I'm very involved in the aviation industry also and I know of all the crap that goes on. I just don't see why a simple SMS at 12pm when they knew of the delay couldn't have been issued to save us turning up 7 hours early. Or why Tiger and Jetstar seem to have far more issues than Virgin or Qantas, I doubt that's just bad luck. I don't have to complain, but if I didn't voice my opinion perhaps they wouldn't be able to change their ways to keep customers instead of just losing them to other airlines. I think it's called Feedback.
Tiger Airways
- Thread starter Leikela
- Start date
I'm very involved in the aviation industry also and I know of all the crap that goes on. I just don't see why a simple SMS at 12pm when they knew of the delay couldn't have been issued to save us turning up 7 hours early. Or why Tiger and Jetstar seem to have far more issues than Virgin or Qantas, I doubt that's just bad luck. I don't have to complain, but if I didn't voice my opinion perhaps they wouldn't be able to change their ways to keep customers instead of just losing them to other airlines. I think it's called Feedback.
I had a flight cancelled with Virgin in August. My son had booked it on FF points, he received the message at 10am that my flight (2.30pm) had been cancelled - no reason given. Had to phone back and was given the option of the 12.30pm flight or the 4.30pm one - neither very convenient.
A quick dash to the airport meant I made the 12.30pm flight, but it was a close thing.
With the cheaper airlines it seems that if the plane is not full then they cancel it.
I've heard friends complain that delays are frequent on Tiger, but the low fares are attractive. However all state NOT to use Tiger if you have a connecting flight, as they are so often late, often by hours.
Marg
A quick dash to the airport meant I made the 12.30pm flight, but it was a close thing.
With the cheaper airlines it seems that if the plane is not full then they cancel it.
I've heard friends complain that delays are frequent on Tiger, but the low fares are attractive. However all state NOT to use Tiger if you have a connecting flight, as they are so often late, often by hours.
Marg
All airlines experience delays... the on-time arrival for all 4 carriers is 79-82%, so not a great variance. Tiger only have a small fleet, so when things go wrong, there is often a delay in getting a replacement aircraft or replacement staff. You have to expect it when traveling with a LCC.
I believe Jetstar give a $15 meal voucher in the event of significant delay.... and an $8 meal voucher, which didn't even get me a full meal.
The CBA platinum credit card has "Interstate Flight Inconvenience Insurance" that gives you $35pp (up to $100) if your flight is delayed for more than 4 hours.
http://www.commbank.com.au/personal/credit-cards/complimentary-insurance-cover.aspx
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All Qantas and Jetstar flights can be bought on a codeshare. I have travelled on JQ with a QF flight number and the reverse can be done. When travelling on the other carrier, the same benefits apply ie you must pay for meals when travelling JQ, even if on a QF flight number.
A technical perspective
During Departure
Normally the pilots get to the aircraft, an hour before a scheduled departure and run through various checks,flight plans and stuff which also includes a walkaround the aircraft.
Now if they find something wrong, they refer it to the engineer....He then in turn checks the defect and ascertains whether that aircraft can fly with that particular defect. (His reference is a book called "Minimum Equipment List" which has been written by the manufacturer of the aircraft and approved by the Civil aviation authority, it contains all systems needed for a safe flight taking into account redundancy in systems)
If the engineers finds that the aircraft has a defect which is not included in this book, the aircraft is grounded until the problem is fixed and unfortunately this can take a few minutes or maybe a few hours depending on the complexity of the defect, availability of spares,test requirements etc......
On Arrival
The outgoing pilots have to report any problem encountered during the flight and his post flight checklist.
The same process then follows as above
Most airlines in the world (whether its a low cost carrier or a full fledged service carrier) have to follow the same rules pertaining to maintenance of aircraft.
As engineers, pilots and ground crew.....None of us want to delay an aircraft unintentionally but most often there are valid reasons. These problems are often non routine and varied and hence systems cannot combat these.
SAFETY of the passengers is of utmost importance and we strive to keep all aircraft safe and airworthy sometimes causing a great deal of inconvenience
Hope this helps
During Departure
Normally the pilots get to the aircraft, an hour before a scheduled departure and run through various checks,flight plans and stuff which also includes a walkaround the aircraft.
