QF double heading SYD - MNL - SYD today

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Melburnian1

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One assumes that because it's the end of school holidays in some States (and we've had a week with Easter followed by ANZAC Day), QF is double heading between SYD and MNL today with the usual QF19 departing at 1210 followed by a special QF59 at 1310. Coming back the two are timetabled only 40 minutes apart.

The extra flight may be an A332 in domestic configuration. Nonetheless this double heading is quite unusual for QF internationally nowadays.

This gives about 600 seats, which is larger than a solo B744 if QF had one available, but it is expensive to operate two separate flights particularly since the crew for the special return QF60 tonight would have had to presumably deadhead from SYD to MNL on Friday 25 April, while the crew from today's QF59 may be in MNL until Monday night 28 April 2014 when the next QF20 is scheduled to bring them back. Am I correct that a single flight and cabin crew could not work SYD - MNL - SYD (involving a roughly 1200 sign on and perhaps an 0800 or so sign off the next morning) because for both employee types it would contravene maximum acceptable duty hours?

Notably, SYD - MNL was not identified recently by QF as one on which frequencies would be cut, or one that would be abandoned. I do not know the yields for each flight, but this is a sign that it's one of the better performing non-A380 or non-744 QFi routes.
 
Mwenenzi, how about making a fully constructive contribution? Thank you for the links to the maintenance company link, though - are you implying that one is going up for maintenance, and another A332 returning back to Oz after a stint in the hangar?
 
It would make sense that it would be a maintenance flight. The timing is quite close so moving people from QF19 to QF59 wouldn't be too hard. They may have been preparing for this by selling extra capacity on that QF19.
 
It would make sense that it would be a maintenance flight. The timing is quite close so moving people from QF19 to QF59 wouldn't be too hard. They may have been preparing for this by selling extra capacity on that QF19.

I don't agree - MX flights generally have a 4 digit flight number, not 2. However, anything is possible.
 
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mannej and albatross710, many thanks. The MNL route is one on which bookings get very heavy at Christmas, but PR for one has also been busy in April 2014 due to the school and public holidays so QF may be as well.

mannej, when you say 'maintenance flights' do you mean those that operate without passengers to place the plane at a maintenance hangar or to ferry it back ex the workshops? This may be an explanation - it might be a maintenance flight that QF has adroitly altered to carry passengers and therefore cover, or more than cover, the cost of sending the plane up there (and one back as QF60 tonight). So you may both be correct.
 
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EBI is operarting the 59 today. Can't find if it is the same or different plane operating the 60 back. I thought the recent A330 maintenance had been done on BNE.
 
According to Expert Flyer, availability for the flights operating MNL-SYD tend to suggest heavy booking (maybe a big group booking?):

QF20: J0 C0 D0 I0 U0 Y0 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0 X0 E0
QF60: J0 C0 D0 I0 U0 Y5 B0 H0 K0 M0 L0 V0 S0 N0 Q0 O0 G0 X0 E0
 
I was on QF19 on Friday 25th; there seemed to be a lot of QF deadheaders on board, presumably extra crew for the additional flight today.
 
Mwenenzi, in reference to your earlier post, the two planes operating QF19 (VH-QPE) and QF59 (VH-EBI) have both returned south on QF20 and QF60 respectively, so neither was transferred to maintenance. QF20 is expected to arrive SYD 25 minutes early and QF60 five minutes early in the morning of 27 April 2014.
 
QF's A330 maintenance is undertaken in BNE, not MNL. Some A380 maintenance is done in MNL.
 
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