Why does Qantas get away with this?

There have been plenty more of these instances over the years, but especially so since COVID-19. We are way past COVID now, yet waiting times for Qantas help desk are still horrific, and the planes are crap and the airfares are high. I just don’t understand how companies can take a customer’s money for a booking, often more than six months in advance, then cancel or reschedule flights in the following months when it is clearly a profit maximisation algorithm at play.

Qantas is breaking a contract with a customer, with no repercussions? Hopefully, the ACCC action and the competition review can sort this out.

Andy Pannifex, Sunrise Beach, Queensland

Qantas business lounge out of gin?

Like so many readers, I am involuntarily compiling a list of gripes against Qantas, an airline I’ve been loyal to for decades.

First, on credits: I’ve read very little coverage of how cleverly Qantas has devalued them. My husband and I travel regularly to Los Angeles where our son lives with his young family, but there is no way to use our credits to book even slightly discounted business-class fares because when you search flights from the credit page, only the most expensive ones come up, decimating the value of what Qantas owes us.

On a smaller issue, but nonetheless symptomatic of what’s happened to a once-excellent airline, when I embarked on my most recent trip to the US, the negative attitude towards customers was evident from the moment I arrived in the lounge.

Having paid the kind of prices for business class that Qantas charges, I figured it was fair to expect to be able to help yourself to a simple G&T when you arrive at the lounge. Not so. I was told by a grumpy attendant that they’d run out of gin and, in response to my surprise, she pointed to the bar and said curtly: “There are plenty of other things to drink!”

Claire Tedeschi, Melbourne, Victoria

Why does Qantas get away with this?

Last year, I booked Qantas business class, Sydney to New Zealand return. The flights were direct with no stopover.

Due to COVID-19, Qantas changed my direct flights to Sydney, so that my NZ flight to Sydney was changed to go via Brisbane then to Sydney. The flights were in May this year. When my Qantas flight arrived in Brisbane from NZ, Qantas advised me it had cancelled my Brisbane-to-Sydney flight and put me on a later flight that evening.

It also told me business class was full, so it downgraded me to economy. Qantas has not compensated me for downgrading my seat, despite my requests. Qantas also advised that if I wanted a business-class flight as booked, I would have to wait until the following day. However, it would not provide any overnight accommodation or meals etc.

So, I asked Qantas whether in future I could book economy flights and expect to fly business class at no extra cost. Qantas hasn’t answered. My Brisbane-to-Sydney flight wasn’t full. I understand that Qantas cancelled my booked flight to fill two somewhat empty flights, to increase its profits.

This is only one of several dreadful experiences with Qantas in the past few years, with flight cancellations and wasted days on the phone, mostly on hold. When I try calling Qantas, which can take hours of waiting on hold, it keeps blaming COVID-19.

Can Qantas be taken to court to get compensation? Why can it get away with this?

Alan Joyce has trashed what was a good airline under previous CEOs. Let’s hope the new chief executive will be an improvement. It shouldn’t be hard – especially given the recent hopeless service Qantas has been providing, while making billions in profits.

Ahmad Mostafa, Little Bay, NSW

Virgin won my loyalty

My experience with a cancellation was for a family of four flying Sydney-Lord Howe Island in September last year. Qantas is the only airline flying this route. The early evening before the scheduled flight our phones all received a text saying the flight was cancelled and we needed to rebook.

My wife called the Qantas number and a male operator assured her the flight was still scheduled to depart. My son separately called Qantas and his operator said the flight was indeed cancelled. We rebooked online on the next flight with four available seats, one day later, and lost a day of the holiday. Qantas did not offer to rebook for us, or ask if we had out-of-pocket expenses.

My wife was angry at being given the brush-off, a “don’t worry your pretty head” sort of attitude that she sometimes encounters dealing with male staff, after my son was given what turned out to be the accurate reply.

Separately, Virgin Australia won my loyalty when our booked travel was cancelled due to lockdowns in 2020, then the airline went through receivership and a buyout, but later the flight credit was still available to use on a new flight booking.

Lyle Walker, Lindfield, NSW

Shame, Mr Joyce

Interesting to note that Alan Joyce proudly stated in his FY23 results speech on August 24, 2023: “Today, we’re also announcing a ‘thank you’ to our Frequent Flyers of up to 5000 Qantas Points – which adds up to more than 1 billion points in total.”

Very generous indeed. A shame that Qantas gave these “loyal” frequent flyers only six days to take up this offer, which expired at midnight on August 30 and could be redeemed only via the Qantas app. One prompt only on the website then nothing. Seems they are very good at reminding customers about issues that suit them, not “gifts” they give customers. A gift to get more people using the app.

A great PR exercise. However, with the limited time frame I doubt that the total amount “redeemed” came anywhere close to 1 billion.

Shame, Mr Joyce.

Michelle Santoro, Vic

Will Virgin backtrack on credits?

Qantas appears to have rapidly backtracked its policy of denying COVID-19 credits. Meanwhile, its reputation is suffering a big reversal.

At the end of this year, Virgin Australia Airlines will cancel COVID-related credits despite appeals by customers in Australia and New Zealand. When will the managers and directors of the airline realise this planned credit cancellation is almost a certain to rebound against the airline’s credibility?

Dean Danford, Red Beach, Auckland, New Zealand

‘Voice’ helped win it for Sydney, too

I noted with immense pleasure the gesture made by John Farnham to allow his song The Voice to be used as a promotional tool in relation to the upcoming referendum. A number of commentators have said this is the first time Farnham and the late Glenn Wheatley have given the song over for a particular use.

I am pleased to acknowledge that this not the case because Farnham and Wheatley made a similar gesture at the beginning of 1991 when we set out to try to win the Olympic Games for Sydney.

Typically, bidding for an Olympic Games involves numerous presentations across about three years, and inevitably one’s speeches are accompanied by a video presentation highlighting aspects of the city.

With instant consent from Farnham and Wheatley, we were able to use The Voice as the music overlay on the video presentation and we showed it many, many times. We also adapted the video of the song and dubbed it on to a video of Joan Sutherland to really highlight, in international terms, who was our greatest voice.

All this was done with the unreserved support of Farnham and Wheatley, and Sydney will be forever grateful to them.

Rod McGeoch, Sydney Olympics 2000 bid CEO, Woollahra, NSW