overall rating of Qantas: 4.7 out of 5 (based on my 275 Qantas flights)

Skytrax Rating of Qantas : 4 star

Positives: Staff, punctuality   Negatives: Entertainment system, wi-fi
Would I fly them again? Yes!

Related Posts

Trip Report: Qantas 93: Melbourne to Los Angeles

LAX-SYD on A380

Farewell BA Bangkok – Sydney Trip Report

 Turkish Delight -Great Trip + Best Economy Meal Ever

Booking 8 out of 10

I actually started my flight in Auckland, New Zealand. The fare for Auckland-Melbourne-Los Angeles-Melbourne-Los Angeles was actually $A1000 less than the  fare for Melbourne-Los Angeles-Melbourne. Combining two New Zealand trips in was easy for me.

The Qantas website easily worked out the multi city fare and came up with  a better fare than Expedia.com or Webjet or Kayak could find. Sometimes looking at the airline’s website can be a bonus. Trying the same search with Virgin Australia online was  not possible.

Seat selection was easy. All the preferred seats were gone, These included the exit row seats which you pay $180 for with Qantas  and the bulkhead seats which could not be selected online.

Check in: 8 out of 10

I attempted to check in online four times over 20 hours. Each time, I finished the whole process before the Qantas website told me that check in was not possible at this time.  Grrrr.  When I arrived at Auckland airport I tired to use the “Q Reader” kiosk system. The same thing happened. I ended up checking in at the Premium Check in at Auckland airport. The woman said that there had been a lot of trouble with online check in with this flight. She also told me that there were a number of seats available in the Bulkhead but she could not access them. They could only be unblocked in Melbourne (something which she did not offer to d0). She did block the seat next to me, though.

Melbourne Lounge: 10 out of 10

Boarding 10 out of 10

To get into the boarding area, meant presenting your boarding pass and passport to security. I can never understand how anyone can get through with the wrong documentation. After all, you have to show them to get into the international departure area. Then it is checked at customs.

Anyway,  I then joined the priority boarding line for Business, First, Gold and Platinum customers.  Cabin crew at the door were very welcoming. I always love stepping onto an A380. It brings a rush of excitement for me.

On Board: 9 out of 10

The plane was almost completely full. True to her word, however, was an empty seat next to mine. This airbus had four classes on board:

1. First Class: 14 suites of 83.5″ pitch and  29.0″ width
2. Business Class: 72 seats  80.0″ pitch 21.5″ width (seats convert into fully flat beds)
3. Premium Economy Class:  32 seats of 38 to 42″ pitch and 19.5″ width
4. Economy Class: 332 seats with 31.0″ pitch and 18.1″ width

From my vantage point I had a glimpse into the hallowed sanctum of First Class!

Take off: 10 out of 10

The other guy in my row had never witnessed an A380 takeoff. He was amazed. The plane is just made to fly. It never seems to have gathered enough speed on the runway before it lifts effortlessly into the air. Watching the take off out the window and simultaneously via the tail mounted camera broadcast on the entertainment system TV Screen was very cool.

Meals 8 out of 10

There were a choice of three dishes for the lunch and two (continental or cooked) for the breakfast. The lunch tray contained salad, a roll, peppermints, a small chocolate bar and a mousse. The crew brought through an ice cream, a small pizza in a box and apple through the night. There were also apples, biscotti and other snacks left on a serve yourself basis in the economy galley. I did not find the quantity sufficient. I raided the snack area few times.

Entertainment: 10 out of 10

The Qantas interactive system has one of the best ranges of any carrier I have been on. If not, the best. They claim to have 100 movies, 500 plus TV  programs,  a thousand CDs, 20 radio channels and 80 games. You also have access to  Lonely Planet destination guides. The seatback screen is  approximately ten inches.

The system responded well. Channels changed quickly. Sound and visual quality were good. I would like more Dr Who episodes please, Qantas.

Landing 10 out of 10

We landed early into a very foggy LA morning. The landing was magic and the view from tail camera and through the window super.  I made my way to immigration as quickly as possible (being close to the front of economy really helped) and was through the whole process and outside in the LA sunshine in 25 minutes.

The Verdict

My rating: Overall 93% (4.6 out of 5)- my overall rating of Qantas based on my 260 previous flights is: 4.7 put of 5.

