Jaunted - Tag: V Australia

Budget Long Haul Travel: Red Tape Worries V Australia

amandak — 2008-08-26T09:00:16-05:00

Long-haul budget airline V Australia is sure it's ready to start flying before the end of 2008 but the big question now is whether or not enough passengers will be able to book a ticket.

V Australia has run into some problems with IATA, the system used by travel agents to sell about 80 percent of all airline tickets. IATA won't start offering V Australia tickets yet because the carrier's still waiting to get an Air Operator's Certificate. (V Australia's been trying to get hold of one for nine months now.)

Of course, savvy travelers will have no problem buying tickets directly online, but V Australia naturally enough wants to make sure their planes are nice and full. We're definitely hoping boring red tape won't trip up any attempt to make flying down to Oz a heap cheaper.

Related Stories:
· Virgin Sees Red Over V Australia Ban [The Australian]
· V Australia on Track for First Flights in '08 [Jaunted]
· V Australia Coverage [Jaunted]

Money-Making Qantas Now Looking for Merger Love

pbb — 2008-08-22T10:45:14-05:00

Even profitable airlines are looking to merge these days! The latest to announce its intentions is Qantas, which raked in $843 million over the past year. Despite the gains, the Aussie airline suspects that fuel prices aren't about to plummet.

CEO Geoff Dixon, who's leaving his position in fewer than 100 days, says:

[Consolidation] is happening now: the Lufthansa-Swissair alliance, the KLM-Air France deal, BA in merger with Iberia, Delta and Northwest have announced talks.
And in the coming years, Australians in general and the authorities in Australia specifically are going to have to realise that, as strong as Qantas is and as big as it is, that it will have to have some form of consolidation.

One carrier we bet the Flying Kangaroo won't be talking with? V Australia, which just got government approval to fly from Sydney to South Africa.

Related Stories:
· No Airline Is an Island [The Australian]
· Qantas Reports Record Profit Despite Woes [AFP, via Google]
· Airline Mergers coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: SpacePotato]

V Australia on Track for First Flights in '08

pbb — 2008-08-11T11:30:09-05:00

The countdown to V Australia continues, and the new Aussie long-haul carrier is on schedule for its mid-December debut--at least according to the people who work there.

Perhaps more convincing than official assurances is the flight attendant training that's been planned for September 1, when 26 new recruits will learn the evacuation and ditching techniques needed to clear a 777-300ER of 390 passengers in just 90 seconds. A small batch of instructors have already been certified by Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority to teach the new FAs.

Safety training at airlines is no joke, despite the fact that in-flight crews rarely have to use their skills. After the click, a behind the scenes video about the flight attendant training at Delta.

New Routes: V Australia Now Eyeing Africa

pbb — 2008-07-23T08:59:44-05:00

V Australia doesn't make its inaugural flight to the United States until December, but that won't be enough, it seems. The long-haul carrier has applied with the Australian government to fly the Sydney-Johannesburg route, starting October 2009.

The flights, currently only available on Qantas or South African Airways, would be the first foray into Africa for the start-up. It spilled its plans in a governmental filing:

V Australia proposes to commence services between Sydney and Johannesburg with five weekly services with effect from October 2009. V Australia will operate these services utilizing 361 seat B777-300ER aircraft.

So how much is jet fuel gonna cost by fall 2009?

Related Stories:
· V Australia Applies for Africa Route [eTravelBlackboard]
· New Routes: More from the Land Down Under [Jaunted]
· V Australia coverage [Jaunted]

New Routes: More from the Land Down Under

kjb — 2008-07-07T09:08:12-05:00

We're still months away from V Australia's inaugural flight, but that won't stop the big V from shaking things up. Richard Branson's latest carrier apparently isn't scared of a little healthy competition.

While we were enjoying Independence Day, V Australia was announcing new routes. Brisbane to Los Angeles will start on March 1, 2009 and will operate three days a week. Seats in the back of the plane will start at A$2,087 ($2,006)--about a cool A$1,000 less than the price of the same trip on Qantas.

Even the comfy business class seats are going for less than the country's oldest carrier. But hey, when you're facing high fuel costs you got to do what you got to do, even if you aren't rockin' the new A380.

Related Stories:
· Pacific Airfare Wars Hit Top Gear [Melbourne Herald Sun]
· Qantas Hyping Super-Cheap Transpacific Fares on A380s [Jaunted]
· V Australia coverage [Jaunted]

Qantas Hyping Super-Cheap Transpacific Fares

pbb — 2008-06-18T10:35:01-05:00

Qantas doesn't plan to let V Australia steal away its customers when Richard Branson's newest airline takes flight December 15. So the old-line Aussie carrier is hyping some great fares on its A380 flights between LA and both Melbourne and Sydney.

Qantas says it's selling tickets for as little as $380 round-trip on flights departing between November 2 and December 8. But as far as we can tell, those super-cheap tickets are already gone.

We did find an LAX-Melbourne round trip in November for $1,215. Not less than 400 bucks, but that's certainly not bad! If you're willing to spend a bit more, A380 service between the US and Oz starts on October 20.

Related Stories:
· Qantas Strikes First in Virgin Price War [SMH]
· Fare Wars coverage [Jaunted]
· A380 coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Naddsy]

V Australia: Taking off December 15

pbb — 2008-03-31T08:38:55-05:00

Last week we asked, "Is V Australia about to officially announce LAX-SYD service at a press conference?" Turns out, yes. The newest carrier from Richard Branson will go wheels up on December 15, 2008.

The super-cheap promo fares for the first few days are already sold out, but you can still get some incredible deals in December. We found a round trip for $1,747, while Kayak reports the cheapest non-stop Qantas fare for the same dates is $2,582.

In addition to great fares, V Australia has also released cabin details. In coach, seat pitch is 32 inches with a recline of 6 inches, and every seat will have a 9-inch screen for on-demand in-flight entertainment. And if you need or want to stay online, the airline's 777s will have cell phone connectivity, letting you SMS and browse the Internet on your GSM device. What, no in-flight WiFi?

Related Stories:
· Virgin Launches Flights between Sydney and Los Angeles [AP, via IHT]
· V Australia Cabin Details [Official Site]
· Calculated Speculation: V Australia Edition [Jaunted]
· V Australia coverage [Jaunted]