Launch into space with Virgin Blue

AUSTRALIANS will have a chance to fly into space with Virgin Blue launching an out-of-this-world frequent flyer promotion. From Sunday until June 1, Velocity members who book a flight on Virgin Blue, use any of its partners or transfer credit card points to the frequent flyer scheme will be eligible for a draw to win the 25 million points, reports The Australian. The points can then be converted into a flight on Virgin Blue part-owner Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic. Velocity general manager Phil Gunter admitted yesterday that the airline had picked the prize for the huge figure’s shock value in raising awareness of the frequent-flyer scheme.

Qantas aims for better customer service with $10m training centre

QANTAS is about to send 18,000 staff, from the chief executive down, back to school as part of a massive push to boost customer service standards.A high-tech $10 million training facility, which opened yesterday in Sydney, is at the centre of the strategy to propel the Qantas brand back to the top.The move comes after a horror year for the airline where delays and maintenance problems battered its reputation with travellers, The Australian reports.

Qantas A380 grounded in Los Angeles

A Qantas A380 has been grounded at Los Angeles airport, halting travel plans for almost 450 passengers bound for Sydney due to a minor technical issue.Passengers on board the Nancy-Bird Walton, Qantas’ first airbus were left waiting on the tarmac for over four hours last night due to low oil pressure in one of the engines. It is the first time one of Qantas’ three A380 planes have been grounded.”We’ve boarded passengers, [the captain has] started the engine and he’s received an indication light in the cockpit of low oil pressure in one of the engines,” a Qantas spokeswoman said.

Qantas delays flight for 10 hours

About 300 Qantas passengers bound for Melbourne were delayed for 10 hours at Perth Domestic Airport on Friday.The plane had been taxing on the tarmac about 11am before it had to turn back when the pilot reported a “steering problem” to passengers, 6PR radio reported.Passenger Alison Redfern, from Scotland, said the day had been chaotic and she had waited hours to re-check her baggage and to try to check into a hotel.The passengers eventually flew out of Perth Airport at 9.30pm.Qantas was unavailable for comment.

Qantas passenger numbers down 3.8% in Nov

QANTAS Airways carried fewer passengers in November as deteriorating economic conditions encouraged more people to stay home.Australia’s flagship carrier said today passenger numbers fell 3.8 per cent from a year ago as 3.17 million passengers travelled on its domestic and international networks on its mainline, regional and discount JetStar airlines.Revenue seat factor for the month, a measure of how many paid seats it fills across its fleet, declined by 3.5 percentage points year-on-year to 78.3 per cent.

Aussies first to use Singapore Airlines iPhone technology

AUSTRALIANS will be the first to experience iPod and iPhone connectivity in all classes onboard Singapore Airlines’ new A330.The service will be available to Economy Class passengers for the first time in Australia when the A330 enters commercial service on the Brisbane-Singapore route on March 30.The new technology, which was first made available to all-Business Class passengers in the airline’s A340-500 aircraft, will also be phased in to Perth and Adelaide routes in April and June respectively.The iPod and iPhone connectivity feature means customers will be able to enjoy their own videos and music through the inflight entertainment system onboard.

Qantas passenger numbers down

QANTAS could be counting the cost of a turbulent 2008 as figures released by the airline revealed passenger numbers are down by 124,000. Preliminary figures calculated on Qantas Domestic, regional operator QantasLink, Jetstar Domestic, Qantas International and Jetstar International, said passenger numbers for the group in November 2008 had fallen by 3.8 per cent compared to the prior year. The group carried 3,170,000 passengers in November 2008 compared to 3,294,000 in November 2007, said the report. Qantas International experienced a fall of 8.4 per cent in passenger numbers from 680,000 in November 2007 to 623,000 in 2008.

Qantas delays flight for 10 hours

About 300 Qantas passengers bound for Melbourne were delayed for 10 hours at Perth Domestic Airport on Friday.The plane had been taxing on the tarmac about 11am before it had to turn back when the pilot reported a “steering problem” to passengers, 6PR radio reported.Passenger Alison Redfern, from Scotland, said the day had been chaotic and she had waited hours to re-check her baggage and to try to check into a hotel.The passengers eventually flew out of Perth Airport at 9.30pm.

Troubled Qantas jet delayed by door defect

THE Qantas plane that famously ran off the end of a runway in Bangkok and ended up on a golf course has been involved in another incident, this time involving a defect in its cargo-hold door.Passengers onboard the Qantas 747-400 jumbo Flight 30 from London to Melbourne via Hong Kong on Thursday were stuck at Heathrow Airport after a defect in the cargo-hold door was discovered, reports the Courier Mail.They had to wait more than five hours and were then forced to change planes. Ten years ago, the same plane slid off the end of a runway with more than 400 passengers onboard and only stopped when it hit trees on an adjoining golf course.But a Qantas spokeswoman said there was “no correlation” between the two incidents and that with a fleet of 214 planes there were always going to be “technical issues”.

Qantas Signs A380 Component Support

Qantas signed a 10-year agreement with Spairliners, a joint venture between Lufthansa Technik and Air France Industries, for Airbus A380 component support. The deal includes the repair and replacement of about 750 components in Spairliner’s warehouse and covers all 20 A380s Qantas has ordered.Spairliners, an independently operated company, provides full A380 component support. Together with the A380s that Air France and Lufthansa have ordered, Spairliners will be supporting 47 of the widebodies. Qantas took delivery of its first A380 in September, and Air France and Lufthansa are scheduled to get their first A380s in about a year.