Epic SC run 11 & 12 Dec 2010 TR

[anchew]

Summary

11 Dec 2010
QF U CBR-BNE-TSV 24,000pts +$96
QF U TSV-BNE-AKL 36,000pts +$148

12 Dec 2010
LA I AKL-SYD $294
JQ Jetflex SYD-ADL $273 [Canceled]
QF U ADL-MEL-CBR 24,000pts +$39 [Canceled]

Total cost = 84,000pts +$850
SC earn = 430
QFF pts earn as SG = 12,182

 

[anchew]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]QF 948 CBR-BNE[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Depart: 0625[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arrive: 0705[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Duration: 1:40[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Aircraft: 737-400[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Seat: 2A[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No. of J px: 7/12[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]CSM: Dorothy[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]SC earn: 40[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I woke up at 4:45am in the morning to begin what will be around 35 hours of travel, incorporating almost 17 hours of flying time. I had an intense week at work so was looking forward to the weekend and like a child on Christmas eve, I had difficulty falling asleep the night before. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I arrived at the airport at around 5:45am and went straight through security, headed upstairs to the lounges and checked in at one of the machines in the foyer. When I inserted my card, it said that it couldn't find my booking :-| and asked me to select my next destination. When I hit BNE, my booking was found phew and out came two BPs. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]At this time in the morning, the J Lounge (JP?) wasn't busy at all. The hot breakfast on offer were scramble eggs, mushrooms, spinach, and sausages in a tomato based sauce. There were also toast, cereal, muesli, fruit and pastry available. In the 20 minutes or so I had in the JP, I was able to sample some of the hot food which wasn't bad.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]At the gate, I was greeted with “Welcome back Mr Anchew”. The lady in front of me, who was a SG travelling in Y, also received the same cheerful greeting. Upon boarding and showing the F/A my BP, she replied with “Thank-you Mr Anchew”. On board, we were offered the usual jazz – water/juice and newspapers. However, I saw the CSM go up to 2 px in Y also offering them newspapers. One accepted and she came back from the galley with the requested publication. They must have been CL or WP.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We were late pushing back. The Captain informed us that two px didn't show so their bags were offloaded. Once we were in the air and the seatbelt sign went out, to my surprise, we were given hot towels :shock:. I haven't been given hot towels Dom J before today. It must be the “new business” initiative where they want to make the Dom J experience similar to Int J. Similarly, when another J px asked for a blanket, she was given an Int J type blanket.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Breakfast was served on this flight and there was a choice of the a hot meal or muesli. I went with the hot option which had poached eggs and ham with mushrooms, spinach and cherry tomatoes. The meal also came with fruit salad, bread (I chose sour dough), and a croissant. Sparkling wine was offered :shock: but I opted for OJ. A coffee and tea service was also offered afterwards. After the breakfast service, the CSM came around and offered iced water, which I though was a nice touch.

Even with the delayed departure, we arrived in BNE on schedule.
[/FONT]

 

[thewinchester]

A) You're nuts.
B) See above.
C) Autosave is your friend

When are you passing through BNE? Also, those points don't sound right - as you'd pick up some more if you qualified Silver. There's no details in your current profile so I can double-check this.

And if you already have some SC's in your account, you'd be likely to pick up a loyalty bonus in that tacking on another 5k in points.

 

[anchew]

A) You're nuts.
B) See above.
C) Autosave is your friend

When are you passing through BNE? Also, those points don't sound right - as you'd pick up some more if you qualified Silver. There's no details in your current profile so I can double-check this.

And if you already have some SC's in your account, you'd be likely to pick up a loyalty bonus in that tacking on another 5k in points.

Hmm... I did the QFF point calc again and got the same answer:
6,246 (CBR-BNE-TSV-BNE-AKL in J) + 2,348 (AKL-SYD in J) + 1,088 (SYD-ADL in Y) + 2,500 (ADL-MEL-CBR in J) = 12,182. If I include the SC bonus, then it'll be 17,182.

I'm currently SG going on WP.

