Article: The National Carrier Stigma

[justinbrett]

So do I but I hate being constantly screwed by QFF’s poor earn rate on other carriers ex Australia which is why I left them.
I have no choice for domestic but to fly QF due to work policy but it’s been nearly 2 years since I’ve flown QFi and no real desire to return to them

You missed my point completely.

You can join any oneworld FF program, it doesn’t have to be QF.

 

[DC3]

So do I but I hate being constantly screwed by QFF’s poor earn rate on other carriers ex Australia which is why I left them.
I have no choice for domestic but to fly QF due to work policy but it’s been nearly 2 years since I’ve flown QFi and no real desire to return to them

Good point

 

[jase05]

You missed my point completely.

You can join any oneworld FF program, it doesn’t have to be QF.

True.
I still think there are plenty out there that are loyal to QF though not just an alliance. I even know a couple myself and one I’ve given up on trying to help.
He is one of the regional managers that I’m in charge of and he only flies QF on his International trips and he complains about them nearly every single time and yet he can’t break the shackles. He came back from the US at Christmas time threatening never to fly with them again and then 2 weeks later he tells me he has just booked a trip to Paris with them.
End of the day though, each to their own

 

[Blackadder]

My only long haul flying has been to/from the US so can only take it from that perspective.
My first flight to/from the US was with United , on an aging plane with no individual seat screens, or flip down screens.
Service was nothing to make me rush back to using them.
Since then the flights have been with QANTAS, and in the two decades or so of flying with them, can't recall any significant delays/cancellations. No issues with customer service both in the air, and on the ground.
Domestically in the US, AA isn't perfect but in general does a good job of OW status recognition. Just wish the additional baggage limits based on QF FF status transferred across to AA, and actually got a meal/snack provided in whY on all services, not just a handful of trans continental routes.
Domestically , when Virgin first came on the scene I did try them, but the idea of paying on board for snacks at the time just made it seem like a glorified LCC to me.

 

[Forg]

Domestically , when Virgin first came on the scene I did try them, but the idea of paying on board for snacks at the time just made it seem like a glorified LCC to me.

Correct me if I’m wrong … but VA was a LCC when they first arrived, weren’t they?

Circa 2010 I had about a half-dozen trips to BNE from SYD for work, VA’s price-point was more like JQ than QF throughout the day. I flew VA most of the time, not only because they used the rear stairs at BNE, but because it was about half the price at the times I was travelling, and I preferred to buy a snack & drink that I wanted for an extra ~10% over the half-price fare than eat the soggy whatever that QF was serving.

 

[Laptop Jockey]

Correct me if I’m wrong … but VA was a LCC when they first arrived, weren’t they?

They were initially, primarily competing with Impulse-cough-Jetstar on $49 flights BNE-SYD, SYD-MEL etc.
Though over the first few years they gradually added features and became more of an 'unbundled' airline, with lounges any pax could access for $25 etc. until eventually they added proper business class and other 'full fare' features with the rebrand from Virgin Blue to Virgin Australia. Which sadly saw the end of their comedic safety briefs ("your life vest is fitted with a light and whistle for attracting sailors... )
That's just a reflection of the reality of Australia's geography to a large extent; you can't really zealously apply the Ryanair model to regular long-thin routes to places like Perth and Darwin, there's only so cheap you can make those fares and the difference between charging for or giving away a little packet of lunchbox cheese and crackers and a microwave meal only saves so much on the operating costs.

 

[RSD]

My first international flights were on Alitalia - MEL-BKK-FCO-CAI on Alitalia was the cheapest way to get to Egypt 35+ years ago - Qantas ain't that bad when you started with Alitalia!

As long as QF and EK stay together I will stay with QF - EK have the best connections from MEL to CAI.

 

[RSD]

Nice, well reasoned article.



Unfortunately, hearing the Aussie accent on board isn’t a given these days.

Yes - I think that it is about time that Qantas dropped the Kiwi and UK crews and went back to all-Aussie crews - losing the airline's identity just to save a few bucks might have been AJ's way but the guard has changed now.

 

[bPeteb]

Yes - I think that it is about time that Qantas dropped the Kiwi and UK crews and went back to all-Aussie crews - losing the airline's identity just to save a few bucks might have been AJ's way but the guard has changed now.

