Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[Quickstatus]

Merry Christmas to all who lurk in these pages. May your Christmas presents arrive without delay!!. Apparently Santa is ontime as usual!! Flightstats should give Santa and the Reindeer a 5/5 for punctual performance

 

[Melburnian1]

...You've said previously that the 94 does not usually await a late arrival from JFK, to ensure that the 93 isn't delayed, and also to minimise the chance of any crew duty time issues...

Thank you: I have said that previously (although I qualified my latest remark by suggesting 'provided normal working applies'.) According to the QF website, with two hours to go until its scheduled departure of 2205 hours ex LAX on Saturday 24 December, QF94 is indeed estimated to push back on schedule. Meanwhile QF12 did not depart from JFK until 2237, 277 minutes late with LAX arrival on Christmas morning in the 'small hours' suggested as 0110, 255 minutes behind.

QF16 is suggested as departing LAX at 0045 on Christmas morning, which is not possible as this aircraft will not arrive from JFK until 0110 as above. Arrival in BNE is therefore likely to be post 1000 on Monday 26 December rather than what the QF website suggests as a prediction 0800. It is often mystifying why the website is relatively slow to be updated with altered, delayed departures.

The TransPacific continuation of QF12 is showing as on time, which as an esteemed contributor implies above is not always the case when its namesake (different aircraft) is late into LAX ex New York.

If Father Christmas had to choose a QF route ex LAX to Oz, his choice might be QF94 due to the on time imperative to which our aviator above alludes. However Delta, Virgin and United are often more punctual than QF ex LAX, sometimes because of QF's transcontinental QF12 B744 connection.

 

[Melburnian1]

Also on Christmas Day, QF703 (1200 'high noon' from CNS down to MEL, B738 VH-VZW) took off at 1232 which is only about 15 minutes late. However it is predicted to arrive MEL at around 1659, 39 minutes behind schedule.

While QF27 only departed SYD 20 minutes late at 1310 this afternoon, it is suggested as arriving same day in SCL at 1150, 40 minutes late.

QF7, the 1505 hours mid afternoon longhaul from SYD to DFW has just departed 93 minutes behind schedule at 1638; arrival is forecast for 1455, 85 minutes late, a time that QF sometimes revises once the aircraft has levelled out in flight.

QF5, the afternoon A330 from SYD to SIN that has a timetabled pushback of 1715 has been delayed until an expected 1900 early this evening. Arrival is stated as likely at 2345, 75 minutes late so on a point-to-point basis including taxiing at each end, it is predicted to pick up half an hour.

 

[Flyerqf]

QF12 LAX to SYD and QF94 LAX to MEL both left prior to arrival of QF12 from JFK.
Only QF16 will be delayed this evening.

 

[Melburnian1]

QF12 LAX to SYD and QF94 LAX to MEL both left prior to arrival of QF12 from JFK.
Only QF16 will be delayed this evening.

Flyerqf, while there are other reasons such as wanting to keep QF93 tomorrow morning on time, does it indicate as one pilot contributor suggested that bookings on the JFK - LAX sector of QF12 (which becomes QF16 to BNE) were pretty light, such that connecting passengers to MEL and SYD could be accommodated on QF16, and then domestic flights tomorrow morning ex BNE down to SYD and MEL?

This nonetheless means a significant delay for these passengers, I bet some of the less frequent or first time travellers were unaware of this possibility when they booked on QF.

 

[Flyerqf]

Flyerqf, while there are other reasons such as wanting to keep QF93 tomorrow morning on time, does it indicate as one pilot contributor suggested that bookings on the JFK - LAX sector of QF12 (which becomes QF16 to BNE) were pretty light, such that connecting passengers to MEL and SYD could be accommodated on QF16, and then domestic flights tomorrow morning ex BNE down to SYD and MEL?

This nonetheless means a significant delay for these passengers, I bet some of the less frequent or first time travellers were unaware of this possibility when they booked on QF.

Purely speculating but I assume your assumption that booking are light would be correct. There is no LAX-JFK-LAX sector scheduled for tomorrow so this time of the year (Christmas Eve, Christmas Day) must be light. QF15 and QF11 didn't operate at all today, with the only LAX bound flight from AU being the QF93.

 

[Melburnian1]

The Boxing Day arrival of QF6 ex SIN into SYD (A333 VH-QPD) should be 55 minutes late at 1145. It was airborne at 0117 against a scheduled Christmas night pushback of 2345. Yesterday afternoon's QF5 had been delayed as noted in an above post, so that was the reason for the delay this morning.

QF19 from SYD to MNL, the 1225 is expected to depart four hours late with arrival at 2125 instead of 1735. This appears to be unconnected to the late arrival of QF6 as they are showing as different gate numbers.

