Qantas Delays/Cancellations

[JohnPhelan]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

I cannot answer whether it was wise for QFi to retire two elderly B744s recently but no doubt a few may be asking that question,.

I can - it was a very unwise decision. (And several of us said so at the time). QF either needs an extra 744 and A380 OR it needs to not timetable the aircraft so tightly; as things stand, there is no leeway for weather/unplanned maintenance. This current situation of rolling 24 delays simply can't continue.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Interesting perspective JohnPhelan.

Without trying to be overly cynical, perhaps QF, knowing that it is dominant domestically and that some of its international competitors have been scaling back flights to Oz a little (although many still fly more frequently than QF/ JQ does to particular places) may have made what it viewed as a rational business decision that the savings from tighter rostering and from disposing of those two 'fuel guzzling' older planes (albeit that fuel prices have become lower) would by a large margin exceed any loss of revenue from passenger annoyance and hence migration to other rival carriers due to delays such as we are seeing between SYD and HKG at present.

Do you have the sense that QF might be exploring in the very short term leasing (or buying second hand) another A388 or B744 to improve the reliability situation? Elsewhere on AFF, wasn't there a bit of discussion about how loss making MH is disposing of A380s?

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

QF93 from MEL to LAX (A388 VH-OQD) has been delayed in its departure from 0950 to 1100 on Tuesday 11 August as QF94 is an hour and three quarters late in the form of A380 VH-OQD and landing as I write this. QF93 finally took off at just before 1150.

The B744 from LAX to SYD, QF18, was 77 minutes late arriving in SYD this morning at 0857 while to complete the 'Golden Trainagle' threesome, QF16 from LAX to BNE, also a B744, was 101 minutes late when it arrived at 0821 this morning.

The B744 on QF17 tonight is SYD is forecast to depart at 1955 in lieu of 1740, 135 minutes behind time but QF suggests that time will be gained en route with LAX arrival only 90 minutes down at 1545 today local time.

The delayed QF127D (VH-OEH) from yesterday (SYD to HKG) is forecast to depart at 1040 while today's timetabled QF127 (VH-OJT) is delayed from 1005 to 1050 in leaving, so there will be the highly unusual occurrence of two QF B744s for HKG departing SYD within 10 minutes of one another if that goes to the revised plan. Tuesday is a 'light day' for the QFi long haul fleet in terms of departures ex SYD, so perhaps that is why the second B744 is able to make an appearance on a HKG flight.

The delayed QF35 from MEL to SIN from Monday 10 August was meant to depart at 0730 this morning but did not do so until 0817. It is A333 VH-QPF.

Monday 10 August's QF1 from SYD to LHR spent overtime in DXB, not departing until 0346 (91 minutes late) and as a result is due at LHR at 0826 this morning, also 91 minutes late. This may be an underestimate if the missing of the slot time has adverse repercussions. In the other direction, the usually quite punctual in departing QF2 left LHR 47 minutes late at 2212 last night and is expected into DXB 54 minutes late. This flight often seems to be able with the winds to pick up time between DXB and SYD, sometimes so much that it appears to be slowed a bit so as not to arrive much before its 0510 'dispensation' pre-SYD curfew scheduled time of 0510, so with luck it may not be more than half an hour late into SYD tomorrow morning if that.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Monday 10 August 2015's delayed 1955 hours QF36 that has been rescheduled for today (Tuesday 11) from SIN to MEL is now forecast to depart at 1615 SIN time, meaning a most uncomfortable time to arrive in MEL on Wednesday 12 August - 0140.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

The 1600 hours flight from SYD to DXB and LHR, QF1, is shown by QF as delayed until 1815 tonight but that time has come and gone more than half an hour ago. FlightAware - Flight Tracker / Flight Status / Flight Tracking is suggesting that it has been further delayed to take off (not be off blocks, which would be earlier) at 1910.

Perhaps there are some AFFers travelling who can fill us in.

Meanwhile A388 VH-OQK took off at 1843 tonight (Tuesday 11 August) from SYD for MNL, presumably for scheduled maintenance. www.theqantassource.com indicated that VH-OQE had come back from MNL to SYD overnight, so that should still leave 11 available for passenger flights.