I'm actually in BNE right now. Got hit by the huge storm so the flight's delayed - more to come in the TR.

How do you do auto save?

 

[anchew]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]QF 970 BNE-TSV[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Depart: 8:55[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arrive: 10:50[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Duration: 1:55[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Aircraft: 737-800[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Seat: 2A[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No. of J px: 6/12[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]CSM: David[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]SC earn: 60[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The JP at BNE wasn't very busy when I arrived but filled up over the next hour. Breakfast was was similar to that in CBR but the hot food available was scrambled eggs and some fancy (Neil Perry inspired?) baked beans (is that herbs I see?). As I already had breakfast on the plane, I wasn't really hungry but I snacked on a couple of the pastries. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]At the boarding gate this time, I was greeted with “Thank-you Mr Anchew”. But on board the response was “Thank-you, 2 on the right.” Admittedly though, my boarding pass was scrunched and curled up so was probably difficult to address me by name. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The pre-flight juice on offer was apple and strawberry. I'm more familiar with the orange and peach (I think) juice and haven't had this before and quite liked it. After we took off, we were given hot towels too before meals were served, which were refreshments. However, instead of pushing the trolley down the aisle, the CSM came around and asked what meal we would like then bringing the meals from the galley two at a time – similar to the Int J meal service. There were two meals to choose from: salmon frittata and fruit salad. As I was still full, I opted for the fruit salad which had pineapple, black grapes, and strawberries. It also came with a bowl of yoghurt with some berry sauce, which I mixed together with the fruit and was quite nice. On the side were also a slice of sour dough and a croissant. Afterwards came the tea/coffee service. When the CSM came around to collect my tray, he asked whether I wanted some cake to go with my coffee. Well... I shouldn't have but I did. The cake he brought around was a chocolate nougat cake – yum! [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We arrived in TSV on schedule and after we reached the gate, I headed straight for the QP to check-in to my next to legs of my journey.[/FONT]

 

[anchew]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]QF 971 TSV-BNE[/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Depart: 11:35[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arrive: 13:20[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Duration: 1:45[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Aircraft: 737-800[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Seat: 2D[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No. of J px: 11/12[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]CSM: David[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]SC earn: 60[/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Almost every seat in the TSV QP was taken when I arrived. It's a small QP so it won't take much to fill it up. I managed to find a seat though. The food available was simple. Cheese, ham, fruit, pikelets and focaccia. But I only had a glass of apple juice. [/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It seemed almost everyone in the QP was on my flight. When the boarding call was made “Qantas Club wishes you a pleasant flight” it QP emptied out. At the gate, the F/A that scanned my BP did a double take – she was likely experiencing some sort of deja vu. Yep, the cabin crew were exactly the same as the ones that just few me up from BNE. The F/A mentioned that there was a Mr Anchew who just came up to TSV with them and I just smiled.[/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On board was when the fun began. The F/A who was looking after the J cabin with the CSM on my previous flight was surprised to see me again. He joked that I must be checking up on him. I was a little embarrassed to say that I was on a SC run so I lied that I was just picking something up. When pre-flight drinks came around (it was orange juice this time), we joked that it was a long time since we last saw each other.[/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Before we took off, the CSM offered newspapers as usual, but instead of carrying the papers up the aisle, he asked each individual in J if we wanted a paper and went to get it from the galley each time, which was a little different (I think that also happened on the flight up to TSV but I couldn't recall). [/FONT]


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lunch was served on this flight. The choices were braised veal with mash, peas and carrot, and a duck salad with lemon dressing. I chose the duck salad, which apparently was a popular choice because the couple behind me missed out on it so had to get the veal, which I overheard was a very nice dish. The duck salad was very nice too. For anyone who's interested, the duck salad had cherry tomatoes, feta, pumpkin, and cos lettuce. The meal also came with sour dough, a mini cake (I think it's more of a friand IMO) and a small packet of roasted almonds & cashew nuts. Wine was also offered but I was happy with water and (another) cup of coffee afterwards.[/FONT]

