Inbox

Etihad to launch Brisbane 787-9 flights

Mr T says: I congratulate Etihad Airways on this announcement, I really believe the arrival of the 787-9 will be a definite game-changer for south-east Queensland, it might also give their competitors a little run for their money, especially when it come to economy class seating.

Well done Etihad!

Qantas to cut more engineering jobs

Ted says: I know quite a few of the blokes caught up in this redundancy – some are reluctant to go, others have embraced the change.

Strangely, at least one of them was contacted by SMS to work overtime the day immediately after he was retrenched.

He was planning on going in and signing on – just to see what would happen.

The remaining AMEs and LAMEs can effectively write their own overtime ticket.

They’re cutting staff in the training school too, even though they have a 20-year contract to provide A330 maintenance training to an outside customer.

I just don’t understand the rationale, and I suspect that vast areas of upper management don’t have a blind idea about what goes on at the coalface.

Jacob says: Have to move on… To where? My father has been a Qantas licensed engineer for 26 years.

There is so much overtime going around because they don’t have enough licensed engineers.

He loves his job and is very good at it.

But where is he to go? Virgin? They have 300+ applications.

I think in the medium term Qantas is going to get in trouble trying to find licence coverage, as a lot of days they already struggle.

There is so much overtime going around because they don’t have enough licensed engineers.

It’s a very specialised job.

They need to hold on to a few more people.

Especially the young ones they are sacking.

Anyway that’s my two cents.

I hope the Qantas board can turn the company around without cutting too many people.

RAAA calls for fairer deal for regionals

Ben says: Why not adopt the FAA system where everything is funded from the fuel tax? No user fees left, right and centre!

F-35A damaged by fire at Eglin AFB

BH says: I wonder how Boeing would have gone if the X-32 was selected for development? Like the F-22 and the F-35, it too would have been heavily dependent on software.

Are the manufacturers jumping too far ahead and biting off more than they can chew by promising all of these high-tech yet largely unproven capabilities? Darren says: The naysayers are as bad as the cheerleaders.

Neither are willing to look at the true state of the program or aircraft.

New Zealand Defence Capability Plan released

Dave says: While the C-130 may have been big enough for the equipment that NZ had, eg M-113 and UH-1H, it is not really big enough for some of the equipment they have today, eg LAV III and NH90.