Skytrax Rating of Qantas: 4 star

Positives:   Almost everything especially the Entertainment system

Negatives: Not enough food

Would I fly them again?  Yes!

Related Posts

Trip Report: Korean Airlines A380

Trip Report: Lufthansa’s A380

Trip Report: Air France A380

LAX-SYD on Qantas A380 (July, 2010)

Emirates- comparing the A380

Qantas Airways on Thursday, this week announced an agreement with Emirates after months of speculation. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce called it  ”the biggest deal in Qantas history“. Qantas have publicly declared it is “The World’s Leading Airline Partnership”

The ten year deal, yet to be approved by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (which I see  as a formality) means Qantas will

• shift its main hub for London flights from Singapore to Dubai
• fly daily Airbus A380 services from both Sydney and Melbourne to London via Dubai adding to Emirates 84 services  a week out of Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney
• cease its 17 year long revenue-sharing agreement with British Airways in March 2013 on the “Kangaroo route” between Australia and Britain – a relationship that has existed in some form since the flying boats that used to ply this route decades ago
• will stop its daily Sydney-Frankfurt and Melbourne-Frankfurt flights from April next year which lose money
• make London its only European port (Qantas also used to fly to Amsterdam, Athens, Rome and  Vienna)
• code share on Emirates flights between Australia and New Zealand

Both airlines will align their frequent flyer programs allowing customers the ability to earn and redeem points with each airline. In addition the carriers will provide reciprocal access to tier status benefits including lounge access. A further benefit to Qantas Business and First passengers on flights of 12 hours plus is that they will be provided the  chauffeur driven service Emirates has which takes passengers to and from the airport.

From a passenger point of view, the deal is brilliant. Passengers will  have access to 120 Emirates destinations with just one connection at the Emirates Terminal (Terminal 3 in Dubai). Skytrax rates Dubai airport as a 3 star and Terminal 3 as 3 and a half star.  I personally thought connecting at Dubai airport was superb.

The points sharing and reciprocal benefits are all great. As a Qantas Gold Frequent Flyer,  I do not fly Emirates as much as I would like because of my lack of status with the carrier. Emirates has been my favourite airline in the world for the last few years. I love their trans Tasman (New Zealand- Australia) A380 services but don’t use them as much because of my lack of lounge access, priority boarding and points. NB Their Trans Tasman 777 is very squishy but still nice.

There is no word on fares. Emirates have been traditionally quite aggressive on fares. Will this continue under this arrangement?

Qantas have promised they will focus on better serving Asian destination from Australia with a schedule focussed on local passengers rather than those flying onwards to Europe. They don’t say, however,  if this will be via Jetstar or Qantas International but it definitely sounds like it puts to bed Joyce’s strategy of starting a Premium Asian carrier.

One of my concerns is that passengers wanting to use Qantas to go to Europe will have a choice of Qantas to Dubai and then Emirates or Qantas to London and British Airways. With the Dubai option, one wonders how many people will ask “why bother?” and choose to book with Emirates the whole way?

Emirates has traditionally avoided alliances. They have some code sharing and Frequent Flyer links. For example, with JetBlue in the USA. earlier in This deal is indeed a major departure for them. Will this be the route for Emirates into the One World Alliance that Qantas is a member of? Or does this potentially mean Qantas may exit the One World alliance?

This new alliance raises the ante vis a vis the Virgin Australia-Etihad alliance. Despite speculation that it would be a Qatar -Qantas tie up:  ”Most certainly we will have a partnership with Qantas” said Akbar al-Baker Qatar CEO in July,
Qatar is now locked out of an alliance with an Australia domestic carrier.  This is where it could get very interesting.  British Airways Holding parent Company IAG  had held discussions with the Doha-based Qatar over the purchase of the 12 per cent stake in IAG. There was intense UK media speculation that IAG would develop a new alliance with Qatar which would give BA reach into Asia and Australia. It does not give Qatar access to the Australian domestic market unless they take on Tiger Australia or REX (both scenarios are unlikely).

