British watchdog probes Qantas ads

[openseat]

Seems the "World's Most Experienced Airline" mantra is getting QF into hotwater.

British watchdog probes Qantas ads - Yahoo!7 News


Serves them right for pinching PanAm's old byline.

 

[medhead]

However, other small airline services were also operating in the United States around the same time

This is to be the whole basis of the investigation. Are those other small airline services still operating? If not, it seems QF doesn't have much to worry about.

 

[simongr]

The investigation comes after Qantas was last year dragged into the ASA's probe into Tourism Australia's controversial "Where the bloody hell are you?" advertising campaign.

Qantas airfares were promoted in the ads, which were condemned by the ASA for using a swear word and ultimately banned after the watchdog received 32 complaints about the promotion.

Ugh there are 60million people in the UK and 32 people got an advert banned... stupid stupid small minded petty people

 

[v8Statesman]

Ugh there are 60million people in the UK and 32 people got an advert banned... stupid stupid small minded petty people

I 100% agree. I am sure out of the 20.4 million Aussies that live here I could get 32 to say that the cute teady bear that sells cuddly fabric softner is offensive!

How many people work for SQ in the UK? 32 perhaps

 

[tscharke]

quite funny considering that this comes from a place where the daily newspaper has pictures of naked women on pg3

 

[Dave Noble]

This is to be the whole basis of the investigation. Are those other small airline services still operating? If not, it seems QF doesn't have much to worry about.

Given that QF claims in the article to have started in 1920, then it would seem that it will have something to worry about. Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij ( now known as KLM) has, I believe, a starting date of 1919

Fortunately the UK has some rules governing advertising that require claims to be true. I know this from a couple of adverts which I complained about on a debt card company and an airline due to their being untrue

Dave

 

[codash1099]

Given that QF claims in the article to have started in 1920, then it would seem that it will have something to worry about. Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij ( now known as KLM) has, I believe, a starting date of 1919

Fortunately the UK has some rules governing advertising that require claims to be true. I know this from a couple of adverts which I complained about on a debt card company and an airline due to their being untrue

Dave

We're probably in the hair-splitting area here so:

1. KLM merged with Air France in May 2004 created Air France-KLM so strictly spaeking, not the same company.

2. I infer from the comment in KLM's own history "September 1945: KLM resumed service following the Second World War, starting with domestic flights." that ir did not operate during WWII and only resumed as a domestic airline.

So maybe QF is correct in claiming to be the oldest continually operating airline.

 

[Keith009]

Ugh there are 60million people in the UK and 32 people got an advert banned... stupid stupid small minded petty people

Could have been readers of The Daily Hate Mail...

 

[medhead]

We're probably in the hair-splitting area here so:

2. I infer from the comment in KLM's own history "September 1945: KLM resumed service following the Second World War, starting with domestic flights." that ir did not operate during WWII and only resumed as a domestic airline.

So maybe QF is correct in claiming to be the oldest continually operating airline.

Qantas could also point to it's experience in operating passenger services during WWII, through the Indian ocean, and Java type of area.

To hair split a bit more, sorry in advance, the story referred to small US airlines as the basis of the investigation - I wouldn't think that included KLM. Not that KLM isn't a potential example to stuff up the QF advertising.

 

[oz_mark]

Qantas could also point to it's experience in operating passenger services during WWII, thorugh the indian ocean, and Java type of area.

To hair split a bit more, sorry in advance, the story referred to small US airlines as the basis of the investigation - I wouldn't think that included KLM. Not that KLM isn't a potential example to stuff up the QF advertising.

There was a small airline in the US called Chalk's Ocean airways that used to like to claim it was the oldest, although I thought it shut down last year.

 

[Dave Noble]

Could have been readers of The Daily Hate Mail...

Why attack readers of a newspaper ? ( It is the Daily Mail anyway )

If QFs claim is false, then they should be forced to remove the advert.

If it is true, then they will not have any issues

Dave

 

[NM]

Why attack readers of a newspaper ? ( It is the Daily Mail anyway )

If QFs claim is false, then they should be forced to remove the advert.

If it is true, then they will not have any issues

Dave

The difficulty is in finding an objective means by which to measure "experience" and hence make a determination about the accuracy of the claim.

 

[Dave Noble]

The difficulty is in finding an objective means by which to measure "experience" and hence make a determination about the accuracy of the claim.

Well, then that is a good thing for the advertising watchdog to be investigating. If QF cannot justify the claim , then they will have to remove the advert. If they can justify it, then all well and good

Castigating people who raised the issue is quite poor imo

Dave

 

[NM]

Well, then that is a good thing for the advertising watchdog to be investigating. If QF cannot justify the claim , then they will have to remove the advert. If they can justify it, then all well and good

The only measure by which Qantas can justify the claim (as I understand it to be) is my duration of continuous operation as a commercial airline. There would be many other ways that other may measure experience to also claim the top position, such as total flight hours or total number of flight operations.

 

[tuapekastar]

Ugh there are 60million people in the UK and 32 people got an advert banned... stupid stupid small minded petty people

This article appears to centre on one of the people who complained...may be good with numbers but may be a little light on in other things (as alluded to earlier in this thread, how do you define experience? - not too sure on what the skybed comment means either)

It certainly is a questionable claim ('the most experienced') but very hard to nail down what this means, and I imagine QF and their Ad agency would have been well aware of this.

 

[v8Statesman]

not too sure on what the skybed comment means either)

IF I remember the Ad, it shows Skybed MkII. So his comment is valid until Jan 09.

 

[NM]

IF I remember the Ad, it shows Skybed MkII. So his comment is valid until Jan 09.

I think he has picked up on a very old issue going back to the time QF introduced Skybeds into the 744 fleet. At that time they advertised that Skybed was available on all flights to London, but occasionally they had to sub a non-skybed aircraft due to maintenance and other aircraft serviceability issues. They copped a bit of flack at he time whenever it happened.

However, I think it has been a very long time since QF operated a non-Skybed aircraft into London, so it really is a dead argument to be making.

And we know that KLM operated as an airline before QF, but they also had an enforced break during WWII, so in terms of actual years of operation, QF is ahead.

The guy need to take a large dose of reality if he wants to be taken seriously.

 

[medhead]

And we know that KLM operated as an airline before QF, but they also had an enforced break during WWII, so in terms of actual years of operation, QF is ahead.

And QANTAS operated it's service in WWII with other planes shooting at them. What other airline can claim such experience?

 

[NM]

And QANTAS operated it's service in WWII with other planes shooting at them. What other airline can claim such experience?

Other airlines experienced similar dangers during WWII. Qantas was not the only commercial airline operating at the time. Not sure how many of them would still be operating under the same name in today's market, but I expect Qantas is not unique in that part of history.

 

[medhead]

Sorry I mis-wrote myself - KLM won't have that experience

Edit: in fact according to the source of all knowledge*, Wikipedia, the 5 oldest airlines are:

KLM - didn't operate during WW2
QANTAS - operated regular services to europe/ceylon with Imperial Airways (BA?)
Avianca - Columbian no mention of WW2
Czech Airlines - Shut down in 1939
Mexicana - Seems to only have operated around North America.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airline

*no responsibility taken if this doesn't match the real situation