Melbourne Tullamarine - third world airport with a third world airline (VN)

[tuapekastar]

In both of your lists, you list LAX twice

Multiple occurrences I guess!

I guess one's opinions are shaped by one's experience, even a one-off.

A lot of people rave about how good (the 'new') HKG is. I didn't like it at all. Immigration took forever...not a massive amount of people to process, they just didn't have enough counters open.

There was a long, slow-moving queue at the counter in the main arrivals hall where they were selling Octopus Cards...fortunately we popped out to the train platform and found another counter selling them, with hardly any queue at all

And when departing it took me ages to find the lounge (any lounge, in fact, QF or CX). Now, that could be down to me I suppose , but I'm usually pretty pretty good at navigation around an airport, but I simply couldn't find signs and seemed to keep ending up in the same spot.

So based on that one experience of HKG, I think it's a dog's breakfast! (it'll be interesting to see how I go when I get back there).

 

[dajop]

In both of your lists, you list LAX twice

Yes I was thinking of separate individual experiences, not the collective whole -hence why LAX is their twice.:evil:

To be fair to LAX though in the last 2 years or so my departures there were much much better than the two I had in 02/03. But arrivals I can't comment - I was so tarnished by my earlier experiences (and using circle fares that gave more flexibility on port of arrival) that my most recent intl arrivals have been in JFK, SFO, & ORD.

 

[2muchplastic]

Surely for you BNE would be number 1 preference anyway? I'd stick with the most convenient schedule based on the price you are willing to pay and not worry too much about whether you will randomly end up passing through a hellhole.

Therein lies a problem. Most of my destinations are not served with a direct flight from BNE, and the remainder are cheaper when connecting through another airport (either OZ or one of the big Asian hubs). There is a new commandment this year from those above me that the cheapest offering from the Corp TA must be taken unless authorised by the world and his wife (and while they are still allowing J class on >6hr flights when so many other firms are not, I'm not going to argue too hard)

This most recent trip (BNE-SYD-SGN-MEL-BNE) was due to there being no direct flight from BNE, and was cheaper than via SIN or HKG.
Other trips this year: 3 trips to HKG in the first and third week of Jan and the first week of Feb were cheaper by $2000 by travelling via SYD on VS than direct on QF or CX.
Next week I'm having to fly BNE-SYD-HKG-PVG-HKG-BNE QF/KA because it saved $300 compared to a single connection (but the positive is the ability to have a go at the SYD Flounge AND the Wing in one day!)
Convenience currently has to take a back seat and let budget drive.

I think due to the customs attention (or lack of it) in thirdworld airports they tend to perform better for arrivals than in many OECD countries. My worst arrival experiences at airports (in order) have been LAX, LAX, SFO, SYD, MEL, SGN, AKL, MIA, HKG (immigration queues) ... not too many of these are third world. However, departures are different, my worst have mainly been third world (in order) EZE, HYD, MNL, LAX, MNL, DEL, LAX....

I've clearly been very lucky. I've never been to the US, so will have missed out on many of the problem airports you describe. I've never had a problem in HKG - max 15 mins to get through security. SYD, again never a problem.
One of those real YMMV times...

 

[WellingtonFF]

My favorite first world third world airports in no particular order

CDG
FCO
LHR
LAX

and I am showing my age, but SEL would beat them all - I was on the first plane into SEL after President Park was shot by his bodyguard many years ago, and it was touch and go whether the North was going to invade. Seoul was under martial law, and had a curfew, the airport was surrounded by tanks, and we had to go through a line of heavily armed military police after deplaning to get to the terminal. Also every piece of baggage had to be unpacked and examined by customs.

 

[Aray]

You definately caught MEL on a bad day !!!

I've never seen an immigration queue past even the queuing rails .. and was even more impressed with the new SmartGate on my last arrival in February ..

I've always though Melbourne as the perfect sized international airport - big enough to have all the right facilities but small enough to be quick and easy to access, transfer between International & Domestic under one small roof, very minimal traffic delays on approach & departure unlike your 'mega' airports.