On the day the deal was announced, Qantas shares leapt almost 7 per cent. However, following the announcement Standard & Poor’s who placed Qantas  on negative credit watch on June 7, 2012, lowered Qantas’s corporate credit rating from BBB/A-2 to “BBB-/A-3″ over concerns that “Qantas’ business risk profile has weakened because of the structural pressures affecting the airline’s international business”. They noted the flow on effect of the Emirates deal “may take some time to eventuate”.  The Standard and Poor announcement came after the close of trading on the Australian Stock Exchange, so it will be Monday Australian time, before we see the effect on their share price.

So the deal, I think “saves” Qantas International (and Alan Joyce’s job), at the expense of fewer direct Qantas destinations, a reduction in Qantas services, a farewell to the historic Kangaroo route  and inevitable job losses. The deal does not change Qantas cost base or its acrimonious relationship with its staff.  Longer term, I actually see this deal as another nail in the coffin for Qantas International. Qantas is now tied to Emirates. It makes it very hard to develop alliances with any other carriers.  I wonder long how it will be before Emirates becomes Australia’s international airline with Qantas becomes simply a domestic carrier or Jetstar looking after international routes.

Related:

Qantas and Emirates joint website

Awards confirm Qantas Service Plunge

And the new Qantas Dance Partner is…

Qantas -Back to or Ready for the Future

At a Qantas media conference today, the public were informed that the group made a statutory loss after tax of $244 million.  Its first loss for 20 years. The group had a $95 million profit before tax. Again, Qantas shareholders will receive no dividend. Record high fuel costs of $4.3 billion, up $645 million made a major dent.

We also found out the cost of the industrial action and grounding of the Qantas fleet ($194 million). What we didn’t find out was the actual cost of the industrial action versus the grounding. Of the industrial action, some cost the company nothing (for example the Pilots wearing red ties and making political comments on flights).  Some  would have cost it some money (for example the rolling one hour stoppages). The biggest impact, however was the stranding of 100 000 people and the cost of that.

Citing these results amidst the Global Financial Crisis, Qantas also announced it has cancelled firm commitments for 35 Boeing 787-9s – reducing capital expenditure by US$8.5 billion at list prices. The same 787 , Qantas has previously said was the cornerstone of its domestic and international fleet renewal program

It will keep options and purchase rights for  50 787-9, available for delivery from 2016. Receipt of the first 787-9 will be delayed two years due to the restructure, Qantas said.

There are no changes to its plans for the 787-8, with the first of 15 jets scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2013.

Group CEO Alan Joyce said ”Qantas continues to practice disciplined capital management and, in the context of returning Qantas International to profit, this is a prudent decision…The 787 is an excellent aircraft and remains an important part of our future. However, circumstances have changed significantly since our order several years ago. It is vital that we allocate capital carefully across all parts of the Group.”

No new planes. No new routes. A continued shrinking of existing routes. No new partner (what happened to Qatar or Etihad?), no new premium Asian carrier. No reconciliation with workforce No answers. Is this the restructuring of Qantas International or another nail in the coffin?

In the same announcements today, we heard how Jetstar had “underlying EBIT of $203 million, up $34 million 20 per cent on the prior year. Ancillary revenues grew by 27 per cent and unit costs were reduced to record lows. Domestically, Jetstar continues to hold a clear leadership position in the price-sensitive market.  Jetstar Japan commenced operations in July 2012 and Jetstar Hong Kong will be added in 2013.

So in 2015, what are the chances we will have Jetstar planes flying internationally with Qantas only flying domestically? No new 787s needed then? Will we see A380s in Jetstar colours? Picture from Minigroover at 400scalehanger

I fly for the 280th time through Melbourne (Australia) airport! This is the airport I have used the most through my life. 280 check ins! Altogether, that is a lot of time in the security lines, shops and lounges!  As of today, my ten most visited airports are:

1.   Melbourne, Australia (MEL): 279 times.  4.3 out of 5
2.   Sydney, Australia (SYD):  248 times.   3.0
3.   Los Angeles, USA (LAX): 89 times.  1.8
4.   Auckland, New Zealand (AKL): 69 times.  3.2
5.  Adelaide, Australia (ADL) 69 times.  4.1
6.  San Francisco, USA (SF):  46 times.  4.0
7.  London Heathrow, UK (LHR): 41 times. 2.6
8.  Wellington, NZ (WLG): 36 times.  4.1
9.  Brisbane, Australia (BNE), 33 times. : 4.0
10.  Chicago O-Hare, USA (ORD): 29 times.  4.0

I was interested how many of these airports are amongst my least favourites. Often its not the airport but the destination that is important. I detest LAX but most Australian and NZ flights to the USA hub through this airport so I have ended up there more times than I would have liked.

