News comes that Singapore Airlines and Virgin Australia will code share on each other services and passengers will enjoy reciprocal FF arrangements and lounge access. Virgin Australia also have a relationship with Delta (Skyteam) and Malaysia (about to join One World).

Is this a step toward Virgin Australia becoming a Star Alliance partner in Australia? We continue to move back to the days when we had two full service airlines Qantas and Ansett in the One World and Star Alliance networks. I blogged about this in May.

The impressive changes at Virgin Australia (albeit not yet with a profit) are accompanied by the brilliant incompetence of Qantas management in the way they are handling both staff and passengers. There is a stinging rebuke on the Business traveller forum pages today: But Joyce has to be also singled out for his stupidity in the way he has managed Qantas and in particular his perceived obsession with trying to Jetstarize Qantas. He has been in the job for 3 years and one can only wonder how long he can last.


I received an e-mail from QF FF this morning about a new food and wine venture I would rather hear about some real management changes on service and route development…. I have to ask myself why am I, like many, losing confidence in the Qantas brand. 


I am with the writer on this. A few of my posts have expressed my concerns re Qantas:

• Dear Nut Please go away 
• My rating of airlines for  2010 lamented the slide of Qantas to 8th position on my list (when I used to rate Qantas as the third best airline you could fly)
• When Enhancements alienate a customer referring to the poor way Qantas sold changes to their Frequent Flyer Program

To me the people who do not seem to be listening are Qantas themselves.