Flight delay sequel to eight-hour ordeal

[Ryan N]

By Patrick Horan
Herald Sun
June 18, 2009 03:15pm

JETSTAR insists it has done all it can for customers who have endured hours of delays and cancellations over the past two days.

After an eight-hour trip from Sydney to Melbourne yesterday – via Brisbane – passengers booked on two flights from Avalon to Sydney today were told their services had been cancelled.

Many passengers had taken the supposedly short trip to attend last night’s Australia v Japan World Cup match at the MCG.

Jetstar insists all passengers on cancelled flights JQ602 (scheduled departure 6.10am) and JQ612 (2.35pm) have been "reaccommodated", either on later Jetstar flights from Avalon or on Qantas flights departing from Tullamarine.

However, some passengers are furious, claiming that after repeated calls to a call centre in Malaysia, they have been offered no alternative arrangements and have been forced to make their own way back to Sydney.

Darren Butt from Castle Hill in Sydney has described the situation as an “absolute debacle”.

Mr Butt was scheduled to fly from Avalon to Sydney at 2.35pm after attending last night’s match, but received a text at 9am saying his flight had been cancelled.

“We were told to ring a call centre in Malaysia,” Mr Butt said. “Nineteen phone calls later and we’re still chasing flights.

Booked on a 6.10am flight from Avalon – scheduled to arrive in Sydney at 7.30am – Jeffery Waters, from Wollongong, won't see Sydney before noon.

"I've had quite an eventful trip," Mr Waters said this morning.

Mr Waters said passengers were boarded onto this morning's flight at Avalon before being told to disembark due to foggy conditions.

After being left in a lounge for an estimated 45 minutes, passengers were informed the flight had been cancelled and they would be bussed to Tullamarine.

"We were told we were booked on a Qantas flight to Sydney at 9.30am," Mr Waters said.

"I went to ask at the desk and they said 'we know nothing about you'."

Eventually, Mr Waters was booked onto a 10.30am Qantas flight to Sydney, with an estimated arrival time close to noon, more than four hours after his scheduled arrival time.

Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway said thick fog conditions since late the previous evening had forced this morning's cancellation.

"There was very poor visibility so the aircraft was unable to depart ... This necessitated utilising Melbourne Airport as a diversionary airport," he said.

"Jetstar does not control the fog, Jetstar does not control the weather.

"We are always doing the best by our customers, in this case providing an efficient bus service to an alternative flight."

Yesterday's routine Sydney to Melbourne flight turned into an eight-hour, 3700km journey for about 130 Jetstar passengers.

Avalon bound flight JQ603 was due to arrive in Melbourne about 8.30am yesterday, but because of heavy fog the plane was diverted 1400km north to Brisbane.

It arrived there at 11.15am and did not depart until 1.15pm, finally reaching Avalon at 3.30pm.

All but 18 of the passengers, many travelling south to watch tonight's Socceroos match, had to sit in the A320 Airbus for more than eight hours.

Mr Westaway said thick fog meant the pilot could not land at Tullamarine or Avalon, and after circling for an hour the aircraft was ordered to Brisbane.

"It's quite unprecedented circumstances where both airports were fogged out," Mr Westaway said.

He said the decision to fly to Brisbane was to try to get that aircraft back on track, as it was scheduled to fly to Brisbane after its planned Melbourne landing.

"It was going to go Sydney-Avalon then Avalon-Brisbane.

"So what we've done is isolated the issue on to the one aircraft line."

Sydney couple Maureen and John Hildred, on their way to watch the MCG game, said passengers were grumbling when they were told they would be heading to Brisbane, and then were not allowed off the plane.

"We could have flown to Singapore in the same amount of time," Ms Hildred said. "And we were only given a roll and drink as compensation."

"It would have been quicker to drive," another passenger, Ian Donaghy, said.

About 18 passengers are believed to have disembarked in Brisbane after its arrival there at 11.15am and caught flights back to Sydney, abandoning their Melbourne trips.