Every time, I open my mouth and criticise Qantas, I get push back from Qantas staff and from some Qantas loyalists. Yet, the cadre of passengers I talk to are fed up with an airline that keeps on Jetstar-izing (cheapening) its service.

And it seems we have some vindication.  In 2005 and 2006,  Qantas was rated the second best airline in the world by the World Airline Awards. In 2008, it took third place. By 2010, Qantas had fallen to eighth place. This year,  Qantas was given 15th place. This is the first time, it has been out of the top ten airlines of the world- ever. Consumers, in this Skytrax survey are clearly less happy with Qantas than they used to be.

At the awards at Farnborough airshow this week, the top twenty airlines were revealed as:

1. Qatar Airways (second time in a row)
2. Asiana Airlines (2011: 3rd)
3. Singapore Airlines (2nd) *
4. Cathay Pacific Airways (4th) *
5. ANA All Nippon Airways (11th )
6. Etihad Airways  (6th)*
7. Turkish Airlines ( 9th )
8. Emirates ( 10th )*
9. Thai Airways ( 5th )*
10. Malaysia Airlines (12th)
11. Garuda Indonesia (19th)
12. Virgin Australia (32nd) *
13. EVA Air (16th)
14.  Lufthansa (15th)*
15.  Qantas Airways (8th)*
16. Korean Air (24th)
17. Air New Zealand (7th)*
18. Swiss Int’l Air Lines (13th)*
19. Air Canada (21st)*
20. Hainan Airlines (23rd)

*The ones marked with an asterix are the carriers I have flown. I confess I have only flown just over half the list  -and Qatar has not yet been one of them. Of the Top 20 carriers, nine are Star Alliance (with Eva about to join next year), two are One World (with Malaysia about to join) and one is a Skyteam member (with Garuda expected to join in 2014) and the five are not part of those three major alliances.

Qantas redeemed itself  in this year’s awards with Top Gong for:

• Sydney Airport First class lounge (well deserved-it is amazing)
• Best Premium Economy class (it is an impressive product)
• Best Premium Economy class catering (am surprised)

The official Qantas statement blamed the Union action for the dismal results. I myself point the finger at management who grounded the entire fleet for three days. The question is what is Qantas going to do about this? I accept much of their economic woes can be blamed on the bad global economy in combination with the high Australia dollar. They must, however, be losing custom from premium passengers who are being offered better products on newer planes by customer focused carriers.  We have seen much pontificating about new strategies for Qantas but apart from a company re-organisation, we have not seen much action at Qantas main line. Its got to happen now. The Qatar relationship may be the way back but some better communication with the public and staff would help.

The other major plunge was for Air New Zealand which fell from 7th to 17th. I am not sure why Air New Zealand was punished so hard. Two years ago in April, 2010, they introduced their “Choice” fares on their Pacific services with four types of fares. The idea is that passengers choose what they want to pay for. My experience is that people find it confusing and I have seen some annoyance on flights when meals are served to some and not others. Even though people have chosen a fare type without meals, there were some who resented their neighbour getting food. Frequent Flyers did not seem excited by these options. I wonder if that has had an impact? Personally,  I have found Air New Zealand an on going delight. They remain one of my favourite airlines. 

Over at Virgin Australia, there was a massive jump from 32nd to 12th ahead of Qantas. Expect to hear about that for a while from  Virgin. The airline is already locked in a Business Class war with Qantas. The result has been mega cheap business  fares. That has got to be hurting Qantas. The jump in status, reflects the on going transformation from budget to full service carrier. Virgin was also awarded best airline in the Australia-Pacific region plus its staff were considered best in the region.

Korean also jumped from 24th to 16th place. I wonder how much of that has been the impact of their new A380s.

Significantly, not one US airline made it into the Top 2o. I was also disappointed that LAN, who I think are superb didn’t make it either.

