OQA scheduled to depart back to SYD tonight as QF6014.

Thanks Stirling for the information on OQA. Checking times, Flightaware is showing that QF6014 is scheduled to depart AUH at 21:10 AEDT and arrive in SYD at 10:31 AEDT.

QANTAS A380 OQA has just departed AUH as QF6014 and according to Flightaware has an estimated arrival time in SYD of 13:29 AEDT Saturday afternoon.

Also, another QANTAS A380 is scheduled to depart SYD as QF6015 at 12:10 AEDT on Saturday for AUH. Not sure which one it is but OQD and OQH are both due to arrive on Saturday morning as QF2 & QF12. Whichever one it is OQA will be back in service to replace it on either QF1 or QF11 as there will be no other A380s in SYD, unless they ferry up OQJ which is due to arrive in MEL as QF94.

According to Flightaware OQH is the QANTAS A380 scheduled to leave for AUH at 12:10pm today. I was thinking that OQD would be the one because OQH spent four and a half months in AUH having pre-service maintenance in 2022. OQD hasn't had a long period of maintenance since returning to service although it was in AUH being refurbished when COVID hit in 2020 and flew straight to LAX (not VCV) for storage. It also spent 5 weeks in SIN last year.

OQA's arrival time is now showing as 13:33 AEDT today.

I don't pretend to know anything about aircraft positioning when they come back into service but I would like to know-

If they wanted to put OQH into maintenance at AUH, why not run it to LHR as QF1. Then run OQA from AUH to LHR to operate the return QF2? Then run OQH empty to AUH for maint?

Seems a massive waste of fuel to fly OQA empty to SYD and then run OQH empty back to AUH a couple of hours later.

OQA was obviously ready to go straight into service because it left for LAX the same day it arrived in SYD.

Just curious why it was done this way? Only thing I can think of is maybe slots at LHR?

VH-OQA currently in LAX, having operated QF11 yesterday

If she is operating the QF12 back she (OQA) has been reconfigured going by the seat map

No Mark, the usual pattern on Thursdays and Saturdays in LAX is that the arriving QF11 turns around as the QF94. Therefore, OQA is returning to Oz as QF94 LAX-MEL-LAX and due to arrive in SYD next Wednesday as QF12, unless they keep her in the QF LAX maintenance facility for a few days for some minor tweaking to the new interior or something else. Yes, her interior was reconfigured while in AUH.

Yes, she is operating the 94 and seat map confirms the reconfig

717 update:
YQU registration cancelled 09/04/24
YQX departed Canberra 09/04/24 for Victorville

VH-ZNF B789 has been in maintenance in HKG since March 24th is now on its way back as QF6010 HKG-SYD, ETA 0544 tomorrow.

YQX has completed her ferry to VCV

VXD heading back from HKG, I believe VZX will head up next.

ZNE appears to be operating QF209 today, MEL-PER-SiN-LHR.
A little unusual, anyone know anything about this flight?

Delayed flight perhaps via SIN for crew or LHR curfew?

QF9 cancelled and replaced by this flight owing to routing requirements over the middle east

From another site, apparently it has something to do with Intel about not flying through Middle Eastern airspace, specifically Iran/Iraq. Due to the re-routing, the PER-LHR sector cannot be done non-stop, hence why via SIN.
How long this is for I am not aware, but it's interesting that this appears to be internal only as I have seen nothing officially announced about QF9/10.
Will be interesting to see what happens.

It is currently just over the northern tip of Turkey have passed over the Black sea.

100% correct, VZX has arrived in HKG

US President Joe Biden expects Iran to attack Israel 'sooner rather than later', but warns: 'Don't'

In short: Mr Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack from Iran to Israel could come "sooner, rather than later."

When asked about his message to Iran, Mr Biden simply said "Don't," and he underscored Washington's commitment to defend Israel.

What's next? White House spokesperson John Kirby said the US was looking at its own force posture in the region in light of Tehran's threat and was watching the situation very closely.

