SYD-BNE
Flight: QF537 Date: 14/07/2010
STD: 1515 Push back: 1517 Rotate: 1533 Gate: 23
STA: 1650 Touchdown: 1644 At Gate: 1659
Type: Boeing 767-338 Rego: VH-OGF Name: City of Lismore Seat: 54A
After a wonderful few days in Brisbane it was time to head home. I was dropped off at the airport along with my grandmother and cousin just after 1300. After been dropped off at the airport I made my way to the Airtrain station to await the arrival of Ed so that we could check in.
As he arrived at 1330 we went directly to check in to request exit rows, however for the flight to Sydney the only exit row seats were in the middle section of the plane, so we decided to stay in row 54 which turned out to be a wise decision. After check in we moved through security. Unfortunately the elderly lady in front of me on the escalator had a fall, so that added a few minutes to the time it took to get to the gate.
Once at the gate I was pleased to see that the aircraft at the gate was not the aircraft I was told it would be (VH-ZXD). Instead I was looking at VH-OGF, one of the older 767s but it is a GE engined aircraft and one of Qantas's better aircraft. I then made the long walk down to the Virgin gate where my grandmother was about to board her flight.
On the way back I got a coffee from a small cafe which was ordinary. By the time I got to the gate there was only a few minutes left before boarding.
Here is a picture of OGF prior to boarding.
Expecting to find a seat where the recline was limited (the online check in showed 54 as the last row) I was pleased to find that there was a row 55 and that it had a sign on it saying "Not for Passenger Use". I would be able to use the full recline of the seat today! I found that the domestic configuration of the 767 provided more leg room than the International one making for a much more comfortable flight.
View out the window
Pushback was a few minutes late, nothing too major. Taxi to runway 19 was as per the normal until we stopped on the taxiway and the called someone over the PA to press there call button. We were sitting on the taxiway for about two minutes before we once again got underway for runway 19.
Once at the runway we had to wait for a Qantas 738 to land, a Virgin 738 to depart and a Virgin 73G to land. Once the runway was cleared we rolled onto the runway and powered up. Takeoff on this flight was pretty ordinary due to crosswinds. Climb out was also bumpy but after five minutes things smoothed out.
On the way out
At cruise
Once the seat belt sign was turned off the cabin crew moved through the cabin with the in flight snack and usual drinks service. Today our choice was either a cherry streausal (not to be confused with strudel) or once again a fresh apple. I am not usually a fan of cherries but today I opted for the streausal as well as a can of lemonade. The streausal was delicious (once again well done to the Sydney Biscuit Company).
After the Qantas 'Welcome' program presented by Deborah Hutton the News was shown followed by a very funny episode of the Gruen Transfer. The captain came over the PA giving us an update on our arrival time and the weather conditions in Sydney. Turbulence was predicted.
Decent
On finals for runway 07
As we made our approach the turbulence went from minor to quite major. As we made out final approach for runway 07 it became apparent that we were landing with some decent crosswinds and the 767 got thrown around a bit. On more than one occasion we thought that we were going to do a go around, but after one of the worst approaches I have ever had, the pilot made one very nice landing (given the circumstances).
A taxi from the International terminal to gate 5 followed, we had to wait for an aircraft to come out of the ally which delayed us a bit. Once at the gate the engines were shut down and the people all rushed for the door (once again we remained seated and waited patiently), leaving me to think, that's what it was like in a 767, do I want to know what it is like sitting in row 19 of a Dash 8-Q400? I immediately made my way to gate 17 to try and get exit rows (row 1) on the next flight and that's where it got interesting.....
Taxiing past the International terminal
China Airline A330 with Special 50th Anniversary Titles
VH-OEJ 'Wunula Dreaming' about to leve as QF1
QF A380 VH-OQD departs for Singapore
Continuing on from the end of the last flight, when I got to the desk I was told that the flight QF1493 had been canceled. Fearing I would be put on a 737-400 (I hate them with a passion) I requested to be put on QF1491 only to be told that my bag were already on QF805. I was handed a boarding pass to find I was in row 28 (one that doesn't exist in a 734) so there was only one possibility, a 738, I said to Ed, "I will be very happy if it is operated by VH-VXB", Ironically.....
SYD-CBR
Flight: QF805 Date: 14/07/2010
STD: 1755 Push back: 1800 Rotate: 1808 Gate: 9
STA: 1850 Touchdown: 1845 At Gate: 1850
Type: Boeing 737-838 Rego: VH-VXB Name: Yananyi Dreaming Seat: 28F
As can be seen the aircraft operating the flight, much to my delight was in fact Yananyi Dreaming
! Boarding was called on time at 1735 and I found myself at the back of VXB with what appeared to be a very heavy load. Push back was a bit late followed by a taxi all the way out to 34R. Another power up and we were up making a few sharp turns over Sydney before straightening out. As expected from the previous flight takeoff and climb was bumpy and with the same forecast for most of the flight as soon as the cabin crew were allowed they were up with the in flight service.
No choices on this one. A sandwich was handed out Half was Silverside and Rocked, the other was Egg, Mayo and Rocket, both were very nice. The basic drinks service came around and I got juice. The cabin crew just got through with the rubbish collection just before the seatbelt sign was turned on due to our approach and turbulence.
Landing was nothing special very bumpy on approach using th full length of runway 35 before a taxi into gate 13, maybe that was an bad omen. After deboarding we got to baggage claim only to find that our bags a long with about 30 others had not made it on to the flight. After the report was filed I left the airport, by the time I got home I was called saying that my bag had been found and would be delivered the next day.
Summing Up:
Qatas was awesome. Service was great except for the minor mishap. The 767 is an awesome aircraft and Yananyi Dreaming is just a normal 737 with an awesome paint job. I am already planning my next trip with Qantas. I hope you have enjoyed reading this!