Other awards included:

• Best low cost carrier (AirAsia*)
• Best domestic airline in North America: (JetBlue*)
• Best low-cost carrier for Australia-Pacific (Jetstar*)
• Best low-cost airline in North America (Virgin America*)
• Best First Class (Etihad*)
• Best First Class seats (Cathay Pacific*)
• Best Business Class seats (Oman Air)
• Best premium economy seats (Turkish Airlines)
• Best airline economy-class meals (Thai Airways*)
• Best economy class airline seat (Thai Airways*)
• Best inflight entertainment (Emirates*)

How do these awards match up with your experiences?

There has been a significant amount of chatter about possible Qantas interest in a middle east carrier. Etihad who are partners with Virgin Australia were not a contendor. Emirates had been a possible favourite but seemed to announce they only wanted a quick codeshare.

Yesterday, Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al-Baker suggested that they were very interested in a Qantas tie up and would meet with Qantas management in Sydney soon. Qatar was awarded top airline status in 2011. They have been flying into Melbourne from Doha for two years and this week will launch Doha to Perth.

To have Qatar feeding passengers into the Qantas domestic network would be a huge win for Qantas. In addition, Qantas can shift passengers from Australia to Qatar’s 119 destinations. (by contrast, Qantas covers 80 destinations, most in Australia and New Zealand).

Chief executive Al Baker also confirmed that the airline will become a member of either  Star Alliance, One World or Skyteam by mid 2013. A tie up with Qantas,of course, tips the balance toward One World but in 2009, the airline said it favoured Star Alliance.

The next question is will the two other Middle Eastern mega carriers join an alliance?  Emirates considered Star Alliancein 2000 but decided to remain independent. It has relationships with South African, Thai and United. Etihad owns 30% of Air Berlin (One World),  40% share of Air Seychelles, 3% of Ireland’s Aer Lingus and 4% of Virgin Australia.

Watch this space after Qatar makes their announcement.

A video of Qantas refitted 747-400 with A380 features including new seats, cabin mood lighting and espresso machines. The 747-400 has 58 Business Class seats, 36 Premium Economy,  270 Economy seats and no First Class.   Seat layout plan is here.

Five have been refitted now. Three more 747s will be refitted by October 2012.

It is great that the 747 is going to look great but it is of concern that Qantas are continuing to fly an aeroplane that should be retired. Not only will it cost Qantas more in excessive fuel consumption, but older planes cost more to maintain.

I am curious that they are being used on the Dallas to Brisbane route. That route is crying out for the better fuel efficiency and range of the A380. aThe 380 does Sydney-LAX instead. Surely that needs a swap?

In the meantime, Qantas has been lobbying the Australian government over the purchase of a share of Virgin Australia by Etihad. Qantas has warned it could go under. It seems logical to me that Etihad may take an interest in all of the Virgin air brands: Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Australia and Virgin America (although US regulations limit foreign ownership).

I flew my 250th Qantas flight, last week, from Sydney to Melbourne, Australia. It was also my 860th flight of my life! Five weeks of my life spent inside Qantas planes travelling the equivalent of 16 times around the world! As you can see from the map below, the Australian flag carrier has taken me to five continents.

What is interesting is how many of the Qantas routes I have flown on have now vanished: Harare to Perth, Bangkok to London, Sydney to San Francisco, Christchurch to Melbourne, and Auckland to Los Angeles are all gone.

I have dedicated a few posts now to the future of Qantas. Right now, the future of the international operations are under the spotlight. Last Tuesday (June 5, 2012), Qantas announced it expects a profit of  between $50 million and $100 million for 2011-2012, a 90 per cent drop from the $552 million it achieved the previous year. The Qantas share price went into freefall this week, dropping below $1 a share for the first time ever. A billion dollars was wiped off the market value of Qantas.  Qantas shares were worth $1.90 one year ago and $5.91 in October 2007.

For the first time, questions have been publicly raised about the tenure of CEO Alan Joyce. Joyce has had several plans for the International Division. One has been the shifting of unprofitable services over to discount subsidiary Jetstar. Then came the shifting of some international services to Qantas domestic services or New Zealand based Jetconnect, both of which have a lower cost base largely because of lower wages paid to staff. Another, was the employment of non Australian cabin crew at much lower wages. Last year’s brain wave was the formation of an international airline division based in Asia -this has flopped so far. This was accompanied by major cuts to Qantas international services. Now Qantas has been split into a Frequent Flyer, domestic and international division with their own management structures.

