This is the Qantas News website. We are a community of former
and present Qantas customers sharing our 'experiences





Passenger: The flight steward was a bigot
Submitted by: Ian (Posted May 5, 2009)

My name is Ian Campbell and I am a South African who flew back from Sydney on Sunday the 19th of April to Johannesburg. Flight QF 063.
I wish to report that I was very offended by one of your stewards with the first name of Ryan. I was seated in row 70 J and overheard a
conversation between Ryan and the other steward who I could not identify as he did not have a name badge on. While they were standing
in clear ear shot of myself Ryan said to the other steward and I quote. Ryan "the legend is true" Other "what legend" Ryan "about all South
Africans being rude" Other "Oh really, I haven't had any being rude to me" Ryan "well then I must have got them all" At that point in time I
interjected and said to Ryan" not all of us are rude" his reply "no well there are some exceptions like you" Firstly the man in the row in front
of us was a bit abrupt with him, but the irony was that the man wasn't South African and secondly, even if Ryan had this perception of
South Africans, he should keep it to himself and especially not voice it in front of other passengers who's nationality was unknown to him.
My wife and I had a fantastic holidya in Australia and did not meet one rude or unfriendly Australian, in fact you have a fantastic country
with fantastic people, but the last place I would expect to hear rudeness from was an Australian stewart on an flight going to South Africa, it
just dampened my love of your people for a short while, and I must say I was offended by his remark.

Paggenger: Easier baggage rules = less weight and more money ??!!
Submitted by: Troy (Posted April 26, 2009)

I have for many years flown with Qantas domestically and internationally only because they are the best of a bad bunch, you can see some
of the issues I have had by searching for Qantas on my blog - troykelly.com I am really only writing to you to draw attention to the fact that
the advertising by Qantas leading up to their new baggage limitation changes was that they were making it "Easier", and in turn provided
no other information other then that the changes became effective April 1. Given that the majority of Qantas' travel is domestic, I am at a
complete loss as to how "easier" equates to "less"... in the case of domestic - 12kg less. I would understand if they were changing to a "per
unit" / "per bag" methodology, I could call that easier. But simply decreasing the amount you can take on a flight, and calling it "easier" is
misrepresentative.

Paggenger: I paid extra for 'premium economy' and got nothing
Submitted by: Lisa (Posted April 18, 2009)

The last experience is more raw today after booking flights last night online and then receiving an email sale offer less than 12 hours later
in my in-box - the same flight now 30% cheaper. I rang customer services only to be told there was nothing they could do as my ticket was
issued. So last years experience becomes fresh in my mind, after paying the extra for 'premium' economy, a significant chunk more but hey
i was going across the world and wanted a bit more comfort. The flight i was on was a partner flight and the experience was anything but
premium - there was barely any different i think a few inches extra seat and leg room if that - where was the gourmet food and wine and
special treatment they describe in the website? Missing that's what. As a gluten free passenger i have to say it was the worst food I've ever
received on a flight, dried crackers and little else, it was shocking.  I have waited 4 months and still not one word further to my complaint.
customer service is clearly their forte.

Passenger: transfer of Qantas routes to JestStar Asia means poor service
Submitted by: Joeseph, (posted April 16, 2009)

Why is no one asking why Qantas is handing over its Asian routes Jetstar asia which it dose not even control. I am booked to fly to
Thailand may 2009 so far Jetstar has had 2 cancellations and 4 schedule changers- no sorry...  It is much cheaper to fly full service airline...


Passenger: Service to Darwin 'stinks'
Submitted by: Alexia, (posted April 14, 2009)

Every airline in Australia treats Darwin worse than a third world country flights in and out are a nightmare and now Jetstar cancel on a whim.
Now I apply for membership to the Qantas Club but can't use the lounge because I am flying virgin because jetstar cancelled our flight it
shouldn't matter who I a friggin flying with you try getting in and out of this friggin town Qantas u suck!

