Claims Qantas is planning to ditch life rafts from some flights to save money

[Simo]

South Australian Independent Senator Nick Xenophon claims Qantas is planning to ditch life rafts from some flights to save money.

Qantas considering ditching life rafts: claim

Xenophon said he had been approached by pilots and cabin crew who alerted him to the “hare-brained” scheme to remove rafts from Boeing 737s that do not travel more than 400 nautical miles off the coast.“If a plane has to ditch off shore, every minute counts, and the savings are a joke,” Xenophon told News Corp. “It might be a million a year in fuel, but they’re burning up $4 million a month with planes on tarmacs (due to issues with their Asian ventures).”
He said that while the removal of the rafts would be within the regulations “people fly Qantas because it goes above and beyond the minimum regulatory requirements. That’s brand Qantas”.

Maybe they should ditch the Sydney Curfew and that would save the airlines money.

 

[mannej]

I wonder how true this post is - it was from a Facebook page discussing the same topic.

I worked for VA (then DJ when it was Pacific Blue) for 5 years...they NEVER had rafts in any of their planes flying AU to NZ (which is way worse than the QF plan!!). They only finally put them in because they were scared the media would find out. This is such a non story....but a good opportunity to put the boot into QF again.

Also, the article Reggie quoted, A) how hard is it to spell Alan Joyce's name, and B) the article has suggested the flights without life crafts were legal, with other carriers implementing similar practises. Why are they not queried by Xenophon? It is almost as he is holding a grudge because his CL membership was revoked (it should be considering his stance on QF).

 

[The Rok]

It is almost as he is holding a grudge because his CL membership was revoked

Ohhhh that would be so worth it. Come on Joyce, do something we would love to see.

 

[mrdctau]

Anyone who thinks life rafts materially improve their safety when flying over water is delusional. If your plane crashes into the ocean you die. If the pilot executes a controlled ditching you'll have a remote chance if the waters are calm and you are close to shore or a rescue boat. A life raft will not help you.

 

[markis10]

Anyone who thinks life rafts materially improve their safety when flying over water is delusional. If your plane crashes into the ocean you die. If the pilot executes a controlled ditching you'll have a remote chance if the waters are calm and you are close to shore or a rescue boat. A life raft will not help you.

That is a very depressing outlook, and factually wrong, here is the real world results based on NTSB data for 8 years with 179 aircraft ditchings:

 

[trooper]

What sort of aircraft involved. Given the numbers its obviously NOT large (737 +) sized commercial aircraft. Bet there were few jets at all in that lot.....and small twin and single engine aircraft are really a very different case in a ditching situation...

 

[Mwenenzi]

Google youtube of the ditching off East Africa. Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Low wing commercial aircraft do not swim well

 

[markis10]

What sort of aircraft involved. Given the numbers its obviously NOT large (737 +) sized commercial aircraft. Bet there were few jets at all in that lot...

Mostly GA including bizjets, and 19 helicopters. If you look at airliners over time, ditching has proven to be the best outcome in terms of a lack of fatalities. Even when things could not get much worse in the case of Ethiopian with terrorists on the flight deck many survived, more would have survived if they had not inflated their vests in the plane. GA421 is another example of a successful ditching - in this case a B737.

Google youtube of the ditching off East Africa. Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Low wing commercial aircraft do not swim well

It certainly does not when a pilot is fighting a hijacker and there is a sudden 10degree left bank, turning the port engine into a water scoop, which is what happened.

 

[thommo50]

South Australian Independent Senator Nick Xenophon claims Qantas is planning to ditch life rafts from some flights to save money.

Qantas considering ditching life rafts: claim

Xenophon said he had been approached by pilots and cabin crew who alerted him to the “hare-brained” scheme to remove rafts from Boeing 737s that do not travel more than 400 nautical miles off the coast.“If a plane has to ditch off shore, every minute counts, and the savings are a joke,” Xenophon told News Corp. “It might be a million a year in fuel, but they’re burning up $4 million a month with planes on tarmacs (due to issues with their Asian ventures).”
He said that while the removal of the rafts would be within the regulations “people fly Qantas because it goes above and beyond the minimum regulatory requirements. That’s brand Qantas”.

I have full faith in Qantas` pilot`s professionalism. Its the main reason I fly Qantas. Nothing to do with loyalty, lounges or anything else, just pure faith in their professionalism. I'm absolutely positive if an Aussie trained pilot flying for Qantas doesn't think his or her aircraft is safe for take off then it wont depart, and they have my full support.

I'm sure this is just scaremongering, or more typically our stupid media taking things out of context for sensationalism.

 

[whatmeworry]

Does this mean the accountants now rule Qantas?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I have full faith in Qantas` pilot`s professionalism. Its the main reason I fly Qantas. Nothing to do with loyalty, lounges or anything else, just pure faith in their professionalism. I'm absolutely positive if an Aussie trained pilot flying for Qantas doesn't think his or her aircraft is safe for take off then it wont depart, and they have my full support.

I'm sure this is just scaremongering, or more typically our stupid media taking things out of context for sensationalism.

take gate to gate IFE. pilots allow their flights to take off with passengers absorbed in IFE, with headphones on.

that's taking a plane off, with passengers potentially unable to hear an emergency command issued by cabin crew, and almost certainly not as quick to act as someone paying attention and not distracted by a movie.

just because a plane takes off doesn't mean it is as safe as it can be.

 

[thommo50]

take gate to gate IFE. pilots allow their flights to take off with passengers absorbed in IFE, with headphones on.

that's taking a plane off, with passengers potentially unable to hear an emergency command issued by cabin crew, and almost certainly not as quick to act as someone paying attention and not distracted by a movie.

just because a plane takes off doesn't mean it is as safe as it can be.

Im talking about equipment.

 

[RooFlyer]

Whilst I am no expert my concern would be along the lines of what would happen if they had to ditch over the sea or immediately after take off from say Sydney where departures are often out over the sea how would passengers escape? I personally would feel safer on an airline that has as much safety equipment as possible even if not a formal requirement.

A few years ago when flying Air Canada from Vancouver to Victoria BC ( a 20 minute hop diagonally across the Strait of Georgia on a Dash 8) I was startled to learn that there weren't any life vests on board, let alone life rafts! Argument apparently being that the plane would be within a mile or so of land at any one time and could 'glide' to land if forced to ditch, and Canadian regs allowed for this. Yeah, right, glide straight into those pine forests!

I did a bit of "I'm concerned" on FT and got royally shot down by the locals.

I still think its a bonkers policy. Like Ansettsays, a plane can ditch immediately after take-off over water, or at any time into water if that's the safest spot. Hanging onto a seat cushion isn't my idea of safety in freezing cold water.

 

[milehighclub]

The 737 has slides only at the doors because in a ditching the doors would be disarmed, opened (the rear doors are not opened in a ditching)and rafts deployed

The slide however can be detached if it is opened inadvertently and used as a flotation device but it is not classified as a raft.

 

[Andyc]

I'm pretty sure QantasLink flights (except LDH) don't carry life rafts. So maybe this isn't a new change.