I suppose we'll all have to agree to disagree. In saying that, I don't recall the same comments being made about those who attended both of the Rockpool lunches (which also included free return flights, and also overnight accom for those from the west coast)... Sorry if I am taking this more personally than it was intended, but as there were only a handful at this event who also attended the A380 tour, your comments are obviously aimed at me (and Fiona, Ronald, Travel Guru, and DeKa)...
To repeat, both Twitter events were open to all members of the public who had both Twitter and QFF accounts. Everyone (both AFF and non-AFF) had an equal chance of entry. For those who have not yet had an invitation (and who wish to attend in the future), I encourage you to keep your eye on the QF Twitter account, and when the next opportunity comes along, be as quick as you can - which is what we all had to do.
In the same light, I have never received an op-up on QF (nor do I expect one). However, for those that have, will you be asking QF to add 'NSFU' (not suitable for upgrade) into your profile, so that someone else may experience their premium cabin hospitality in the future instead? Didn't think so...
At the end of the day, Qantas sought 21 loyal Twitter users, and accepted the first 21 that applied. I genuinely hope that QF got as much out of the event as we did - my Twitter channel was nothing but #QantasTweetUp for the entire day, and most others were the same.
As always, I play by the rules of the competition. If QF would like to meet an entirely new group of people at their next event, then I will certainly respect that, and would understand their reasoning from a marketing point of view. However, if QF would be happy to see my face again, then I'll certainly be happy to attend, and to do what I can for them on Twitter - so that they again receive something back in return.
I haven't even mentioned the JT 707 flight, Les Miserables Australian premiere party, F1 tickets, the Lesley Grant coughtails, the NP gala dinner next week, or the hospitality events at the London Olympics, which I wasn't invited to (I don't expect to be invited to every single QF event, nor do I receive such invitations). The target guests of each event vary greatly - from hardcore AFF users, to heavy Twitter users, to food bloggers, to aviation journalists, to CL & WP1 members. There are plenty of invitations to QF's many events to go around IMO. If you're dying to do an A380 tour, then it can't hurt to ask them about it. They run a reasonable number throughout the year, with the Twitter group attending just one of those.
Anyway, I'm going to leave it there before this topic becomes a long argument.
To finish off, I had a fantastic time at the event, and remain grateful to have been invited back. Neil was incredibly friendly and was a pleasure to meet (as were all of the QF staff that I spoke to, particularly those that I dined with). And of course, every AFFer that I spoke to was very welcoming. I remember thinking "these are my kind of people, they 'get' me" (compared to others who thought I was crazy to go to Melbourne for lunch)! As such, I'm not going to let the negativity of a couple of users get me down, and wish *every* AFFer (including those that have made personal comments) the very best of luck at winning a place at whatever QF may decide to do next.