Now if they find something wrong, they refer it to the engineer....He then in turn checks the defect and ascertains whether that aircraft can fly with that particular defect. (His reference is a book called "Minimum Equipment List" which has been written by the manufacturer of the aircraft and approved by the Civil aviation authority, it contains all systems needed for a safe flight taking into account redundancy in systems)
If the engineers finds that the aircraft has a defect which is not included in this book, the aircraft is grounded until the problem is fixed and unfortunately this can take a few minutes or maybe a few hours depending on the complexity of the defect, availability of spares,test requirements etc......
On Arrival
The outgoing pilots have to report any problem encountered during the flight and his post flight checklist.
The same process then follows as above
Most airlines in the world (whether its a low cost carrier or a full fledged service carrier) have to follow the same rules pertaining to maintenance of aircraft.
As engineers, pilots and ground crew.....None of us want to delay an aircraft unintentionally but most often there are valid reasons. These problems are often non routine and varied and hence systems cannot combat these.
SAFETY of the passengers is of utmost importance and we strive to keep all aircraft safe and airworthy sometimes causing a great deal of inconvenience
Hope this helps
Delays can happen with any airline. Mr Natmarie and I had a flight delayed by a few hours when flying Brisbane - Alice Springs - Darwin but luckily we were flying Qantas and got upgraded to the pointy end on an earlier direct flight and ended up in Darwin earlier than planned.
Surely it's not that much of a problem for the airline to contact passengers in the event of delays.
Surely it's not that much of a problem for the airline to contact passengers in the event of delays.
Based on this then - and I totally agree with the safety procedures - the airlines should factor in say; 3 more hours between flights for these contingencies.
aah, but this costs a lot of downtime money - like with the trucks on the road I suppose; they can function on smaller margins provided the trucks are loaded and on the road a lot more often.
Too true.
You wouldn't believe the penalties airlines pay for delays. Thousands of dollars a minute. They do not want to be delayed.
One flight my mum was on the pilot was sick. They had to wait until they could find a replacement.
Things breakdown. I'm sure I'd rather wait 2 hours than go up in a malfunctioning plane.
What is annoying is when there's no explanation, just flight cancelled. That's not acceptable. Also the inconsistency of remunerations. Some people get free flights when inconvenienced, others get attitude.
I travel standby always so I guess I'm used to just going with the flow.
We were bumped off our flight to Bangkok (50 empty seats) because they put on too much cargo. We got another flight but missed our connection to Frankfurt. 10 hours sleeping on seats in Bangkok airport was SSSOOO much fun. We arrived in Venice at midnight instead of 9am.
The joys of staff travel.
I did get business class (all to myself) on the way to Ayers rock though. That was awesome. Cattle class people had the hide to come and use MY toilet.
Absolutely.
I fly a reasonable amount, maybe 20-30 times a year, and probably about evenly split Qantas / Virgin Blue. I've flown Jetstar twice, and had big problems both times, so hubby has said he's willing to pay up to $500 more per flight to NOT fly Jetstar.
Only ever had one problem with Virgin Blue, and can't recall ever being unhappy with Qantas. I can, however, recall several times when Qantas have delivered above and beyond what I expected - I luuurve Qantas for their commitment to flexibility in customer service. I love Virgin Blue for their friendliness and sense of humour. My brother, however, hates them for the same reason - he reckons if he gets up at 4am to catch an early bird, he just wants the crew to "shut the **** up" and leave him under his sunglasses and give him a coffee, instead of trying to make him cheerful that he's awake. (Such a queen!)Oh yes.
I remember about 15 years ago, we were on an internal Egypt Air flight that was delayed (not excessively, maybe an hour or two), unfortunately after we were all loaded on the aircraft. I remember one obnoxious elderly American lady standing up and yelling out to the crew "This is ridiculous! Why don't we just GO?" I turned and said to her "Actually, I'd rather they wait until the aircraft is safe to fly, personally".
Absolutely.
That's why it annoys me when people complain about outsourcing of aircraft maintenance on the basis of safety. If you think jobs should stay here, then say so, but to argue the point based on safety is simply racist; there's no reason why a Malaysian crew (for example) can't maintain an aircraft to at least as high a standard as an Australian crew. The procedures and standards are very much standardised, and companies like Qantas (in particular, arguably safest airline in the world, and justifiably proud of that) are not going to compromise safety if they outsource.
If you're willing to pay at least twice as much, I'm sure they'd be happy to oblige!
