In handing down his decision, ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said "The considers that the alliance is likely to result in material, although not substantial, benefits to Australian consumers."Now that the ACCC has given draft approval for Australian flights all eyes are being turned towards New Zealand transport minister Gerry Brownlee who will decide if Qantas & Emirates are able to form an alliance on the trans-tasman network.
Sims pointed out that while "the alliance is likely to result in some public detriments through its effect on competition where Qantas and Emirates currently offer overlapping services. In most of these regions there are factors which are likely to mitigate the public detriment, including continuing competition from a number of established airlines."
The ACCC also flagged a potential drawback for trans-Tasman travellers, saying that "on overlapping routes between Australia and New Zealand the ACCC is concerned that the alliance may have an increased ability and incentive to reduce or limit growth in its capacity in order to raise airfares. Therefore, the ACCC is proposing a condition to restrict the ability of the alliance in this regard."
The threatened pullout comes as Virgin tries to tender for several routes, either regulated or subsidised by the government, including to Roma, Longreach, Cloncurry, Biloela, Bundaberg and Charleville.
Qantaslink's contracts for these routes are due to expire in March, and Virgin has been seeking to have the market deregulated to give it a chance to fly them.
But the airline has been told, unofficially, that the Government's mind is made up, and Qantaslink's contract will be extended for another two years.I have not been a fan of the way the Newman LNP government has treated the people of Queensland in the first part of its term in office and I am appalled by the way it seems to be treating Virgin in this instance. Not only as stated in the above quote, but also later in the article where the premier himself hasn't once mentioned the airline yet on several occasions has waxed lyrical about Qantas in parliament, I take issue with favouritism in politics when there are more than one major player in an industry, especially when both are Australian companies. Also I don't like the fact the QLD government are dooming regional Queenslander's to exorbitant fares on QFLink to these smaller centers when fares to other regional ports have dropped dramatically when the competition of Virgin has entered the market.
A spokesman for Transport Minister Scott Emerson yesterday confirmed that was the case.
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| As seen on twitter & Facebook |
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| Top & side view of the box |
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| Air New Zealand Hobbit/LoTR fleet |
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| Photo from Qantas Facebook page |
The direct service will operate twice a week on Tuesdays and Sundays from 18 June to 13 October 2013. The 17 week season is being extended next year to include the October school holidays, following the success of the 2012 season.Both Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia are promoting the service which operates with Air New Zealand A320s, and is being hailed as a successful part of their alliance.
In a separate move which is part of Air New Zealand’s strategy to implement an alliance based network with a Pacific Rim focus, the airline has also formed a strategic agreement with Cathay Pacific on the Auckland – Hong Kong route.Air New Zealand have announced that passengers booked on the HKG-LHR-HKG portion of NZ35/38 after 4/3/13 will be rebooked onto Cathay Pacific services.
The Tiger brand won't be going away, however – it will remain "for at least another 20 years."Tiger Airways Australia said in a statement that the airline will remain low cost with an internet based distribution platform.
Virgin Australia CEO John Borghetti said today that the deal "will enable us to fast-track our advancement in the high growth fly-in-fly out and regional markets, increasing competition in these important segments.The deal relies on approval from Australian & Singaporean regulators as well as approval from Skywest shareholders.
Virgin and SQ already operate a partnership with sharing of flights, frequent flyer schemes and reciprocal access to lounges, and Virgin Australia today bought a 60 percent controlling interest in Singapore Airlines' subsidiary Tiger Airways Australia.This investment puts Singapore on an even footing with Etihad who also own 10% of the airline, while Air New Zealand own 19.9% & Sir Richard Branson owns 26%
Fifty B787-9 options and purchase rights will be retained and brought forward by almost two years, available for delivery from 2016" the airline said in a statement.Jetstar will still receive their 15 Boeing 787-8s which will enable the return of the A330 fleet back to Qantas which will enable them to replace their aging domestic B767 fleet.
''We may see a delay in profitability, but our competitors are going to feel it as well,'' he said yesterday.Its suffice to say if it wasn't for the deep pockets of Tiger's parent company, then this airline, like previous competitors, would not be able to survive on its own in the current economic conditions.
AdvertisementBy October, Tiger plans to be operating the same number of flights - 64 sectors a day - it had before the air-safety regulator grounded it for six weeks last year. The airline is still waiting for the Civil Aviation Safety Authority to respond to its request to have all flight restrictions removed.
Tiger's return to full service will add to the glut of flights in the domestic market. The routes to have the biggest increases in seat capacity include the country's busiest, between Sydney and Melbourne (up 18 per cent year on year), and Melbourne-Hobart (up 70 per cent).
Incoming Air New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon says he is energised by the chance to do a job which holds a unique responsibility for the nation's economic, social and emotional wellbeing.Read more about the appointment thanks to stuff.co.nz Business Day HERE
Simon Hickey, the current Qantas frequent flyer chief executive, will head Qantas International.The division will bring a raft of changes to the airlines management structure including the departure of current Jetstar CEO Bruce Buchanan.
Lyell Strambi, currently Qantas' executive of operations, will be chief executive of Qantas Domestic.
The airline announced today that it will increase surcharges for one-way international flights by as much as $60. That means the total surcharge for a one-way flight to the US will be $310, while those to the UK and Germany will amount to $350.Qantas subsidiaries Jetstar and QantasLink will also raise their fares to counter the carbon tax which is expected to cost the Qantas group as much as $110-115M in the 2012/13 financial year.
Qantas has also put on an extra charge of $20 for flights to Asia and Hawaii – taking the total surcharge to $165 – and $40 for flights to South America and South Africa (taking it to $240).