Passenger: Qantas you are doomed to Failure
Submitted by: Brian (Posted April 13, 2009)

My story is published here: http://indolentdandy.net/fitzroyalty/2008/01/18/qantas-frequent-flyer-social-network/

Passenger: No drink cart, no leg room and no interest makes Qantas a nightmare
Submitted by: Brent (Posted: April 8, 2009)

I just made the mistake again of choosing Qantas for flights between Los Angeles and Melbourne.Qantas is the only major airline I know
that will not permit passengers (in economy class at least) to reserve a particular seat location. All other airlines, when making reservations
on the web show a seat map with open seats and allow passengers to select the seat location when purchasing the ticket. Or if making a
reservation by telephone, other airlines will implement seat preferences at the time of reservation. In my experience having traveled Qantas
for many years, a passenger is never asked for their seating preferences, and there is a good chance you will be seated in a lousy location
even if you make a reservation well in advance. This issue alone is a reason to avoid Qantas.

I prefer an aisle seat. On the old 747's there is a large box under the seat of many aisle seats that constrains leg room. This contains the
entertainment electronics. It is understandable that this inconvenience was perhaps necessitated by the upgrade of the entertainment
system on the old 747's. Last week I traveled from Melbourne to Los Angeles on a Qantas Airbus A-380 (in economy class). I did get an
outside aisle seat but found the same old big box under the seat in front that occupied about one third of the leg room under the seat. The
flight attendant told me it was the entertainment system. In a new aircraft -- why did Qantas allow this inconvenience ??? I wonder if it is the
same on other airlines that operate the A-380; probably not ??. The seat was uncomfortable with minimal leg-room. The seats on the 747's
are more comfortable as the rear part of the seats do not extend down so low. I strongly suggest avoiding the A-380 if you are travelling in
economy class. On international flights, Qantas is the only airline I have flown that does not have a drink cart. Other airlines have a
dedicated drink cart followed by the food cart. Qantas has only one cart with food and limited drinks. Too bad if you want a drink before the
food, or you want something to drink that is not on the food cart. On my flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles I was seated in the outside
aisle seat. The two seats next to me were occupied by two elderly women who were obviously not frequent travelers. Before landing in Los
Angeles the flight attendant quickly walked past and told the women to put their seats in the upright position and stow their handbags under
the seat. The flight attendant then sat down without checking that the seats were actually upright. What happened was that the aircraft
landed with both seats fully reclined. I believe this is a violation of standard safety rules, and is indicative of sloppy procedures of the flight
attendants.  Both V-Austalia or United offer better service and will be my first choices before Qantas on more Pacific flights.   

Passenger: 1 hr and 19 min on hold (so far)
Submitted by: Neil (posted April 1, 2009)

Is there any reason why Qantas would keep me on hold for 1 hour 19 mins and counting??????

Angry Emerald Passenger: I bought a $3000 A380 ticket but got: OLD 747 with self-service
Submitted by: Jennifer (Posted March 29, 2009)

If Qantas treats its Oneworld Emerald (flying over 100,000 miles per year) flyers this poorly, I wonder how it treats its non-frequent flyer
travelers?  That's a very scary thought...  First, the signs in the airport should read: Qantas Doesn't Care vs. Customer Care.  (Or even
"Qantas Doesn't Care Which is Why It Deserves to go Bankrupt") Exactly how does handing a business card with a fax number and website
address constitute "Customer Care."  (Come on, Qantas, please do enlighten us all!  We really want to know!)  Second, if you are lucky
(fortunate, privileged, etc. because it would probably be easier setting up a private meeting with the Pope) enough to speak with a real live
person and ask to speak to their superior, you are told "we are self-managed."  I inquired who the "self-managed" customer service team
talks to for scheduling, reviews, time off, etc and she said (please try your best to keep a straight face here, readers) "no one, we are
completely self-managed." Riiggghhhtttt, so let me get this right..., you get to make your own hours, choose your salary rate and benefits
and everything?  Cool - I want that job!  But, wait a minute, if I was completely self-managed, I wouldn't be there incompetently answering
the phones - because as a self-managed and highly compensated customer service rep I would decide to take the day off!  But