Honestly, I can't even recall the last time I was significantly delayed (ie more than an hour) on a flight - probably that time in Egypt! - so I think Qantas and Virgin Blue (at least) have got it pretty right.
Yep, consistent with my experience, too.
If you're willing to pay at least twice as much, I'm sure they'd be happy to oblige!
There's the rub.
Given that the majority of the planet's population are middle class and lower, and the airlines need to make a profit, they either have to do it through very many bums on seats, or charge a lot more.
Naturally, the average punter doesn't want to go there, so the airlines need to keep prices lower, keep the planes in the air more often or fold.
Hence, Tiger airways et al, and more frequent and lengthy delays.
But, the trade off is less time available for maintenance between flights, and being a mechanical item and can break; things eventually need to be serviced, somewhere, sometime.
I got a flight from Vegas back to L.A for $39. It was no special deal or red eye etc. Just the normal rate.
I reckon that plane would be in the air almost 24/7.
I read in the paper today that there is a charge to take an infant on a flight. I had a look on the Tiger website myself. I can fly Sydney - Melbourne for $39 but it costs another $28 to sit my 4 month old on my lap. How ridiculous. Would be much cheaper for me to fly Virgin or Jetstar once I add up the price for both of us to fly on Tiger.
Tiger have always had this $30 charge in place... agree you have to shop around to get the best fares but still, $69 SYD-MEL isn't bad? I personally wouldn't use them though.
Tiger said:
http://www.tigerairways.com/sg/en/children_and_infant.php
I agree with this statement 100%!
You get what you pay for.
When I want full service I pay a full service price.. If I just want to get from A to B as cheaply as possible - and connecting flights are not an issue - then I use budget Airlines.
I have flown extensively wioth Air Asia both around Asia and to/from Australia.
I have flown domestically and internationally with Tiger and have had no problems .. but I make sure I am not over weight allowance and turn up early!
cheers,
RightValue
I flew Tiger when they first commenced, missed my first flight, so had to pay full price with another airline. The Tiger flight I caught was ok, but for me flying east from WA I like the extra's you get flying with Qantas. I am signed up with the email alerts to know when thier specials are on with flights, which worked out well for this week as we had a wedding in Melbourne.
My main reason for posting to this thread today is, I am most impressed with what my girlfriend has just told me. Her parents were due to fly back to Perth from Melbourne on Thursday with Virgin. Wednesday her mum fell and broke her ankle. No operation till she is back in Perth, her foot in a cast she arrived to fly out on Thursday. Virgin apparently, checked her Mum out, spoke to the hospital which had seen her, doctors etc and Virgin decided they did not want her flying out that day. They told her they were rebooking her mum and her dad on a flight to Perth today, upgraded her to Premium economy, fed her, gave her two seats and put her on the plane early via a wheelchair. As it was thier choice to not fly them on thier orginal flight on Thursday, they did not charge them any extra for the upgrade or flight change. My girlfriend said they were extremely helpful and courteous. As others have made postive comments previously about Virgin, thought I would add to them, I am certainly impressed. What would Tiger have done, or any of the other budget airlines?
My main reason for posting to this thread today is, I am most impressed with what my girlfriend has just told me. Her parents were due to fly back to Perth from Melbourne on Thursday with Virgin. Wednesday her mum fell and broke her ankle. No operation till she is back in Perth, her foot in a cast she arrived to fly out on Thursday. Virgin apparently, checked her Mum out, spoke to the hospital which had seen her, doctors etc and Virgin decided they did not want her flying out that day. They told her they were rebooking her mum and her dad on a flight to Perth today, upgraded her to Premium economy, fed her, gave her two seats and put her on the plane early via a wheelchair. As it was thier choice to not fly them on thier orginal flight on Thursday, they did not charge them any extra for the upgrade or flight change. My girlfriend said they were extremely helpful and courteous. As others have made postive comments previously about Virgin, thought I would add to them, I am certainly impressed. What would Tiger have done, or any of the other budget airlines?
Hows this for a bargain.
2 people goign to gold coast next august.
All up including flights from melbourne and 7 nights in a 4 star resort, the per person price is $235.
I bought a travel voucher for $30, then booked the accomodation.
I love finding these sort of bargains
2 people goign to gold coast next august.
All up including flights from melbourne and 7 nights in a 4 star resort, the per person price is $235.
I bought a travel voucher for $30, then booked the accomodation.
I love finding these sort of bargains
