Jetstar closes Tassie base

[Nigel C]

From www.news.com.au
http://www.news.com.au/business/stor...-31037,00.html

Jetstar closes Tassie base

AAP
March 11, 2009 05:07pm

JETSTAR is closing its Hobart crew base, forcing 41 local staff to take redundancies or relocate to one of the airline's mainland facilities.
Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway today said the decision would not affect the airline's services to Tasmania.

However Jetstar would from May 1 no longer permanently base an aircraft and its staff overnight in Hobart, as it has done since 2004, he said.

Mr Westaway said the "regretful'' restructure was forced by the troubled economic times and a strategic need to reorganise bases to expand services to Asia.

There would still be enough work in Hobart for Jetstar's eight aircraft engineers to stay, he said.

But six pilots and 35 cabin crew would be supported by the airline to move within those jobs to other bases or take redundancies, he said.

The staff were informed of the decision on Wednesday.

"It's regretful because 41 people are going to have a change in their employment location and in their lives,'' Mr Westaway said.

"Today's decision wasn't made with a smirk on our face.

"It's been a hard decision for us.

"A number of the employees have been with the organisation for a long time and some of them may choose to leave our organisation.

"So from our perspective it's important that we do this in a dignified way and be clear about why we are making the decision.''

The closure of Jetstar's Hobart base is part of a wider restructure for the airline.

Mr Westaway said the key changes include the closure of Jetstar's Hobart A320 aircraft and crew base, the establishment of new pilot bases in Darwin and Perth.

There would also be the extension of Jetstar's existing Cairns base to include international pilots, the extension of Jetstar's existing Gold Coast and Brisbane bases to include international pilots and cabin crew, and the addition of another aircraft to Sydney.

[Ryan K]

Does anyone know what this will mean for the scheduling of flights between HBA and SYD? I imagine that there will no longer be 6.10am morning flights from HBA. Not good for business travellers from Hobart needing to be in Sydney by 8am.

[Adrian C]

The bit about no longer permanently basing an Airbus in Hobart might be the giveaway here.

Everyone knows traffic declines over the winter. Now we've got the **** falling out of the global economy as well, JQ would have no interest in flying an A320 down from Melbourne late at night and send it out at daybreak the next morning to Sydney, at best probably half full.

Nobody gets up at that hour in Hobart in winter unless they really need to. They get on the QF 73H five minutes earlier, go via Melbourne, Qantas increases its yield per seat on the HBA-MEL and MEL-SYD.

You need to be in Sydney by 8am? Then fly up the afternoon before. Qantas still gets your money.

What odds, however, that QF throws a Q400 at it? SYD-HBA for a 2100-ish arrival, overnight it, send it back at 0610 the next morning. Stacks of connections to and from Canberra (with your bags checked through of course), AND you can be in the nation's capital a little after nine in the morning?

Public servants needing to go HBA-CBR and with an emotional attachment to the QF Club would be falling over themselves, and there's far less seats that need to be sold before you're turning a profit.

But maybe that's too radical to be contemplated...

[Steve Jones]

Why not send the Q400 direct from CBR? If you time it well for business customers, you'll steal most of Virgin's thunder. Sydney people can go via MEL or CBR

[Greg F]

I do believe that HBA JQ Ground Crew are the next in limbo / possibly going to contractors......

[Hugh Jarse]

What odds, however, that QF throws a Q400 at it? SYD-HBA for a 2100-ish arrival, overnight it, send it back at 0610 the next morning.

The Q4 may happen, but not with the pairing you suggest, because under CAO48, the earliest time the same crew can sign on is 0600 for an 0630 departure (assuming the overnighter arrives pre 2100). If they get in post 2100, add 9 hours to get the earliest sign-on next day. Flight planning takes 30 mins.

It would be very unlikely for QLink to slip crews. They haven't for over 15 years.

So I'd suggest an 0630 departure ex HB

[Ryan K]

On ABC Local Radio last night a Jetstar spokesman was talking about the new scheduling changes. It now looks like the last Jetstar MEL-HBA flight will leave Melbourne at 5.45pm meaning people will need to be at the airport a bit after 4.45pm - hardly good for business and leisure travellers alike. Currently the last flight leaves at 9.30pm. It also seems as though the first HBA-SYD flight will not leave until after 9am. These changes are certainly not going to benefit business travellers and seem more targeted to interstate leisure travellers coming to Tasmania.

[Gareth U]

Originally Posted by Ryan K

It now looks like the last Jetstar MEL-HBA flight will leave Melbourne at 5.45pm meaning people will need to be at the airport a bit after 4.45pm - hardly good for business and leisure travellers alike.

I see your point but there is other options, being Qantas and Virgin.

Hugh -

I assume by slipped you mean there is an AM and PM crew (at least two crews at the hotel)? Sunstate slipped crews in NTL when they had both the MEL and BNE flights.

A Q400 (or 70 seat Jet?!) would be perfect for HBA-SYD. QF could throw the 737s off HBA altogether and increase frequency slightly (Melb 4-5 times daily, SYD 3 times daily) if it had a dual cabin low capacity jet. Not gonna happen any time soon, that's for sure.

[Hugh Jarse]

Ahh yes Gareth,

However, under the current Sy management regime it would be very unlikely, as it doesn't allow maximum utilisation of crew (and that's what they want). Add to that a chronic shortage of crew (particularly captains) would make the prospect even more remote.

I agree about the suitability for the route.

[Greg F]

The Faite of all the JQ Ground Crew will all be apparent tomorrow....
Rumour has it that their jobs will go to a contractor..........