I have been critical about the "budget" carrier Tiger Airways Australia which can be likened to a bus with wings as noted in my previous blog about them.

Seems the bus is not safe.

On Saturday July 2, 2011 Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) grounded Tiger after the airline's planes twice breached lowest safe altitudes.

This grounding came after they had given the carrier a warning in March saying Tiger needed to "improve the proficiency of Tiger Airways Australia’s pilots, improvements to pilot training and checking processes, changes to fatigue management, improvements to maintenance control and ongoing airworthiness systems and ensuring appropriately qualified people fill management and operational positions."

Tiger is rejecting any concerns they are unsafe (would nt you?) with CEO Tony Davis expressing regret over the decision (pictured right)

The grounding is a disaster for the airline which has not made money since setting up shop in Australia. The last grounding we had was of Ansett's 767 fleet and that was one of then final straws for them.  Unlike Ansett, I won't mourn Tiger but yet again we are going back to the two airline situation we have always had in Australia. The names have changed but the structure is similar. Qantas and Virgin instead of Qantas and Ansett or before that Trans Australia Airlines (TAA)  and Ansett-ANA or before that Ansett and Australia National Airways.

The difference is Qantas now has two segments of the market with its budget Jetstar subsidiary and the more corporate focussed mainline Qantas.

Some questions:
1. Will Tiger survive?
2. Virgin Australia continues to lose money-how long will they sustain that for?
3, Will Qantas hang onto its premium passengers or lose some to Virgin concerned at the Jetsar -isation of the mainline carrier?


As for me, I am taking the train to Adelaide next week.

The 2010 Qantas Christmas card doesn't show metres of snow or faulty engines.

Image: Copyright AP Photo/ Steve Parsons taken from Herald-Sun

Difficult job being in Qantas PR this year.

I do wish people would stop blaming them for the snow delays though. And think!

8 stranded jumbos. Thats 3200 people on them and at least 3200 people waiting for them. Every 24 hours they are delayed is another 6000-7000 people.

If they all called Qantas simultaneously and spend 5 minutes talking to an agent 70 000 minutes of calls or 10 000 hours -every 48 hours. You would need 500 agents all working 10 hour days just to deal with them. Thats assuming every one calls and that their calls only go for five minutes. All during Qantas busiest period yet.

So stuck in snow? No use blaming the airline. One can only trust that they are trying to get 6999 other people home too. Check your options but if the airports are closed, you are not going anywhere. Sorry!

Save your anger for the real things that Qantas is showing-like a crappy New Zealand-Australia offering, inconsistent service
and the downgrading of benefits for long term frequent fliers (thats tomorrows blog)

Charlie: Ray, all airlines have crashed at one time or another, that doesn't mean that they are not safe. 

• 1934: De Havilland DH-50 aircraft and pilot lost near Winton, central Queensland.
• 1942: De Havilland DH-86 crashes in Brisbane are killing  two crew and seven passengers.
• 1944: Empire flying boat engine trouble on Sydney-Brisbane flight, crashes in Sydney Harbour. All but one passenger rescued.
• 1946: Avro Lancastrian on Colombo-Cocos Island flight lost in Indian Ocean with five crew and five passengers.
• 1960: Super Constellation crashes at Mauritius and burns. Everyone got out safely.
• In the same year,  1960, a Trans Australia Airlines (TAA)  538, a Fokker Friendship belonging crash landed in the ocean south-east of Mackay on final approach in foggy night conditions. TAA was later absorbed into Qantas.

Since 1960, however, Qantas has never  had a "hull loss" (fatal accident).  Moreover, Qantas have never lost a jet aeroplane (although they came close ten years ago when a 747 slid down the runway in Bangkok)


This last two weeks,  Qantas has been is in the news for five incidents:

1. November 4, QF 32 Singapore, AIRBUS 380 -Rolls Royce engine explosion
2. November 5, Singapore, 747 - contained engine failure
3. November 12, QF 768, Perth, 767  -after flight crew became aware of vibration in number one engine.
4. November 15, - QF 17 Sydney, 747 -smoke from electrical problem
5. November 17, QF 64, Qantas 747 - Bird strike

I  have flown Qantas 224 times. Should I be worried? Yes  or No. 


Investors say  Yes!  90 per cent of Australian investors say these recent incidents are damaging Qantas-  55% blame the incidents outsourced  maintenance. 37% say its because of cost-cutting.  77% of investors want the cost-control strategy is stop.


The Australian and International Pilots Association say  Yes -accusing all airlines of lowering safety, maintenance and training standards. The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association has warned that ''danger signs'' were now emerging from Qantas's decision to outsource maintenance, with a spate of safety incidents since it sent the work overseas.