None of these have focussed on some key issues:

• Over the last few decades, Qantas has gone from having a majority of the international passengers to and from Australia to less than a fifth
• 25 per cent of European bound customers in the last six months have shifted from flying through an Asian to flying through a Middle Eastern hub – this is the Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airlines effect
• There is a strong perception that Qantas customer service is inferior. My experience is that they still have great service but their service has declined.
• There have been significant questions by the public about Qantas safety which have not been adequately addressed
• Qantas international staff are very unhappy with their management- this does not help with service
• Many Qantas frequent flyers feel alienated by the airline- especially management attitudes.
• Qantas planes are getting very old- especially when compared to Singapore Airlines, Air Asia and the middle eastern carriers. Qantas is in the midst of a re-fit
• Qantas routes have not been evolving fast enough. For example, Qantas has no Middle East presence. As previously stated, I think Emirates is the most logical tie up there- especially as Virgin Australia has Etihad as partner.
• Qantas are also too Sydney focussed with most international flights out of Brisbane, Melbourne or Adelaide requiring a change in Sydney

After this week’s news the pressure is well and truly on Joyce to turn the international division around – fast. The pressure will be on new Qantas International CEO Simon Hickey. Their time is running out. There are four choices:

• Sell all or part of Qantas International (British Airways IAG Group or Emirates seem most likely candidates). Whether the government will allow some modification of the Qantas sale act which limits foreign  ownership of Qantas remains to be seen.
• Develop a comprehensive partnership- Emirates or Singapore seem the two most likely candidates
• Shut it down – this would impact negatively the highly profitable Frequent Flyer program and the domestic feed
• Start fixing it – this should have happened already

Will I be able to have my 500th flight with Qantas? Watch this space. Who knows right now?

Of regular concern to me is the future of  the airline I have flown the most with: Australian Flag Carrier: Qantas. The next step in CEO Alan Joyce’s  Grand Plan for Qantas was unveiled last week.  It came as the airline shut down its Melbourne maintenance base, eliminating over 500 jobs. From July 1st, 2012, Qantas will be split into four entities:

• Qantas domestic which has 65% of the Australian air market. This division will run Qantas’ engineering, catering and airport operations
• Qantas International which will control Freight operations
• Jetstar, the low cost carrier, which already operates as a separate company
• Qantas Frequent Flyer with 8.5 million customers

This is actually taking us back to the “old days” before Jetstar and before the Frequent flyer program was  as huge or as profitable as it is now. Twenty years ago, Australia had two government owned airlines: Qantas (International) and Australian (previously TAA) flying domestically. They were merged in 1992 and Qantas privatised. After years of integration, the airline is now being split apart. Qantas Domestic and international will have separate chief executives and operational and commercial plans.

This announcement reflects a few realities:

1. While Aussies would put their hands on the hearts and weep tears at the sight of a Qantas tail in far flung corners of the world, they are more likely themselves to be flying Air Asia, China Southern, Emirates, Etihad,  Qatar or Singapore airlines
2. Qantas domestic is highly profitable, Qantas International loses tonnes of money
3. Qantas International claims to have a very high cost base as a result of staff wages and older 747-400 aircraft
4. Qantas wants/needs to do everything it can to cut its wage costs
5. The Frequent Flyer program is the most profitable part of Qantas
6. The  development  of a premium carrier based in Asia is not going to happen

My questions:

1. How relevant are the regulations that prevent foreign ownership of more than 49 per cent of Qantas?
2.  How much does Qantas International feed passengers into domestic and vice versa? Is there a danger there could be some dent to domestic profits?
3. How much does the international brand contribute to the Qantas Frequent Flyer program? Can they really be separated?
4. What about the parts of the airline that are used by both Domestic and International? eg Flight Operations and sales
5. Can Qantas really justify paying the salaries of five senior managers and all of the reports they will need to function? Is the airline effectively doubling its management costs?
6. How will the airline prevent the development of duplicate systems by all of the arms
7. What is the future of Qantas International? Will it be eventually phased out? What are the chances that an airline like Emirates could buy all or some of Qantas? Will some of Qantas International flights be flown by Qantas Domestic crews (which has a lower cost base)