I digress...  I called this time (after being disconnected 4 times yesterday) because I flew QF12 23 Mar and paid for premium economy on
the strongly advertised A380. Wow - an upper deck seat, among fewer passengers with a self-service bar - excellent!  Except while walking
on board, I noticed that, wait, this is an old plane, this isn't the upper deck, there are an awful lot of people coming through, and why there's
not even a self-service bar! (I guess they took that out and placed it in the self-managed no customer service office. That explains an awful
lot.).   So, I called to complain about being misled through false advertisement, and mentioned other little issues that I've had, wrote about
and didn't get any type of response to, including not getting my 15,000 miles posted to my frequent flyer account because they had no
record of that flight (BECAUSE NOT ONE, BUT TWO OF *YOUR* PLANES BROKE DOWN RESULTING IN MIS-ROUTING!), having $3,000
worth of equipment stolen from my bags (YOU'RE RIGHT, QANTAS, I MUST HAVE MADE A MISTAKE AND DIDN'T REALLY PACK IT. NO
WAY COULD ANYTHING HAVE GONE ASTRAY ON YOUR WATCH!  THAT WOULD *NEVER* HAPPEN... BY THE WAY, IS THERE A SELF-
SERVE BAR IN THE LOST BAGGAGE DEPT, TOO?  BUT AGAIN I DIGRESS...), including regularly-lost luggage (NEVER THEIR FAULT,
WOULDN'T YA KNOW).  Anyway, I informed them that, being a frequent traveler who comes to Australia up to 3 times per year, that had I
known this old plane would be used I would have a) purchased regular economy ticket or b) used miles to upgrade to business.  All I
wanted was an email message informing me that "unfortunately, we've had some challenges in our scheduling and instead of the A380, you
will be flying in the 747. sorry for the convenience."  (the last I checked, email's still completely free!)  You would have suggested that I
asked for a, gasp, r-e-f-u-n-d, instead of an apology and acknowledgement for yet another mess-up. 25 minutes later it boils down to this:
we will send you a form letter pretending that we care with an apology which you are not likely to receive in this lifetime. (maybe it's me, but I
couldn't have sworn I heard an emery board instead of a keyboard in the background...)  I do hope the CEO, executive management team,
board of directors, and maybe one "self-managed, no more customer service ever" rep reads this:  reliability + customers who feel valued =
profitability.  I will come to australia two more times this year and will, (as I have happily done in the last 2 years) fly with other carriers (who
appear to appreciate my business a lot more) as I cannot conscientiously give over hard-earned money to a callous and incompetently
managed company.

15 min of fame:  I paid $14,000, but had to contact newspapers to get help from Qantas
Submitted by: Debra (posted March 27, 2009)

Read the Herald Sun about the a380's ? Do you wonder Qantas how they knew ? It was me ! Just like Andy Warhol said everyone has 15
minutes of fame I think I have had mine. I made according to Google news 198 articles ! Why the sudden fame, well I had a business class
ticket from London to Melbourne for a flight that didn't happen . In fact qantas i was on a 10 day round teh world in business class a ticket
that cost 14k Aud !. But still you get no service. Checked in for the 10pm flight only to be told a no go. So off to a hotel - up early the next
morning to be faced with an empty check in desk. We were all there where was qantas ? Anyway more delays. No information etc. So out of
frustration I called the newspapers.  http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,25132281-661,00.html

Yep Qantas customers know that the A380 is important and new. You should treat customers with respect and provide service when things
go wrong. Lots of bad press that day, due to the poor service.  Now its the fight with Qantas to get compensation, although they say sorry
in the papers it seems that Qantas dont think that means they pay for disruption. Empty words. I guess its just a case of wait and see what
will happen next. Customer care (dont snigger at the title) seem very rude and unable to confirm that as an European flight - it was leaving
london - if european law covers the service !  I will carry on though. Soon  Qantas will discover that Virgin is in its market, Delta as well. I am
sure that the new entrants will be rubbing their hands knowing that business passengers will come running to them.  Anyway I have
extended my 15 mins. Who knows maybe the papers will do a follow up on just what happened to the passengers Qantas let down, and
now refuses to pay compensation to.