 

[anchew]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]QF 125 BNE-AKL[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Depart: 17:35 (scheduled)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arrive: 23:55 (scheduled)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Duration: 3:20[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Aircraft: 737-800[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Seat: 2A[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No. of J px: 7/12[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]SC earn: 80[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Caught the T-Bus from BNE Dom to Int. I think I just missed one so I had to wait around 15 minutes or so for the next. I was thankful that it was air-conditioned as it was quite hot and humid outside. When I reached the Int terminal, I headed straight for air side and the Int JP with over 3 hours before my next scheduled departure. The BNE JP is actually more like a QP before the new spirit swept through. What's even better, they had the cheddar cheese biscuits![/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Then the storms descended upon BNE and they were huge. Looking out the window, you could barely see 20 metres outside. Not long after you the rain started bucketing down, an announcement came over the PA that the fire alarm has been triggered at gate 75! I was thinking to myself of the chaos if the BNE Int had to evacuate everyone outside and into the rain. But it was soon confirmed to be a false alarm – probably due to rain water getting into the sensors. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not surprisingly, BNE was closed for a period due to the storms. As a result, the inbound plane of my flight was diverted to OOL and our departure time was delayed. Soon, I was getting hungry and started to wish for new spirits to inspire the cuisine on offer, but all there was were some bread, antipasto and beef goulash (which didn't look too appealing). Looking back on earlier today, I thought, the Dom JP had much better food then the Int JP. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the time ticked by, the estimated time of departure got pushed back 30 minutes at a time. Then finally, at 20:20, we were told that the our plane has just left OOL and should arrive at 20:40 (20min flight?) with an estimated departure time of 21:25 and arrival in AKL at 03:15 local time. I thought, perfect! That would give me enough time to check-in to LA801 AKL-SYD which is scheduled to depart at 05:50. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We ended up boarding at 21:20. It seems that pleasantries were out the window in preference for speed. The people checking tickets at the gate, as well as the CSM on board seemed stressed. I couldn't even begin to imagine what the cabin crew had to go through on the inbound flight.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While the other px were boarding, I received a phone call on my mobile from a +56 number. It was LAN advising me that LA 801 has been delayed and is now scheduled to depart AKL at 09:15 and arrive in SYD at 10:55 local. cough. The timing isn't so sweet after all. And arriving at 10:55 means I'll miss my JQ SYD-ADL flight, thus my QF ADL-MEL-CBR flights. The second half of my SC run is starting to fall apart. Oh well. There's nothing I can do about it now. I'll just deal with it when I get to AKL and have access to the internet. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Our flight pushed back at 21:45, more than 4 hours after the scheduled departure time. We had the usual trimmings of a J Int – pre-flight drinks, newspapers, hot towels – but also a DVD player. I opted out of the DVD player as I wanted to get some shut-eye on the flight. Soon afterwards, drinks were served with roasted almonds and cashew nuts with dinner to follow. For dinner, there was a choice of beef fillet with oriental mushrooms, ragout and broccolini, and herb crusted barramundi with red pepper sauce, roasted potatoes and green beans.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The F/A who serviced was J cabin was not the CSM, but a fantastic, enthusiastic and energetic young lady called Reena. She was absolutely wonderful, always addressing me by name without having to look at the manifest, was very attentive to everyone in the J cabin, and always had a smile on her face that would have just brightened anyone's mood. When it was time for desserts, she asked if I would like to try both of the dessert options, the selection of cheeses and the vanilla bean ice-cream with almond bread. By this time, there were only two people awake so I guess they had plenty of desserts to go around. [/FONT]

 

[anchew]

Here's the letter from QF on the delay of QF125.