UPDATE: QF1 has been put back to a forecast 1935 hours departure from SYD, the time as I write this.

FURTHER UPDATE: QF1's departure time has now become 2010. This is sometimes a bad portent when an airline continually updates departure times as later and later, especially when maximum crew hours (which jb747 told us were 20, minus 1.5 for pre and post flight paperwork and tasks if I recall) are considered. However I do not know when the flight crew signed on and if QF knew in advance that there would be the initial delay, or whether it occurred after the crew did some checks. The 2300 hours curfew is not a great many hours away, but perhaps the flight will sneak out prior to that.

The QF website predicts that QF1 will arrive in DXB at 0420 on Wednesday 11 August but in a quirk, the departure from DXB for LHR is still shown as 0215. It is surprising that the programmer has not 'told' the software that these two combined times are impossible and hence a time such as 0550 needs to be input as departure ex DXB, with a consequent adjustment to the LHR arrival time.

Much more of a delay to QF1 and QF10 tomorrow (Wednesday) from LHR to MEL via DXB will be late departing.

 

[ChrisGibbs]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

And whughes3, after your excellent information, it became worse, because while I suggested in post number 1535 that today's QF127 (SYD - HKG) was only delayed for an hour and a half, this subsequently became an 0940 departure on Tuesday 11 August 2015, almost 24 hours late.
.

I was on the originally scheduled QF127 SYD-HKG service on Monday 10th August which was scheduled to be VH-OJM. The Captain and CSM came into the lounge and advised us that Engineering were fixing up a fuel leak. The departure time moved from the schedule 1005 to 1100 then to 1300 then to Cancelled at 1400. If I have the dates / timing / aircraft right VH-OJM created went unserviceable in HKG and wasn't able to operate the QF128 service on the 7th August only returning to Sydney on the morning of the 10th August.

My itinerary was SYD-HKG-MNL and unfortunately I couldn't get onto the direct SYD-MNL QF19 service or onto the CX service/s so I was offered either Air China, Malaysian or Qantas to Haneda then JAL from Narita to Manila. We were given cabcharge vouchers in the lounge to head back home for a few hours then back out to the airport later that evening as I opted for the QF25 service from SYD to HND originally scheduled to depart at 2040 which subsequently got pushed to 2205 as it was being services by VH-OJS which operated the delayed QF128D service from HKG-SYD. Upon arriving into HND I took the Limousine Bus from HND to NRT and connected onto the JAL NRT-MNL service earlier today making my meetings in Manila with 45 minutes to spare.

 

[JessicaTam]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Monday 10 August 2015's delayed 1955 hours QF36 that has been rescheduled for today (Tuesday 11) from SIN to MEL is now forecast to depart at 1615 SIN time, meaning a most uncomfortable time to arrive in MEL on Wednesday 12 August - 0140.

I actually don't mind arriving then. EK408 gets in around that time, so I can have a day in KUL and get home in time to sleep before a work day the next day. Although admittedly I can be in bed 35 minutes after the front door of the aircraft opens.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Continuing the delays on the SYD - HKG - SYD route, Tuesday 11 August's QF128 (the southbound) has been delayed from 2015 to 0720 this morning (Wed 12 August) in departing with arrival in SYD expected at 1815 in lieu of 0720. The aircraft is VH-OJT. Perhaps this latest delay was due to the need for crew to sufficiently rest between flights: it may not be a problem with the B744 as such as there were two QF127 flights on Tuesday 11 August northbound, the first a day delayed and the second basically on time.

There are no SYD - JNB, SCL or LAX B744 timetabled departures today (Wednesday) so that should assist with returning operations to normal.

On Tuesday night (11 Aug) the delayed QF1 departed SYD at 2005 (four hours and five minutes late) for DXB and LHR followed immediately by QF17 to LAX, the 1740 hours flight that departed at 2008. These delays must be irritating to time sensitive business (many) and even some leisure travellers, particularly if the latter have tight rail or other air connections or are going to events over whose control they have no timing - a funeral is a case in point because unlike a wedding there's little advance notice.