THE EIGHT-HOUR ONE-HOUR FLIGHT

1. Flight JQ603 departs Sydney at 7.30 am for Melbourne's Avalon airport, but fog prevents it from landing at 8.30am

2. After circling for an hour the plane turns around and takes its intended path north – 1400km to Brisbane

3. On landing in Brisbane at 11.15am, 18 passengers get off, and the rest are forced to wait on the plane for two hours. The plane finally takes off at 1.15pm

4. The plane eventually lands at Avalon at 3.30pm

[Gerard M]

I can see their logic but you gotta love Sydney to Melbourne, via Brisbane. I thought planes these days only carried enough fuel for the trip, factoring weather, diversions etc due to the cost of fuel and i thought making the plane lighter on take-off reducing wear and tear on the engines etc? But with this flight would they not have been planning to re-fuel in Melbourne and had enough from Syd to fly from Syd-Mel-Bris?

[Owen H]

There was fog in Melbourne, and so the flight would have had to leave Sydney with enough fuel to fly to Melbourne, and then divert to another airport if they couldn't land.

Carrying Brisbane as an alternate does sound somewhat unusual, as does departing Sydney with only an hour over Melbourne before diverting.

[Owen H]

It is possible it was the only option, but it is the comment that the decision was made to keep the aircraft on track that is bizarre.

Its also the fact that we're not hearing of Virgin, Tiger nor Qantas aircraft diverting to Brisbane and not being allowed off.

[Mike W]

I think most people understand that the Airline cannot control the weather. What they can control is their service and communication, or in Jetstar's case, perhaps not. It seems out of control.

After being left in a lounge for an estimated 45 minutes, passengers were informed the flight had been cancelled and they would be bussed to Tullamarine.

"We were told we were booked on a Qantas flight to Sydney at 9.30am," Mr Waters said.

"I went to ask at the desk and they said 'we know nothing about you'."

This sounds exactly what happened to me on a what was supposed to be a JQ flight back to Sydney from the Sunshine Coast a while back. The weather up there was really miserable and visibility was almost nought. DJ didn't even bother to turn up but straight away whisked all their pax off to Brizzie.

Jetstar keept us hanging for 3 hours saying "then plane will be here soon", etc. Needless to say, eventually we were also bussed off to Brisbane and of course, QF didn't know anything about it etc. I eventually got home 8 hours late.

[Mike W]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/indu...ek-of-business

It seems JQ in NZ is no better

Half of Jetstar's domestic services departed more than an hour late in a difficult first week in New Zealand.

The budget airline replaced Qantas between the main centres and Queenstown on Wednesday last week.

Figures compiled by an industry source showed that just 15 of the 86 flights flown in the first five days departed within the benchmark 15 minutes of the scheduled time.

Another 27 were up to an hour late, and 16 were more than two hours late.

[James K]

Originally Posted by Mike W

This sounds exactly what happened to me on a what was supposed to be a JQ flight back to Sydney from the Sunshine Coast a while back. The weather up there was really miserable and visibility was almost nought. DJ didn't even bother to turn up but straight away whisked all their pax off to Brizzie.

Jetstar keept us hanging for 3 hours saying "then plane will be here soon", etc. Needless to say, eventually we were also bussed off to Brisbane and of course, QF didn't know anything about it etc. I eventually got home 8 hours late.

This is because the system for handling these disrupted pax is totally manual. Shame JQ cant use a decent system like Amadeus as if they did if would greatly improve the pax experience especially during disruptions. Still I guess low cost is the driver these days.....

[Mike W]

But wait, there's more

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10579751

I don't know how long JQ expect to operate in NZ but they'd better start getting their act together soon or it won't be long.

This is the kind of press they're copping over there and it's not isolated

Airline leaves All Blacks fans stranded

Rugby fans flying to last night's test in Wellington were among a group of Jetstar passengers left stranded in Auckland by the budget airline.

More than 10 people say they were left behind when the Qantas subsidiary closed its gates half an hour before the 3.40pm takeoff time for its final flight of the day to the capital.

"We got to the counter and were told we weren't able to board," said John Cole, who was travelling to the rugby with his wife and daughter.

Cole said conversations with Jetstar managers proved fruitless, so the family shelled out an extra $180 each for Pacific Blue tickets to ensure they made the match.

[Brad Myer]

I don't know how long JQ expect to operate in NZ but they'd better start getting their act together soon or it won't be long.

They coped the same negative press when they first started domestic Australian services. The media soon got bored with it, and people learnt to be ontime for flights.

I wouldnt loose any sleep over it.

[Mike W]

Originally Posted by Brad Myer

They coped the same negative press when they first started domestic Australian services. The media soon got bored with it, and people learnt to be ontime for flights.

What do you mean "started domestic Aus, etc"

Still getting it!