Opinion Polls are saying  Yes The with 47% in an Age poll, saying they would fly another airline
Blogs are saying  Yes 
Tweets are saying  Yes


Are they right? Is Qantas now unsafe?


Qantas has a good safety record for five reasons;

1. Luck- lets be honest!
2. Geography- most of Qantas flights are into airports that are not crowded, very rarely snow bound and have moderate winds and temperate weather conditions
3. Pilot training- Listen to this pilot of the Qantas A380 and be impressed. The crew that landed that A380 were impressive in the way the pilots handled what was potentially a real disaster. Qantas Crews are highly experienced and highly trained.
4. Australian Culture- which allows a first officer to challenge a pilot
5. Maintenance- the perception has been that Qantas planes are very carefully maintained. With the  shift to offshore maintenance have become nervous

Of the five recent incidents:

1. Nov 4 A380 -is not caused by poor maintenance but what appears to be a design fault and good luck certainly came in to play- Qantas did right thing and grounded
2. Nov  5,  747 - contained engine failure -possible but unlikely to be maintenance related
3. Nov 12,  767  -vibration in number one engine - could be linked to maintenance
4. Nov 15, - 747 -smoke from electrical problem- could be linked to maintenance
5. Nov 17, 747 - Bird strike, incident.- Not maintenance related, just bad luck for plane and birds -they happen to all airlines from time to time

Some members of Qantas frequent flyer have questioned if there are really more incidents or if the Media are "slamming" Qantas hard? What do you think?


The Main Qantas Brand = still safer than most airlines. 

New Zealand is one of the most stunning countries in the world. It stretches 1,600 kilometres (990 mi) from North to South. It has  an area of 268,021 km²  103,483 sq miles slightly bigger than Britain and slightly smaller than Italy. It is made up two main islands  (North and South Islands) plus several smaller islands including  Stewart Island and the Chatam Islands).   Some of my favourite hikes in the world are found in NZ!

Ok, everyone has a horror story...weather delays, lost bags, line ups etc etc. I am not talking about those hiccups in travel but the consistent poor treatment of customers by an airline. The continual treatment of us as if passengers were an on-going nuisance.

Martin's DO NOT FLY LIST
This does not include the airlines I wont even try at all:  airlines in most of Africa, Kyoro North Korean Airlines, Biman Bangledeshi and Cubana- find all  airlines banned from Europe airspace here.

My do not fly list is ordered from THE worst to the not as worst!

1. Air Zimbabwe- no confidence in them at all-very sad state of affairs
2. DELTA...delayed Late and TArdy-In 2002, I vowed never, never, never will I fly them ever, ever again. Delta also tops the list for the most complained about airline in the USA! Things seem to be moving there, however and I am curious to see what things are like now
3. Alitalia- Italy has style, passion, beautiful women, good food and wine- none of that seems to have got to an Alitalia plane
4. Jetstar - as a Qantas subsidiary there are certain things they get right but fundamentally I cannot join the ads with leaping people with excitement. Herded onto crowded planes by harassed staff with no luxuries such as food and entertainment means grumpy passengers and some horrible incidents. I feel sorry for JQ staff but not sorry enough to fly them.
5. Air Asia - The times I flew Air Asia, my heart was in my mouth. Boarding the always late flights consisted of the staff opening the doors and standing back as the passengers stampeded the plane-no one was safe! I saw grandmothers bowled over by people wanting the "best seat". Ironically this was not the emergency exit which is where I sat! I hope their safety provisions and pilot training was better than everything else I saw. Cabin crew minimally helpful and in an emergency, I would have no confidence in them. 
6. Us Airways ...I was always told US stands for unserviceable...enough said
7. American Airlines - operating as a fragment of their once proud selves, American is tatty, rude, and uncomfortable. Unfortunately for Qantas customers like me, they are part of One World and offer codeshares, joint lounges, combined frequent flyer programs etc. The Contrast of getting off a gleaming Qantas or British or Cathay Pacific craft onto an American flight is extraordinary. Qantas Premium Economy is better than American's Domestic First Class (I have flown both a few times)! If you see me on American its because I am grabbing at One World Frequent flyer points. If I am on American and enjoying it, offer up thanks for a miracle.
8. Ryanair- I actually had an all right experience with Ryan and many of my friends do. I flew them because I specifically wanted to see what they are like. In fact, I would fly them again-in a pinch.  Note well their hidden costs (fares start at pennies but you then add seat cost, booking fees etc etc. NB their airports  are often miles from where you expect them to be, their cabin crew are almost rude and I frankly don't trust Ryanair's safety and I wonder at some of their ethics. (picture is the Ryanair safety card printed on seat back as they have removed the pocket on the back of the seat)