Passenger: Qantas held flight for 3 hrs, left me stranded, and could not care less
Submitted by: Antwan (posted: March 26, 2009)

I recently traveled to Melbourne, Australia via Qantas airlines. The flight originally departed from ATL airport on 28 February 2009 to STL
(American Airlines 5558), then from STL to LAX (QF 3149), and finally from LAX to MEL (QF 94). The flights associated with the departure
were adequate, as a passenger, and the staff was helpful. However, a serious problem arose on the return flights from Melbourne, in
particular the connecting flight in Sydney via Qantas airlines. On 8 March 2009 I departed Melbourne at 11:30am to arrive in Sydney at 12:
55 (QF 428). This flight was successful and on time. At 2:35pm, Flight # QF73 was supposed to depart and arrive at SFO at 10:05am but
there was a delay. After sitting on the airplane, at the gate, for an hour, the captain stated that the airplane was being refueled. Twenty
minutes later, the captain stated that a different Qantas aircraft that was supposed to go to LAX was incapable of flying and some of those
passengers from that flight would have to join our flight to SFO. Apparently, the Boeing 757 was substituted with a 747 so there were
approximately an excess of 100 passengers that were supposed to join our flight (QF 73). At the time, this was not a problem because the
flight crew stated that the airplane would be fueled with extra fuel (allowing the airplane to fly faster and necessary with the additional
weight) and that we would still arrive on-time at SFO, despite the hour delay. After an hour and a half passed there was a lot of uncertainty
amongst the flight crew, about the situation and what was happening. The crew stated that the flight (QF 73) was waiting for the other
passengers, their luggage, extra food, and extra fuel before we could depart. So after two-three hours of waiting in a hot aircraft at the
gate, the other passengers finally joined. Throughout the flight we were given no information regarding connecting flights in the United
States and what would happen once we arrived. Overall the experience was chaotic and there was a lack of knowledge amongst the staff,
in which was clearly evident. So the flight (QF 73) finally arrived at SFO at 12:20pm. This posed a huge problem for me and other
passengers because we all had connecting flights and most people missed their connecting flights, due to the negligence amongst the
Qantas staff. The Qantas staff was not helpful at all and they were very disrespectful. When we arrived at the airport, the staff stated that
they did not know much about the connecting flights and that the passengers would have to rebook their flights at the Qantas help/service
desk by immigration after the luggage was picked up. There were 6 Qantas people assisting in the rebooking process, yet there were 200+
passengers that required attention, so it took me three full hours until I could speak to a Qantas representative. After waiting in line for
three hours total, at the Qantas rebooking desk, I was handed a sheet that said I was rebooked on Flight DL 1074 at 11:00pm. Keep in
mind that the prior flight that I had was DL 1068 and it departed at 11:45am and arrive in ATL at 7:21pm. I ended up missing this fight
because the Qantas flight from Sydney (that was delayed for 3 hours) did not arrive to SFO until 12:20pm. The new flight that was given to
me did not arrive in ATL till 6:26am the following day (March 9th). This posed an even bigger problem to me, considering I had an exam at
university at 7am. Once I talked to the staff at the help desk, they stated that there were no flights (around the nation) at all going to Atlanta
that had any seats. I found this extremely hard to believe, considering Atlanta is a massive airport that has thousands of domestic flights
going into it every day. The representative then stated that I had no other options and the earliest that I could get to Atlanta was 6:26am
the following day, on the new flight. After being let down by Qantas’s inadequate staff and Qantas airlines, the Qantas representative
stated that I could get a hotel room, complimentary of Qantas and nothing else could be done.

The representative also suggested that he could put me in business class but the flight would not arrive until night time the following day. I
was appalled by this statement because I could care less about a hotel or business class, I just needed to get home for my exam before 9
March 2009.The hotel room was booked and I waited in the hotel for approximately nine hours to catch the next flight. The representative
also stated that I should contact Qantas customer care to address my issues. He also gave me a Qantas complimentary phone card. I tried
to call Qantas customer care, but the phone card only had 10 minutes on it, so it was pointless trying to resolve my issues on the phone.
After returning to the airport for the new rebooked flight via Delta airlines, I was further disappointed. When I approached the Delta agent,
she stated that the ticket on flight DL 1074 had not been booked/modified through Qantas and that only my previous reservation was in the
system. She then advised me to use a courtesy phone and call Qantas, in which I did. After I did this, the Qantas representative told me to
return to the Delta counter and state that the Qantas lady “fit the ticket for involuntary exchange”. After returning to the Delta counter for
the second time, the Delta employee stated that there was still no change in the system. She then picked up the phone and called Qantas
directly. Nevertheless, Qantas had made numerous mistakes again. The Delta representative said that Qantas would have to deliver the
ticket and form (necessary for flight change) directly, and I had to wait another twenty minutes.