US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel "sooner, rather than later" and warned Tehran not to proceed.

Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Mr Biden said simply, "Don't," and he underscored Washington's commitment to defend Israel.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-...inst/103704292

OQJ did a rotation through Gatwick for the first time, on charter to what I suspect is the usual customer

EBN is due to re-enter service today after spending a couple of weeks in BNE reportedly being fitted with Viasat WiFi

11 years after leaving the fleet, former VH-ZXC is still going strong for Eastern, although her age is showing!

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5-KcUFu..._web_copy_link

Mark, looks like a little Hydraulic leak from the rudder has taken the paint away. Skydrol does that to aircraft paint.

From QANTAS Flight Status, A380 VH-OQH is scheduled to depart AUH at 16:10 local today and arrive is SYD at 6:10 Saturday morning.

Another A380 is scheduled to depart SYD at 11:10 on Saturday morning for AUH, presumably also for maintenance. Early contenders would be OQB, OQD, OQI & OQJ to be reduced by two depending on which A380's depart as QF1 & QF11 later today.

OQB it is.
https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/vh-oqb

QANTAS A380 VH-OQB is scheduled to depart SYD at 11:10 today for maintenance in AUH. It will be delayed a little as the inbound aircraft didn't arrive until 9:24 as QF12.

OQH arrived from AUH this morning and will operate either QF1 or QF11 later today.

So QF still has only 6 in service at the moment.

Yes Dennis. When OQB arrives today there will be OQB, OQC (since 20/6/21), OQK (24/2/24) & OQL (13/3/24) in AUH. They are getting through the QANTAS A380 maintenance program now that Etihad's own A380s have been returned to service, freeing up that facility. OQK shouldn't be too much longer in AUH and OQL is being refurbished and should return to service in late May to mid June.

QANTAS only need six A380's for their current timetable - 3 for SYD-LHR-SYD, 2 for SYD-LAX-SYD and 1 for LAX-MEL-LAX but this has no replacement capability built in with only the six aircraft. The next build up in A380 capacity was to be SYD-JNB-SYD (4-6pw) and more MEL-LAX-MEL (6pw) in July but this has been put back to late September 2024. Hopefully, all the major maintenance work, refurbishment (OQC?) and any gear changes will be done by then and the ten A380s will all be operational. Not sure though if there are any further wing spar checks required in the next year or so.

Is anyone aware of any repaints coming up soon?
I know that OQI is the last A380 to be done in the new livery, some of the latest A330-200's need painting & I'm guessing the latest 737's XZ rego series will be coming up soon as they are now 10+yrs

VH-NXN has departed Canberra for VCV as SXI2435

NXN has just landed at VCV completing her ferry to storage.

Qantas Asian Update
 

https://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/me...etwork-update/

Yet Qantas is still sending clapped out A330-200s, without proper seat back entertainment, to Singapore from Australia. Compared to their competitors, this hard product is chalk and cheese. How Qantas ever got itself into this situation is laughable.

QF are replacing Dash8's with E190's on some East Coast services.

Which services Greg?

Zac,

Noticed several airports announcing the start E190 replacing Dash8 services.

Newcastle (to BNE I think),

https://www.facebook.com/ntlairport/...jbKXgq58GQdCyl
also Central Queensland (Emerald)

Most of these changes came into effect in late March or early April - the only one that started a bit later was EMD which started this week.

NTL-BNE and NTL-MEL have both changed to E190s, although MEL was previously a B717 not a Dash.

BNE-ABX is now an E190, and the E190s have taken over more of the flying from BNE to places like GLT and ROK.

What will be interesting to watch is the end of B717 services at SYD. For instance, the SYD-LST service is already in the system as an E190 (replacing the current B717) from October, but there are no other SYD-based E190 services showing as yet apart from the TSV-SYD which obviously is a TSV-based service. Will E190s start to show up on SYD to places like CBR (looks more like B737 but who knows), regional NSW and WTB?