Time to fly for bargain hunters

TRAVELLERS can fly for less than the cost of a CD as airlines continue to slash prices as they try to fill empty seats.Customers keen to escape Melbourne’s hustle can snap up tickets on the internet for as little as $29.95.International flights are cheap too, with one-way options to Singapore available for as little as $206.The price war comes as airlines struggle to entice passengers in what is traditionally the busiest time of the year.

Faulty equipment downs Qantas jets

QANTAS has been forced to bring down two planes in one day after they suffered equipment failure in mid-flight.The first incident saw a Qantas flight “piggyback” an Air New Zealand plane and divert to Auckland after its weather antenna stopped working three hours out of Los Angeles.In a rare and extraordinary sight, passengers awoke to a high-altitude dawn with a close-up view of the Air New Zealand jet off their left wing.Over 280 passengers on board flight QF12 arrived in Sydney four hours late after repairs to the aircraft in New Zealand.

Mid-flight fist fight traumatises crew

A VIRGIN Blue plane had to turn around mid-flight after two rowdy passengers got into a fist fight and one pretended he was carrying a bomb.The flight from Brisbane to Darwin had to be cancelled after two passengers caused a disruption shortly after boarding.Witnesses said the men had been drinking and began fighting before one of the men started running down the aisle screaming: “I’ve got a bomb.”The flight had to be stopped and the plane flown back to Brisbane. The cabin crew were said to have been traumatised by the incident.Australian Federal Police officers were called to Brisbane airport where they arrested a 54-year-old man.Passengers on board Virgin Blue flight 449 to Darwin last Thursday evening were put up in hotels for the night and flown to Darwin the next day.

Many passengers were inconvenienced by the flight’s cancellation, including the mother of a Darwin Digger.Gunner Nathan Wallace’s Brisbane-based mother had planned to get into Darwin just before her son arrived home from a 12-month tour of duty including five months in Afghanistan.But she missed her son’s homecoming after being stuck in Brisbane.Virgin Blue spokeswoman Heather Jeffery said there were 138 passengers on board the plane.”During the flight a male passenger became extremely verbally aggressive and appeared to be intoxicated,” she said.”At our Captain’s discretion mid-flight we returned the aircraft to Brisbane and the offender was arrested by the Australian Federal Police.”"Overnight accommodation was provided for all guests and a flight was arranged they redeparted the following morning.”

Ms Jeffery said safety was the airline’s first priority.”We simply will not tolerate any behaviour like that on board our aircraft and we believe our other passengers would understand and support that,” she said.

Qantas just unlucky, say mechanics

QANTAS’ series of mechanical problems are due to bad luck not scrimping on maintenance, the head of Malaysia Airlines’ engineering and maintenance (E&M) arm says.Malaysia Airlines’ E&M division, which has done maintenance work for Qantas, said the recent spate of safety incidents to plague the Australian carrier could happen to any airline.They were not related to Qantas increasing its offshore maintenance work, Malaysia Airlines E&M senior general manager Mohd Roslan Ismali said.”It can happen to anybody,” Mr Ismali said. “It is just pure bad luck, nothing more.”Qantas uses its own facilities in Australia as well as a variety of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) organisations in Asia to maintain its planes.

Falling demand tipped to reduce airfares

THERE could be some good news for travellers from the world financial meltdown with predictions airfares may drop as demand for seats falls.Virgin Blue chief executive Brett Godfrey yesterday said the airline expected some people may reduce the number of trips they took next year, which could lessen demand and force airlines to reduce their prices.”You will see some Australians who will probably think twice about travelling three times next year … they might do it twice or once instead,” Mr Godfrey said yesterday at the opening of Virgin’s new Brisbane headquarters.

Air fares will stay cheap, says Qantas boss at A380 launch

THE financial crisis has cut demand for air travel and will keep air fares low, says Qantas chief Geoff Dixon.Speaking at Melbourne airport  today before before Qantas’s first A380 took off on its maiden Melbourne-LA flight, Mr Dixon said the world’s financial troubles could be a boon for flyers.Asked whether he thought the financial meltdown would end the days of discount flights, Mr Dixon predicted it would be “quite the opposite”, the Herald Sun reported.“If the economic crisis does have a major impact on travel, the only way you’ll be able to encourage people is to have discounts.”Mr Dixon said passenger demand had fallen in all travel classes.”There is a lessening in demand in all classes, Qantas has held up better than most airlines,” Reuters reported.Worries about the impact of the global economic slowdown on international travel have hit airline shares in recent weeks, with Qantas shares down 14 per cent since the start of October compared with an 11 per cent slide for the broader market.

Qantas A380 maiden flight to Los Angeles

QANTAS’S Airbus A380 superjumbo is finally in business as the airline’s debut commercial flight to Los Angeles takes off from Melbourne.The inaugural A380 service left Melbourne at 11.15 AEDT, and is scheduled to land in Los Angeles at 7.30am local time (1.30am Tuesday AEDT), where it will receive a star-studded welcome from Qantas Ambassador John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.Qantas boss Geoff Dixon said Qantas’ decision to fly its first commercial service to the US was a mark of its commitment to growing the trans-Pacific market.”We have operated air services between Australia and the United States since 1954 and have invested significantly over our 54 years of operation to develop these routes

Qantas Airbus flight plunged 1000 feet

THE Qantas aircraft at the centre of Tuesday’s air drama over Western Australia plunged more than 1000ft in two descents, in-flight data reveals.The Airbus A330-300 carrying 303 passengers and 10 crew dropped 650ft in about 20 seconds, returned to cruising level and then fell 400ft in 16 seconds, the Courier-Mail reports.Australian Transport Safety Bureau officials said they have good-quality information from the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder, which arrived at their Canberra headquarters late on Wednesday.

Officials are also recording and photographing cabin damage, removing panels to examine wiring, downloading data from the on-board computer and arranging interviews with the pilots and cabin crew.But it may take up to a month to find out why the aircraft flying from Singapore to Perth dropped so sharply.

Nation’s faith lost in Qantas – poll

MORE than 60 per cent of Australians believe the safety standards of Qantas have slipped, according to a poll released on the same day as another incident involving the national carrier.Thirty-six people were hurt, 20 seriously, when a Singapore to Perth international Qantas flight suddenly lost altitude over Western Australia yesterday throwing passengers from their seats.UMR Omnibus, one of Australia’s leading research and polling companies, said it surveyed 1000 people two weeks ago on people’s attitudes towards the national carrier.The results, published on the UMR website, show 63 per cent of Australians believe the airline’s safety standards have become worse over the past few years.

Qantas grounds damaged A380

QANTAS’S new pin-up aircraft was briefly grounded in Brisbane when engineers discovered damage to an exterior latch.The Airbus A380 was delayed as repairs were made to the latch but an airline spokeswoman refused to describe the nature of the damage or how it occurred.The aircraft returned to Sydney without incident.Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority suspended the licence of charter operator Aero-Tropics after two incidents in the Torres Strait last week which CASA said had put passengers at serious risk. It was the second time this year CASA has suspended the airline’s licence.

CASA will apply to the Federal Court this week to maintain the suspension for up to 40 days while investigations continue.On Saturday a plane belonging to a second far north Queensland aviation company, Hinterland Aviation, crashed into bushland after over-shooting the runway at Dunk Island, near Cairns. One person was injured.