That said - it is in need of an upgrade. The upper arrivals ramp outside is a disaster in peak hour yet Melbourne Airport Inc. has no plans to rebuild it, just building more and more revenue raising carparks instead. Baggage Arrival is terribly slow for an airport this size. The T2 Int'l upgrade is a welcome expansion - will this include an upgrade to the immigration area ? Other areas like QF Gate 1-11 concourse is sadly outdated, so lets hope post-economic crisis some action will happen.

 

[WellingtonFF]

You must mean the upper departures ramp, but I agree, it is a shambles, particularly with the pedestrian crossings in peak hours.

 

[Aray]

You must mean the upper departures ramp, but I agree, it is a shambles, particularly with the pedestrian crossings in peak hours.

My mistake Upper Departures .. yes !!

On another topic (maybe for another thread) - when will QF sort out Bag Drop ???

This morning I Quick Check my BP .. go to QC Bag Drop only to find two guys taking *forever* with the single staff member attending QC Bag Drop - on the phone sorting c**p out telling their life story .. meanwhile QC/BC passengers without Quickcheck are flowing through normal checkin.

Similar thing happened with SQ Internet Checkin counter recently enroute to Tokyo - two girls (Aus Open Tennis players by the looks) taking forever sorting out their last will & testament in a queue that is supposed to be a done deal ..

What is the point of Bag Drop or Internet Checkin when people end up taking longer than regular checkin ? It happens every time - if you havent done your checkin correctly or have a problem to sort out - it should be immediately off to the Service Counter queue (which was even getting quicker reaction than my queue this morning !!)

Ansett had Bag Drop sorted out way back in the late 90's - years before QF even implemented it - and it was fast quick & easy the way it should be ...

Ok rant finished :shock:

 

[Arthur Hodgson]

Next week I'm having to fly BNE-SYD-HKG-PVG-HKG-BNE QF/KA because it saved $300 compared to a single connection

You fly to Vietnam and China and call MEL 3rd world?

Get real matey!

 

[2muchplastic]

You fly to Vietnam and China and call MEL 3rd world?

Absolutely. And if you bothered reading the entire post you'd know the exact reasons why, and the reason for the use of the phrase. When so called third world or developing countries can manage airport arrivals better than MEL, is that a point to be proud of???

Get real matey!

Get real? As opposed to what?

Jeez, some people are just so literal.

 

[Ikara]

You might think it's a third world airport, but let me tell you, right now it's got a very big, very black first world aircraft sitting on the tarmac!

JB

 

[thewinchester]

You might think it's a third world airport, but let me tell you, right now it's got a very big, very black first world aircraft sitting on the tarmac!

Could we perhaps unleash some of it's firepower on some of Australia's third world airports before it skips off to Avalon

 

[soorox]

Sorry for your experience at MEL but mine is somewhat similar. but on MH, I find Tuesday & Saturday flights quite busy at MEL.

The last time i came back to MEL T2 was in the middle of 2008! I was fr KLIA, lost my passport than found it in Burger King's bin (long story), last pax to board the flight, towed out, then the aircraft had problems and had to transffer to another aircraft delayed 2 hours. When arrived at MEL apparently there were no gates left and my aircraft just stood there! then finally we came to 1 of the unused gates and found out that VN, MH, QFx3, CX, NZ & chinese airlines all landed nearly the same time! immigration was fast, thanks to e-passport but the Quarantine line was massive and waited 1.5 hrs!

VN usally sends their Boeing 777-200ER to MEL, Qantas code-shares with them and does their catering & ground handling. Their service is quite good on short haul flights, I find them better than MH on flights over 2 hrs.

 

[Evan]

You might think it's a third world airport, but let me tell you, right now it's got a very big, very black first world aircraft sitting on the tarmac!