Finally the Qantas lady came with the ticket and all problems were then solved. However, there was no seat assignment listed on the ticket.  
When I went to get a seat assignment, the Delta agent apologized and stated that he only had a center seat available. This was
disappointing because I specifically booked a window seat on my prior flight, in which Qantas made me miss, due to a lack of planning and
poor decision making. The Qantas representative stated that the situation was a rare occasion and events like this do typically not happen.
He then further explained that I should seek further compensation via Qantas customer care. To summarize the whole situation, I missed
my flight to Atlanta due to Qantas’s negligent decision making behaviors and ended up missing my midterm exam at university. Now I must
pay approximately six dollars and retake the class next semester. There was plenty of leeway time to accommodate for travel problems,
customs, and so forth, however Qantas airlines managed to derail all original plans by making their own decisions to wait three hours in
Sydney for extra passengers. I have never seen such confusion, lack of consideration, and total chaos associated with a widely known
airline company before. Let me stress once again that I am extremely disappointed and frustrated with Qantas airlines. I would hate to part
ways with Qantas and avoid travel with Qantas airlines, but due to the recent situations that arose; this may be the only option, unless
further compensation is initiated. Most airlines compensate with a roundtrip ticket at a minimum to gain passenger’s trust and business,
however Qantas has done nothing so far. I am currently a student at a university studying business and I have been trained to identify poor
business structure, in which I truly believe Qantas airlines possesses. My expedition, from America to Australia and back, turned from a
vacation to a never-ending nightmare due to Qantas’s negligence. I have attempted to contact Qantas airlines numerous times via their
customer service department (listed online) however I have yet to receive a response.

Passenger: Old plane and disinterested staff made QF88 Hong Kong-Sydney flight horrible
Submitted by: Gloria (posted: March 13, 2009)

The flight from Hong Kong home to Sydney was absolutely disgusting, it's obviously put on for the Chinese people. The flight was QF88
leaving Hong Kong in the morning. The plane was an old air bus, the staff were just as aged and quite disinterested in the passengers. I
asked for a 2nd bottle of water and was told they don't have a 2nd to give me. The seats were so hard that my legs were aching.  There
were about 6 staff for the whole of the plane. The food was atrocious, we as Australians returning home should not have to eat disgustingly
basic chinese food. Both meals were identical almost. We would never fly out of Hong Kong again, we'd pick up a plane from Europe for the
return sector. I asked the hostess what the dessert was, she was Asian and couldn't tell me, she turned her nose up and shrugged her
shoulders. One hostess was only interested in talking constantly to 2 gay guys coming for the MardiGras.  Never catch that morning flight
to Sydney.

Passenger: A380 unservicable again - 'Replacement 747' left 150 people stranded
Submitted by : MickeyS  Posted: March 12, 2009

Don't you just love waiting in the Qantas airport in Sydney for yet another unserviceable Qantas A380 plane. Yesterday (Sun March 8)
QF11 (SYD-LAX) left 6 hours late after the A380 was arrived at the bridge only to be taken away out of site in shame, only to be replaced
with a 747-400, on the way from domestic to international in the morning you could see something was not right when the A380 was lined
up in front of freight with a scurry of activity about the wheels and breaks, although someone mentioned they are having trouble getting fuel
in.....The Qantas staff did the usual round of apologies, meal vouchers etc.  What do you do with the spare 150 passengers, shuffle them
on flights to SFO or let it all end in tears.

Your Qantas Experience
Not Affiliated iwth Qantas airlines-