Virgin Blue eliminates domestic fuel surcharges

[oz_mark]

Budget airline Virgin Blue will eliminate the fuel surcharge on domestic flight airfares and reduce the surcharges for Pacific Blue trans-Tasman and Pacific Island flights following a dramatic fall in the price of jet fuel.

The company will completely drop its $19 fuel surcharge for a one-way domestic flight while the fuel surcharge for Pacific Blue and Polynesian Blue one-way international flights will fall by $10 to $25, effective December 31.

Virgin Blue removes and reduces fuel surcharges

 

[Mal]

This will start an interesting price war between Jetstar and Virgin Blue. Wonder if Qantas will join in. Fun times ahead!

 

[oz_mark]

This will start an interesting price war between Jetstar and Virgin Blue. Wonder if Qantas will join in. Fun times ahead!

I thought exactly that when I read the article. While I think some of it is a publicity stunt, hopefully it will put some pressure on others to follow suit.

 

[Kendall Roy]

Re: Virgin Blue drops fuel surcharge (domestic) reduces surcharge TransTas/Pacific Is

If only QF would follow!

 

[NM]

Re: Virgin Blue drops fuel surcharge (domestic) reduces surcharge TransTas/Pacific Is

If only QF would follow!

This may just be the catalyst needed. QF is hardly recognised as a leader in the industry any more (a reputation they held many years ago for introducing new innovations like the business class cabin). Virgin Blue is taking on the roll of leader and driving changes that QF now has to follow. Anyseat Awards is a good example of this (at least within Australia).

I don't think Qantas will be able to maintain the farce of domestic fuel surcharges now that DJ and TT do not have them.

CrazyDave, please take my congratulations to the right levels of Virgin Blue management for showing leadership in this area.

 

[docjames]

Re: Virgin Blue drops fuel surcharge (domestic) reduces surcharge TransTas/Pacific Is

CrazyDave, please take my congratulations to the right levels of Virgin Blue management for showing leadership in this area.

+1 to that

 

[Mal]

Re: Virgin Blue drops fuel surcharge (domestic) reduces surcharge TransTas/Pacific Is

+1 to that

+1 from me.

Virgin Blue keeps Qantas on the straight and narrow. Regardless of what people think of DJ, they are the only real competition to Qantas in Australia, and without them Qantas would be seriously rorting Australians.

 

[Saab34]

Will DJ slash $19 off Blue Saver altogether, or cut $19 off Blue saver and bump up the Base Fare a little bit?

 

[DJ737]

Hi there

The cheapest MEL-SYD has come down from $79 to $60 so the the base fares have not increased.

Cheers
DJ737

 

[simongr]

The company will completely drop its $19 fuel surcharge for a one-way domestic flight while the fuel surcharge for Pacific Blue and Polynesian Blue one-way international flights will fall by $10 to $25, effective December 31.

So does fuel cost less between australian destinations than between international destinations? Does the fuel price go up when you leave australian waters?

 

[NM]

Will DJ slash $19 off Blue Saver altogether, or cut $19 off Blue saver and bump up the Base Fare a little bit?

How this affects the total ticket price is not relevant to me. I really don't care if they remove the fuel surcharge and then add the exact same amount onto the base fare. That is where the cost of fuel (and all other airline costs) should be recovered. Good on them for having the guts to remove the surcharges. How they choose to set the price of their base fare amount is a business decision for the airline.

 

[one9]

How this affects the total ticket price is not relevant to me. I really don't care if they remove the fuel surcharge and then add the exact same amount onto the base fare. That is where the cost of fuel (and all other airline costs) should be recovered. Good on them for having the guts to remove the surcharges. How they choose to set the price of their base fare amount is a business decision for the airline.

I agree with you

 

[Saab34]

I am wanting to puchase a Blue Saver for travel on Thursday. The current fare is $84, will is be changing to $65 tommorow with the surcharge reduction? Or would my chances be grim with a price rise due to the date being only 2days out?

 

[stuartfaz]

I am wanting to puchase a Blue Saver for travel on Thursday. The current fare is $84, will is be changing to $65 tommorow with the surcharge reduction? Or would my chances be grim with a price rise due to the date being only 2days out?

First off, it won't be changing tomorrow. It says effective 31 December so that's Wednesday.

Second, if it is an across the board reduction (getting rid of the surcharge completely rather than adding it onto the base fare) then prices should fall regardless of the travel date.

Third, as DJ737 already noted, some of the GO! fares seem to have already come down, so don't hold out for a change there.

 

[SeaWolf]

I've just done a quick search for GO! sale fares in Feb for PER-SYD and they're now $149, when I did that search the other week they were $169. So it seems this is an actual price drop, not just a folding of the charge into the base fare.

 

[wrldtrvllr]

Third, as DJ737 already noted, some of the GO! fares seem to have already come down, so don't hold out for a change there.

come down?

I was looking at GO! fare HBA-SYD for Feb last week and it was $50, this week it's $55...so come 31 Dec should this drop to $31 or $36 or ??

 

[serfty]

come down?

I was looking at GO! fare HBA-SYD for Feb last week and it was $50, this week it's $55...so come 31 Dec should this drop to $31 or $36 or ??

Last week a GO! fare BNE-CNS was $69 ($76 with luggage) - today for the same flight it's $75 ($83 with Luggage).

 

[Saab34]

Last week a GO! fare BNE-CNS was $69 ($76 with luggage) - today for the same flight it's $75 ($83 with Luggage).

Take into account they are having a GO!Fare sale on at current, and prices are all over the place depending on demand, dates....

It will be easier to determine the consistant price when this sale finishes

 

[crazydave98]

So does fuel cost less between australian destinations than between international destinations? Does the fuel price go up when you leave australian waters?

Actually yes it does in three ways:

• longer sector lengths use more fuel per seat per trip
• fuel becomes higher proportion of cost per seat on sector lengths and hence longer sector costs more sensitive to fuel prices.
• fuel is much more expensive when picked up in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu, Solomons, PNG, DPS and slightly more expensive even in NZ and it is not worth "tankering" (carrying fuel outbound for the return trip).

Also as you know there are different competitive dynamics on international sectors than domestically.

 

[simongr]

Dave thanks for a couple of good points on this - information I was not aware of - just a couple fo comments below:

Actually yes it does in three ways:

• longer sector lengths use more fuel per seat per trip This is irrelevant in terms of the fuel surcharge - the fare already incorporates a pricing element for fuel so simply having a longer trip does not justify a differential
• fuel becomes higher proportion of cost per seat on sector lengths and hence longer sector costs more sensitive to fuel prices. Ahh - good point on the volatility - something I had not considered
• fuel is much more expensive when picked up in Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu, Solomons, PNG, DPS and slightly more expensive even in NZ and it is not worth "tankering" (carrying fuel outbound for the return trip). I was not aware of this - thanks for the input

You were doing so well up until this though:

Also as you know there are different competitive dynamics on international sectors than domestically.

Different dynamics and competition basically means that you can't get away with it on domestic flights but you can on int'l - thus roll it into the base fare - you can't logical thought out justifications and then have another level of "because we can"...