ChrisGibbs, your explanation was terrific. It's surprising that you were not offered MH from SYD to KUL and on to MNL as given its problems one might expect it to have empty seats on the vast majority of flights, and that route is a lot more direct than via Japan. You sure took 'the scenic way!'

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Continuing the delays on the SYD - HKG - SYD route, Tuesday 11 August's QF128 (the southbound) has been delayed from 2015 to 0720 this morning (Wed 12 August) in departing with arrival in SYD expected at 1815 in lieu of 0720. Perhaps this latest delay was due to the need for crew to sufficiently rest between flights: it may not be a problem with the B744 as such as there were two QF127 flights on Tuesday 11 August northbound, the first a day delayed and the second basically on time.

There are no SYD - JNB, SCL or LAX B744 timetabled departures today (Wednesday) so that should assist with returning operations to normal.

On Tuesday night (11 Aug) the delayed QF1 departed SYD at 2005 (four hours and five minutes late) for DXB and LHR followed immediately by QF17 to LAX, the 1740 hours flight that departed at 2008. These delays must be irritating to time sensitive business (many) and even some leisure travellers, particularly if the latter have tight rail or other air connections or are going to events over whose control they have no timing - a funeral is a case in point because unlike a wedding there's little advance notice.

It was about this time last year (maybe a month earlier) that my friend ran into the same issues with HKG-MEL - flights delayed by 24 hours. They ended up being routed through SYD, but with considerable extra flying time and inconvenience. This was never compensated.

On many fronts it seems it is time for consumer protection along the lines of EU261. This would solve the issue of refunds in the event of downgrades, and provide incentives to fly to schedule.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

MEL_Traveller, doubtless the airlines (not just QF) would vociferously argue against it but your comments are (no pun intended) timely.

If we travel by public transport in Australia (rail in this case) there is compensation offered by some operators if one is delayed by say more than an hour. It's typically a free single or return ticket. The passenger has to apply, just like EU261 - it's not 'automatic' as some trains are unreserved and hence the operator does not know passengers' identity.

Contrast that with airlines who may, or may not, look after us accommodation and meals wise when there are delays. Some may 'compensate' through the granting of complimentary frequent flyer points, if a passenger is a scheme member. AFF member RedRoo has seen to that in some cases notified through AFF.

This may not be useful to everyone, particularly if you are a traveller from say Latin America who is making a once in a lifetime trip to Oz and in your own country you don't typically want to fly much. There is no consistency, albeit that some airlines are 'legacy' and some are LCCs. At present, the airlines should be making good profits as fuel is a major expense that has dramatically declined in price, but its price is not the point: the airlines advertise timetables and if they cannot stick to them, in most cases (save for tardy passengers, which is admittedly a problem) it's not passengers' fault.

However the EU261 matter is deserving of a separate thread and has been previously discussed on AFF, so forgive me for going off topic for that brief moment.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Not a good afternoon and evening for QFd on the important PER - MEL route.

QF802 is an expected 125 minutes late, being forecast to arrive at 1930 on Wednesday 12 August while QF476 is a predicted 55 minutes late, arriving at 2020. Sandwiched in the middle was stablemate JQ971, the 1900 hours arrival in MEL that was cancelled because JQ968 was earlier cancelled from MEL this morning.

QF481, the westbound, has been delayed in departing MEL from 1850 to a predicted 2015 tonight while QF653, the 2030 hours MEL to PER eparture is suggested as leaving at 2100.

 

[RickyT84]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Not a good afternoon and evening for QFd on the important PER - MEL route.

QF802 is an expected 125 minutes late, being forecast to arrive at 1930 on Wednesday 12 August while QF476 is a predicted 55 minutes late, arriving at 2020. Sandwiched in the middle was stablemate JQ971, the 1900 hours arrival in MEL that was cancelled because JQ968 was earlier cancelled from MEL this morning.

QF481, the westbound, has been delayed in departing MEL from 1850 to a predicted 2015 tonight while QF653, the 2030 hours MEL to PER eparture is suggested as leaving at 2100.

These delays may be a result of two A332s being out of action in PER. EBS hasn't flown since yesterday and EBB hasn't operated a flight since arriving from MEL as QF485 earlier this morning.

In addition, EBG is under maintenance in BNE and EBV has been operating various international routes lately which makes things harder in terms of fleet movement.

