It is intriguing to see the media regurgitate announced Qantas surcharges for oil prices and carbon taxes when deals have made them irrelevant in terms of international flights, writes Ben Sandilands.
Qantas
Rating agency drops Qantas to one notch above junk status
Despite having a huge percentage of the domestic market Qantas is bleeding away its reputation, market share and effectiveness in international air transport, writes Ben Sandilands.
aviation industry A reality check for the ‘everything is cheaper’ in China apologists
There is a parallel argument about the importance of China to the future of any Australian airline, and the last two Qantas CEOs have convincingly endorsed that.
More stress for Qantas as Virgin confirms key routes
Virgin Australia confirmed what is only the first substantial addition of wide-bodied A330 capacity to key interstate markets that it will make in the nearer term.
Media silly season shenanigans: a tax on fatty flyers?
Qantas chief economist Tony Webber is a worthy contender for best silly season story spawner for 2011-2012, writes Ben Sandilands.
Pilot losses at Qantas and the battle for the public ear
An AFR story on the probability of extensive pilot cutbacks in Qantas long haul sets the scene from a fresh struggle for public, political and investor ears, writes Ben Sandilands.
Asian airlines throw spanners into Qantas works
Events during the past 24 hours are not proving kind to Qantas’ ambitions in Asia. Vietnam Airlines and Malaysia Airlines have thrown spanners in the works.
aviation industry Sydney to become Two Alliance Airport
In a breakthrough for commonsense, Sydney Airport is to replace its international (western) and domestic (eastern) divisions, reports Ben Sandilands.
American Airlines makes Qantas dispute look like a tea party
Anyone who’s bagged Qantas for being hard-nosed in grounding their fleet in the recent dispute should think again and take a look at what the parent company of the huge American Airlines did overnight…
Red Q, Un-Dead Q, where does Qantas go now?
Are claims by Qantas CEO Alan Joyce that it has not dropped its Red Q Asia based carrier credible? It appears to be like the parrot in the Monty Python sketch, not dead, just not talking, writes Ben Sandilands.
Qantas social media #fail
When the Qantas marketing team asked Twitter users to describe their “dream luxury inflight experience” they probably didn’t envision the flood of sarcastic and bitter responses that followed, reports Daniel Miller.
Political snippets: More European doom and gloom
The gloomy headlines about the financial situation just keep coming.
Booked a holiday with Qantas? Looks as if your booking is safe
Many things about the future of Qantas are never going to be decided today, but your holiday bookings on that airline look safe, no matter what.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: The era of Books Without Borders
Crikey readers have their say.
The long tradition of union ‘interference’
Advocates of IR reform claim unions traditionally haven’t been allowed to “interfere” in issues such as contracting out. Wrong.
Essential: Qantas divides voters, Fair Work Australia the only winner
Voters disapprove of Qantas management’s decision to ground its fleet, but don’t approve of the way anyone in the dispute conducted themselves except the industrial relations regulator, Essential Report has found.
How busy was the Qantas Club lounge last week?
The Qantas Club in Brisbane was an empty affair last week. Qantas premium travel bookings on the main east coast routes were down 40% in October. Alan Joyce blamed the threat of industrial action. Is that fair? asks Ben Sandilands.
Alan Joyce faces fire in Senate grilling
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce faces a huge task to rebuild his credibility after a morning of intense questioning before a Senate inquiry.
Sideshow Alley: who knew what when and, more importantly, who cares?
It’s the week for it, so let’s kick off with Qantas. Or not so much Qantas, but who-knew-what-when about the now infamous weekend grounding…
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Doug Cameron for PM?
Crikey readers have their say.
Did Qantas fraudulently sell tickets on October 29?
According to Alan Joyce, on the morning of Saturday, October 29, the Qantas board decided to ground its fleets at 5pm that afternoon. And yet they continued to sell tickets throughout the day — probably in their thousands, writes Ben Sandilands.
podcast Canberra Calling: The Qantas quagmire podcast
Crikey’s political podcast with Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane joining Crikey editor Sophie Black to analyse the political and economic fallout stemming from Qantas’s historic decision to ground their national and international fleet.
How Clifford took the Qantas chair as a consolation prize
While Alan Joyce is copping most of the grief for the provocative Qantas lock-out on Saturday, no such decision can ever be taken without full board approval.
Qantas v Virgin: prepare to be bribed with bonuses
Qantas now has a real threat to deal with — Virgin Australia, with its bigger, cheaper business-class seats, real meals in economy class, lounges with food and seats for everyone. With lower fares.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Delegitimising unions
Crikey reads have their say.
