Eye of the storm

Over 2600 passengers were on 15 inbound aircraft for between three and just over eight hours, with a further 900 held between one and three hours.

The reason? An extremely unusual thunderstorm that centred itself over Perth for over seven hours, producing the WA capital’s wettest December day in 28 years.

In fact, air traffic controllers who spoke to Contrails said they had never seen anything like it in 40 years in the industry.

There is of course no doubt that when lightning is around staff must seek cover, but what infuriated and perplexed Qantas passengers stuck on the planes was the sight of Virgin Australia and virtually every other airline’s aircraft coming and going throughout the day.

When questioned, Virgin Australia and Skywest, along with ground handlers Toll Danata and Aerocare, insisted that they followed the lightning warnings to the letter and sought cover when required.

Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association federal secretary Stephen Purvinas, who was aboard one of the stranded aircraft, told Contrails that Qantas did not focus its resources on getting passengers off aircraft – during what he termed 30 to 45 minute gaps in the storms – but instead tried to get aircraft away to open up gates.

“They should have taken us to hard stands and bussed us,” said Purvinas.

The PR disaster raises many questions and begs a public inquiry.

Why weren’t other airlines impacted the same way? Why didn’t Qantas seek parking help for hardstands – of which there are plenty available – from Perth Airport much earlier? Did Qantas roster on more help? Did they seek help from other airlines’ staff? Was the operation being run from Perth or Sydney? Leaving the blame game aside, the fact of the matter is that the lightning storm was well and truly finished at 4pm and the skies were blue, but passengers were getting darker by the second, for it took Qantas five more hours to clear the last of the aircraft.

One Qantas staffer blames management and Perth Airport for putting impediments in the way of staff.

Qantas itself lays the blame at the unprecedented nature of the weather and Perth Airport.

“Unfortunately the time between these storm fronts on our weather radars was much less than the 30-45mins [claimed by Purvinas]. For safety reasons this prevented our ground staff from operating on the tarmac.

Additionally, in many instances the West Australian Airport Corporation (WAAC) required us to be escorted by them to each of our aircraft. They were resource constrained as well as us, resulting in no opportunity to reposition our aircraft,” a spokeswomen said.

A ground handling manager from another airline had another take on it. “We just worked harder between the gaps in the storms – it is as simple as that. ” Wherever the truth lies, one is left asking questions – if this storm had been in Sydney would passengers have been left for eight hours? I doubt it.

If there had been consumer legislation in place with a $27,500 fine hanging over the airline for a more than 180 minute delay, would any of the planes been left over three hours? No way.

One also gets the nagging impression from talking to a number of staff and managers that there was a discord between management and staff at Perth – normally one of the more harmonious ports. Perhaps it was the lingering effects of the bitter industrial dispute.

As Contrails and Australian Aviation has argued, CEO Alan Joyce’s greatest challenge is to mend the wounds, and if the fiasco at Perth Airport on December 7 is an indication of discord then the job in front of him is greater than anyone ever expected.

But maybe it is none of that, just maybe the ferocity of the storm left Qantas few options.

However, one unshakable fact remains. Qantas left 18 aircraft stranded for hours and no-one else did. n

One Qantas staffer blames management and Perth Airport for putting impediments in the way of staff.