 

[drross]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

off to Dubai tonight. QF631 from Briz then Q9 from melbourne. Received SMS this morning - your flight is cancelled. contact qantas. On hold for awhile, wondering which one it was. Eventually a delightful young gent (Liam) answered and fixed everything without any dramas ... just like to give a positive review for great service

 

[docjames]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

off to Dubai tonight. QF631 from Briz then Q9 from melbourne. Received SMS this morning - your flight is cancelled. contact qantas. On hold for awhile, wondering which one it was. Eventually a delightful young gent (Liam) answered and fixed everything without any dramas ... just like to give a positive review for great service

Which one was cancelled (assuming it's QF631) and how was it solved?

 

[drross]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Which one was cancelled (assuming it's QF631) and how was it solved?

Yes 631 - now on the next flight - leaving an hour later

 

[Ansett]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Yes 631 - now on the next flight - leaving an hour later

Well that is just awful as it cuts down on Lounge time

 

[grrofunger]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

Not a good afternoon and evening for QFd on the important PER - MEL route.

QF802 is an expected 125 minutes late, being forecast to arrive at 1930 on Wednesday 12 August while QF476 is a predicted 55 minutes late, arriving at 2020. Sandwiched in the middle was stablemate JQ971, the 1900 hours arrival in MEL that was cancelled because JQ968 was earlier cancelled from MEL this morning.

QF481, the westbound, has been delayed in departing MEL from 1850 to a predicted 2015 tonight while QF653, the 2030 hours MEL to PER eparture is suggested as leaving at 2100.

I was a victim of QF802 yesterday, not sure what the issue was but the plane was loaded and ready to board. Boarding was pushed back twice (like 10 minutes) and then they decided to unload the plane and had to do a switch out of planes.

Sandwiched in between this and getting on the replacement plane was a fire alarm and full evacuation of the perth terminal which was fun getting back through security.

 

[Melburnian1]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

RickyT84, thank you for the detailed information and sorry to say that QF has had another close to 'horror' afternoon on its transcontinental routes.

Between SYD and PER. QF569 departed at 1928 in lieu of 1630 and is forecast to be in the Sandgroper capital at 2215 local time instead of 1740. QF571 was two hours and six minutes late departing at 1936 with arrival in PER suggested as 2235, 115 minutes behind time, while, down south QF481 from MEL to PER departed at 1952 tonight (Thursday 12 August) instead of 1852 and should be in PER 42 minutes late at 2147 local time.

QF767 from BNE to PER is normally due to leave at 2025 but has been delayed until a forecast 2140 with likely arrival at 0110 on Friday morning instead of 0005.

While passenger numbers on the transcon. routes are declining - we know that from QF's recent cuts - their length and importance to what from memory is 'the most isolated capital city in the world' in PER makes them prestigious and a standard bearer for any Australian domiciled airline, just as the completion of the Trans Australia Railway in 1917 was incredibly important for Australia.

VA invested heavily in new seats for J in particular on these routes and QF has followed suit, so repeated instances of late flights will not go unnoticed by passengers who have a choice.

 

[_TheTraveller_]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

For those flying TPAC often between LAX-MEL/SYD, how does QF12/18/94/96 perform with regards to on-time/delay? Some of the data on flightstats seems pretty bad so I'm not too willing to trust it up front.

Flying in on the 8th and arriving on the 10th, I have an outbound flight from SYD-SIN on BA at 4:30pm~ on the 10th. Not sure if its worth the risk to take the MEL flight for the extra ~.

 

[Himeno]

Re: General Qantas Delays/Cancellations/etc. Discussion

For those flying TPAC often between LAX-MEL/SYD, how does QF12/18/94/96 perform with regards to on-time/delay? Some of the data on flightstats seems pretty bad so I'm not too willing to trust it up front.

Flying in on the 8th and arriving on the 10th, I have an outbound flight from SYD-SIN on BA at 4:30pm~ on the 10th. Not sure if its worth the risk to take the MEL flight for the extra ~.

They may have delays on the US routes (mainly related to the JFK-LAX route), they are rarely delayed the 8+ hours that would be needed to miss a connection to the BA flight ex SYD.