UPDATE: At about 1000 this morning, the QF19 delay was increased to six hours (1825) ex SYD not four hours for a 2320 hours MNL arrival instead of 1735. QF20 is expected to depart back to SUD at 0035 on Tuesday 27 December with SYD arrival tomorrow at a predicted 1140 instead of 0605 hours.

 

[Pushka]

QF 35 delayed departure. Cracked windscreen? And having a substitute plan. Bloody well better be refurbished one.

 

[Melburnian1]

QF 35 delayed departure. Cracked windscreen? And having a substitute plan. Bloody well better be refurbished one.

Pushka, from the tone of your contribution you may be one of our amazing 'on the spot' reporters. Nothing beats this.

Funnily enough, I had checked this flight only 45 minutes ago: it was showing as punctual.

The QF website claims that this 1220 MEL - SIN will instead depart at 1400, so in the scheme of things it is not a huge delay, certainly not like what passengers on today's (26 December) QF19 from SYD to MNL (see above) are facing. Would QF obtain a 'replacement' A330 (A332) from a domestic flight? If I am not mistaken, it would not normally have a spare A333 sitting around in MEL.

Please keep us updated. I assume you are in the lounge.

How long does a cracked windscreen typically take to replace? Can this usually be achieved while an aircraft is parked at an airport gate, or does it have to be towed to either a hangar or elsewhere on the airfield?

 

[Pushka]

Pushka, from the tone of your contribution you may be one of our amazing 'on the spot' reporters. Nothing beats this.

Funnily enough, I had checked this flight only 45 minutes ago: it was showing as punctual.

The QF website claims that this 1220 MEL - SIN will instead depart at 1400, so in the scheme of things it is not a huge delay, certainly not like what passengers on today's (26 December) QF19 from SYD to MNL (see above) are facing. Would QF obtain a 'replacement' A330 (A332) from a domestic flight? If I am not mistaken, it would not normally have a spare A333 sitting around in MEL.

Please keep us updated. I assume you are in the lounge.

How long does a cracked windscreen typically take to replace? Can this usually be achieved while an aircraft is parked at an airport gate, or does it have to be towed to either a hangar or elsewhere on the airfield?

Yep. F lounge which is nice but not convinced Q people know much. It's just happened. Seats were changed that I had preselected months ago - 2A and 4A as we want the window each and hate row 1.'they thought we might want to sit next to each other' except - the seats they've reallocated are not together. One seat aisle in the middle - next seat occupied by someone else then window seat is ours. And Row 1. We dislike bulkheads. Try get the right excuse.

They've not publically announced the change but here:

 

[jb747]

How long does a cracked windscreen typically take to replace? Can this usually be achieved while an aircraft is parked at an airport gate, or does it have to be towed to either a hangar or elsewhere on the airfield?

A couple of bandaids. How hard could it be?

I don't know the time, but it would be a hangar job. They're very heavy for a start.

 

[Pushka]

We have to get to Singapore today as cruise departs tomorrow. They've said it's a replacement plane and can't see why seat allocation has changed from boarding pass unless it's an old plane.

 

[jb747]

We have to get to Singapore today as cruise departs tomorrow. They've said it's a replacement plane and can't see why seat allocation has changed from boarding pass unless it's an old plane.

Is it the same type of aircraft? There are a couple of 330 variants.

 

[Pushka]

Maybe the replacement? No change on ETD and original BP restored.

 

[Melburnian1]

Pushka, if it is any consolation, TZ (Scott) will also be delayed out of Melbourne today for Singapore: it has been running late a lot out of both SYD and MEL lately. Embarrassing for its owner SQ. It's a bit hard to see the aircraft designation - VH-QP?

Is the cause of cracked windshields often either manufacturing or installation faults, or lightning strikes or are there other reasons that rank above these? They don't pop up (bad pun) on AFF every day but the site receives occasional reports, and others may fly under the radar so to speak.

 

[Pushka]

Yes - I think it is VH QP. I had to zoom a little on iPhone to take photo. Current ETD seems holding at 1400 hours. Many connecting flights out of Singapore. Arrival time estimated just 75 minutes late.

 

[Melburnian1]

Yes - I think it is VH QP.

Do you know the final letter after 'QP?'

 

[flydoc]

With the Ayers Rock airport closure this morning due to flooded runway, after 74mm of rain overnight and a further 40mm between 9 and 11am, QLink1851 CNS-AYQ diverted to Mt Isa; knock-on effects will include likely cancellation of QJE1940 AYQ-ASP and delays to QJE 1936ASP-DRW

 

[jb747]

Is the cause of cracked windshields often either manufacturing or installation faults, or lightning strikes or are there other reasons that rank above these? They don't pop up (bad pun) on AFF every day but the site receives occasional reports, and others may fly under the radar so to speak.

I expect they're mostly related to thermal events.

 

[jb747]

Do you know the final letter after 'QP?'

A to J inclusive!