Even if they did it's not a given that an all Australian crew will have 'Aussie' accents anymore, and all's the better. Crews are as multicultural as our wonderful multicultural country.

 

[RSD]

Even if they did it's not a given that an all Australian crew will have 'Aussie' accents anymore, and all's the better. Crews are as multicultural as our wonderful multicultural country.

Totally agree on that, but I think that it is time that we did away with the UK and Kiwi based crews

 

[justinbrett]

Yes - I think that it is about time that Qantas dropped the Kiwi and UK crews and went back to all-Aussie crews - losing the airline's identity just to save a few bucks might have been AJ's way but the guard has changed now.

IMO that’s quite a xenophobic point of view.

Qantas is a global airline so why not have local crew bases, it makes sense from an operational perspective. I also find the Jetconnect crews some of the best. As long as they can speak perfect English why would that bother you?

 

[Quickstatus]

More often than not Qantas cabin crew are not employed by Qantas and there have not been any cabin crew Qantas direct hire for many years.
Customer call centres are not employed by Qantas
So, Im not sure how an "Australian voice" makes any difference. What is an Australian voice for that matter?
Certainly most Australian passengers travelling internationally don't think much of it either- and really it should not matter. It reminds me of the Australian car industry which was overtaken by better cheaper, more reliable and greater car choice.

While historical safety record is something to laud, all organisations know they are but one disaster away for that record to be completely trashed.

Qantas is Qantas in name only
There is still the $121M boogie man still hovering in the background.

 

[Forg]

IMO that’s quite a xenophobic point of view.

Qantas is a global airline so why not have local crew bases, it makes sense from an operational perspective. I also find the Jetconnect crews some of the best. As long as they can speak perfect English why would that bother you?

I can sort-of see it as a marketing ploy ... but given the expected role of the FA's I don't think it makes sense to define "best for the job" based on that marketing decision, I think hiring "best for the job" needs to be all the safety & service stuff that makes a bigger impression on the traveler than an accent. It almost feels like going down the path the USA's currently going down, where if as an employer you can't prove you have biased xenophobic hiring-practices, the government sues you ... no thanks.

There is still the $121M boogie man still hovering in the background.

$121M buys a lot of boogies, that must be one massive snot golem!

 

[Quickstatus]

Well also, those are built on the suffering of slaves; airlines that need to operate at a profit

What about JQ and QF employing cabin crew via subsidiary companies and the Fair work contravention that at one time Qantas said no compensation was due but it was very sorry it happened.

 

[justinbrett]

Jetconnect has been a QF subsidiary for decades, and once operated their own metal with the same QF logo on the tail.

Are people really calling for these people to be sacked? Not much different to sacking a baggage handler.

 

[drron]

IMO that’s quite a xenophobic point of view.

Qantas is a global airline so why not have local crew bases, it makes sense from an operational perspective. I also find the Jetconnect crews some of the best. As long as they can speak perfect English why would that bother you?

I did agree with your post. There was just one error. who in Australia speaks perfect English? I certainly don't.

Though under the Same job Same Pay legislation we may yet see the end of the Kiwi and UK crews> Though QF have been a tad slow implementing this as only a month ago introduced it for freight staff.
VSJDZX
And the TWU has warned of it increasing pressure to get this everywhere in 2026.

TWU Australia on Instagram: "The 2026 fight has hit front page news, and it’s just the beginning. In both road and aviation, we’re fighting to put an end to the deadly squeeze on transport workers. Even if it takes a total shutdown to protect lives

91 likes, 3 comments - twuaus on May 18, 2025: "The 2026 fight has hit front page news, and it’s just the beginning. In both road and aviation, we’re fighting to put an end to the deadly squeeze on transport workers. Even if it takes a total shutdown to protect lives. “This alignment of...

www.instagram.com

 

[DC3]

Jetconnect has been a QF subsidiary for decades

Ah, yes, Jitconnict. An oldie but a goodie:

 

[Forg]

I did agree with your post. There was just one error. who in Australia speaks perfect English? I certainly don't.

I does, and anyone who speaks it different-like is doing it wrong.