JB

What would that be ? I could think of 2 or 3 firstworld made large black things one or 2 with some stealth capabilities or are we talking about something completely different ?
E

 

[dajop]

Other areas like QF Gate 1-11 concourse is sadly outdated,

No comprehendo!!!!

QF within the last five years did quite a bit of renovation in 1-11 (read: added more retail space), Ok it's not the Taj Mahal that Changi T3 or HKG is, but more than adequate for domestic operations. I'd much rather QF keep a lid on fares than pay for unnecessary updating.

Surely you must mean the DJ terminal gates 1-11? That is very much a rabbit warren.

 

[straitman]

What would that be ? I could think of 2 or 3 firstworld made large black things one or 2 with some stealth capabilities or are we talking about something completely different ?
E

Not really stealth but certainly swing wing and USAF. (B1-B)

 

[Aray]

No comprehendo!!!!

QF within the last five years did quite a bit of renovation in 1-11 (read: added more retail space), Ok it's not the Taj Mahal that Changi T3 or HKG is, but more than adequate for domestic operations. I'd much rather QF keep a lid on fares than pay for unnecessary updating.

Surely you must mean the DJ terminal gates 1-11? That is very much a rabbit warren.

You are joking right ?

It's an absolute dump .. a slap of paint on a 70's terminal aint a renovation .. the toilets are cough, the shops are uninviting, it needs a travelator .. etc etc.

Basically they need to rebuild it ala Gates 12-24 ..

I have (thank god) only ventured once to DJ terminals since Ansett went bust .. it still looks like the Ansett terminal nuff said ..

 

[2muchplastic]

.....VN usally sends their Boeing 777-200ER to MEL, Qantas code-shares with them and does their catering & ground handling. Their service is quite good on short haul flights, I find them better than MH on flights over 2 hrs.

It was a 777-200ER both ways, but it was distinctly noticeable that the cabin was lacking in maintenance. There were pieces of trim held on with what looked like duct tape, trays not folding or stowing properly, seats not reclining, overhead bins not easy to close, and the best bit was that the hot water system was out of order so that there was no tea and coffee service with meals!
The service I found to be indifferent at best, noticeably absent at worst, and this was in J class.

And inbound to MEL, (which was obviously catered at SGN) I had one of those "WTF is that?" moments when revealing my meal from under the foil. I can't remember what it was supposed to be, but thankfully it tasted marginally better than it looked.

 

[dajop]

You are joking right ?

It's an absolute dump .. a slap of paint on a 70's terminal aint a renovation .. the toilets are cough, the shops are uninviting, it needs a travelator .. etc etc.

Basically they need to rebuild it ala Gates 12-24 ..

I have (thank god) only ventured once to DJ terminals since Ansett went bust .. it still looks like the Ansett terminal nuff said ..

Wow you have high expectations, it's an airport terminal for goodness sake, and a domestic one at that. It's hardly a dump - I have been in many terminals in both first and third world countries that are much much worse than that (until recent renovations SYD intl terminal was one such terminal).

Sure they could do it up and make it "nicer", but does it need it? Especially given that JQ uses half the terminal and they're competing with TT and their tinshed. And who pays for it in the end ... the traveller.

 

[nlagalle]

To explain why I used the phrase "third world airport", it is very simple - I have spent a reasonable amount of time flying into and out of airports in so-called developing nations such as China, various airports in the middle east, and now Vietnam. In most of them, I get through in less than a quarter of the time that it took at MEL, so if the airports in locations such as Vietnam and China are more efficient (and they are "developing" nations) then MEL must be third world.

To be honest, I haven't flown into MEL for a number of years, but everytime I did it was pretty quick.

I don't think you can compare it to China, especially PEK. They spent more on that than any airport in recent history.

 

[Evan]

MEL domestic is fine. You can get a coffee and what else do you want to do in a domestic terminal ???
I spend my only time there in the QP anyway.

B1-B is nice wonder if we could get a joy ride somehow... i would give up a fair amount of miles for that sort of 'award'

E