What next? I mean the MAX10 Virgin is getting, I think I’ll wait a few years until they iron out the kinks before I bother, entry into service is later this year I recall.
Airbus doesn’t seem to need to ‘iron out the kinks’. They just get it right.
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Not entirely relevant to sleepers but very relevant to the XPT- I believe there’s a strong market for “medium speed” rail in this country (where the speeds are around 160-200kph) - if you could get from Sydney to Melbourne and vice versa in say, 6 to 8 hours with a reasonably priced service (say around the $100 mark return) it would be very attractive in my view. By the time you get from CBD to CBD flying you’re already looking at 3-4 hours and air travel can be very stressful with airport security and strict baggage rules.
Unlike high speed rail (which would be very cool but sadly likely too expensive to be viable), this would also only require modest upgrades to existing infrastructure and minor realignments (mainly where rail lines follow steam era alignments like the Main Southern Line in NSW) and could be done far cheaper as a result. For example, boom gates (though I’d recommend upgrading them to full barrier gates) could still be used for intersections instead of expensive grade separation which HSR would requite
This could also revitalise other inter-metropolitan rail corridors as well, I could see Sydney-Brisbane (probably 7-8 hours), Melbourne-Adelaide (probably 5-6 hours), and even Melbourne-Brisbane (once Inland Rail is complete- probably 10-12 hours) all being viable routes as well in my view.
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That would be very scary
I’m travelling to the US for the first time this year. I booked with Fiji Airways for an amazing price ($1200 return) but they didn’t ask for a passport. Is this common?
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Sydney to Melbourne would be good in say 5/6 hrs, however they need to remove all stops en route outside of the metro areas which slows the service down. Melbourne-Surburban Melbourne-Western Sydney-Sydney.
It’s all just a fantasy regardless, people of this century are not capable of such a project so will be up to my kids kids generation to build that.
I hate the whole Tullamarine and Mascot experience, both airports are the pits. Once WSI opens I will start flying Avalon/WSI if that is an option. I’ve even started using Newcastle lately, surely I’m not the only one that dreads SYD?
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At the time of booking? Yep, you don’t need those details.
Obv need it when travelling tho. And don’t forget your ETSA visa.
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Melbourne is slightly less shit than Shitney I think; this mirrors the lived experience in the cities. Queuing is a sport in Sydney, as it is in the UK.
Canberra now has a direct link to Fiji so that link to LA that @turdall is using might be viable from here, too. I’m wondering how the layover is in Nadi.
Can tell you now, it won’t happen. The replacement trains are already hideously over budget and the delivery date is in the never never.
The Government’s response to The Guardian was kicking it into the (very) long grass - its looking incredibly likely that not a single train from this program will be delivered before the next state election in 2027
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I don’t think getting rid of all stops en route would help much especially when services are speed limited through larger regional cities anyway and theres likely demand from metro passengers to stop at some of these stations (either as their destination or to get a connection). It could definitely be pared right back though to only those places with a big population and/or lots of other connecting train/coach services- there’s no need to stop in every little town along the way like it does now.
For Syd-Mel I’d recommend Sydney Central, Campbelltown, then Moss Vale, Goulburn, Wagga, Albury, Wangaratta, Seymour, Broadmeadows, Melbourne Southern Cross.
Sadly that’s very true, sometimes I wonder how we get anything built in this country at all with the attitude towards investment in building and maintaining infrastructure.
I get that building infrastructure is expensive and especially so now but there’s so much productivity and potential lost in this country from not building the infrastructure we need that we really end up making a loss in the long run.
At this point I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole thing falls over and we end up with the XPT sputtering along for another decade or two.
Only reason I don’t use Newcastle is the distance to get from Port Stephens back into Newcastle itself to commute into Sydney. Doesn’t justify cost savings (as opposed to time savings) as I would get from say a flight to Maroochydore with buses and trains back to Brisbane.
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Inspiring Vacations says it is investigating a data breach that saw a database containing about 112,000 records, including sensitive information such as passport images and travel visa certificates, was leaked online. The breach took place in late November last year and the database was not password protected.
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Also very fortunate that this didn’t occur at cruise, with seatbelts start to go off. 5-10 mins later, well we would likely be talking about many deaths. Sounds like Alaska was the Guinea pig. Could have occurred in United at some point by reading the above.
So the question is, why the MAX9 are they having door plug issues, what are they doing different vs the 737-900ER which they have been producing for many years prior without issue. New supplier? Culture just slipping overall?
MAX is just cursed. Boeing are walking a tightrope, and this is the price they pay for prior negligence, every issue like this will be broadcast heavily.
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Clearly they’ve failed with this Max series. Airbus A320neo seems to be the way to go. A much better plane.
Later this month, Bonza will mark twelve months of operations in Australia.
How do we think they’ve fared the past year? Can we see them around long into the future?
Can you guess which two Aussie destinations made the New York Times’ 52 Places to Go in 2024 list?
The New York Times has released its annual 52 Places to go in 2024 list, and not one, but two Aussie destinations made the cut. While you may assume big ticket cities like Sydney and Melbourne would make the list you would be wrong. Tasmania and Brisbane came out victorious placing 29th and 39th, respectively.
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The issue for a small player like Bonza is the challenge to make sustainable profits to stand on its own. You need 20-30 aircraft and Sydney to make money here, not sure if the market could take that many aircraft before reaching overcapacity. It’s very easy to go backwards also, small profits here, then big losses here. Tiger lost hundreds of millions over its tenure. Fuel price jumping could result in years of financial ruin. So so many risks in starting up an airline. Costs will also only be heading north, wage pressures will continue to be a challenge for any balance sheet.
The whole financing deal around this airline is very off. High interest loans from an American firm.
Got to try out Virgin Australia’s business class on a flight to Launceston a few days ago. I gotta say, it was really good. The inflight meal was tasty and the level of service was excellent.
The plane I flew (VH-VUP) was a little on the old side and didn’t have on board entertainment and wifi - but didn’t mind really. I’d consider flying again on VA Business.
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Strange there wasn’t on board entertainment and wifi considering that is one of VA newly refurbished aircraft.
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