 

[anchew]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]LA 801 AKL-SYD[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Depart: 05:50 (rescheduled to 09:15)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arrive: 07:30 (rescheduled to 10:55)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Duration: 3:40[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Aircraft: A340-300[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Seat: 5J[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No. of J px: unsure – around 2/3 full[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]SC earn: 80[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I actually arrived into AKL at 3:45am so decided not to go through the trouble of entering NZ then checking-in and exiting NZ within 60 minutes. The security check point between international arrivals and departures opens at 04:00 so I didn't have long to wait before it opened. At this time, the terminal was deserted. I found the JP but didn't seem to be opened yet so I went in search for the transfer checking-in counter. Found it on the opposite side of the terminal but was also closed so I made the long walk back to the QP. By this time it was 04:15 and the doors opened when I approached. Yay! But I couldn't check-in as it wasn't a QF flight. Nonetheless, the guy entered my details into the system and welcomed me in while I waited for the transfer desk to open (I had my printed e-ticket showing I was flying in J and my SG card too). At around 05:00, I headed down to the transfer desk and there were a gaggle of people getting angry at the Air NZ agent at the LAN delay. This lady needed to get to BNE and the delay meant she will miss her connection. I heard her say something about overnighting in SYD for a BNE flight the next day is unacceptable and so wanted to go up to her and say that SYD-BNE is like the second busiest route in Australia with flights departing regularly, but decided against. The agent handled the difficult situation well though.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After checking-in, I went back to the JP, with the first priority to call Jetstar to uncheck me in (I checked in online on Friday for the SYD-ADL flight) using the phone in the business centre/computer room. Since it was a Jetflex ticket, I had no trouble changing the flight to a MEL-SYD flight for next Sunday. I then cancelled my JASA ADL-MEL-CBR flight (oh that hurt more than you know) and used it to book a J flight SYD-CBR for when I arrive in SYD. After the admin work was all done and dusted, I had a shower, which I really needed. Although, I found the hot water fluctuated quite a bit which was annoying but didn't complain – I was just happy to be able to have a shower.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Boarding was called at around 08:50. Staff at the gate were Air NZ agents so expected no, and received no, greetings. On board, the F/A spoke to me in Spanish and pointed down the aisle. I assumed she said 'left at the second aisle and the seat's on the right' . For those who don't know, the seats are long-haul style business class seats that reclines horizontally flat – unlike Qantas' non-A380 seats that is on a slant. As with the other J flights, pre-flight drinks, newspapers and hot towels were offered and soon after take-off, breakfast was served but not soon enough – I was hungry. The selection were an omelette, cereal, fruit or ham & cheese. I chose the omelette which was quite nice – came with mushrooms – and soon afterwards, my seat was fully relined, music was playing through the noise canceling headphones, and I was fast asleep. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We arrived in SYD at 10:50, express passes handed out as we exited, and was greeted by black Labrador. What a way to welcome people to Australia – stand in a single file on the line. At least the lab seemed to be enjoying itself while the handler tells him to 'find it'. Doesn't everybody know that 'IT' is pancakes with walnut, banana and cinnamon?[/FONT]

 

[Carlous Moochous]

Hey mate, found your trip report.. good read.. i've been looking at a few other status runs now.... have a few points to use, very tempting to try and get a few more SC's.. lots of tempting options.

 

[Elibellie]

Good report. I have however found the MEL-ADL-ASP-SYD-MEL day trip in J class a better return for value. 48k FF points plus 221 cash and 220 SC. Really fun day. Also recently did a SC run to LAX, flynig AA to TPA VIA DFX....good fun

 

[QF WP]

anchew, what happened to the SYD/CBR flight - didn't it make the TR? Great report overall, was a great pity about the cancelled JASA. Yes, that would have hurt

 

[anchew]

anchew, what happened to the SYD/CBR flight - didn't it make the TR? Great report overall, was a great pity about the cancelled JASA. Yes, that would have hurt

Hoped no body noticed
Well... no one did for 9 months

 

[QF WP]

As an avid TR writer, (and reader when I get the time), I appreciate the time and effort that goes into each one - particularly ones with photos.

No pressure with adding the last sector.

 

[ozmille]

Should really write one soon, have wanted to do it for a long time... Love reading them!

Sent from my iPad using Aust Freq Fly app