Senator Nick Xenophon (Independent, South Australia) has said there should be a “forensic examination” of Qantas management statements about the financial state of the airline. The senator made this statement in parliament when he gave details claiming Qantas is being run down to benefit Jetstar. He believed that inside information from the Qantas Group he raised (see post below QANTAS CREATIVE ACCOUNTING; CAIRNS-DARWIN-SINGAPORE ) required serious scrutiny.
“Qantas should not be allowed to face death by a thousand cuts—job cuts, route cuts, quality cuts, engineering cuts, wage cuts. None of this is acceptable , and it must all be resisted for the sake of the pilots, the crews, the passengers and ultimately the future of our national carrier,” he told Senate.
“ I pay tribute to the 35,000 employees of the Qantas Group. At the forefront of the fight against the strategy of Qantas management have been the Qantas pilots, to whom millions of Australians have literally entrusted their lives. The Australian and International Pilots Association sees Qantas management strategy as a race to the bottom when it comes to service and safety.
“On November 8 last year, QF32 experienced a serious malfunction with the explosion of an engine on an A380 aircraft,” he continued .” In the wrong hands, that plane could have crashed. But it did not, in large part because the Qantas flight crew had been trained to exemplary world-class standards and knew how to cope with such a terrifying reality.”
Senator Xenophon went on to say : “I am deeply concerned that what is being pursued may well cause training levels to fall and as a result safety standards in the Qantas Group may fall as well.” AIPA pilots and the licensed aircraft engineers were not fighting for themselves; they were fighting for the Australian public. That was why he was deeply concerned about any action Qantas management may be considering taking against pilots who speak out in the public interest.
“Qantas should not be allowed to face death by a thousand cuts—job cuts, route cuts, quality cuts, engineering cuts, wage cuts. None of this is acceptable , and it must all be resisted for the sake of the pilots, the crews, the passengers and ultimately the future of our national carrier,” he told Senate.
“ I pay tribute to the 35,000 employees of the Qantas Group. At the forefront of the fight against the strategy of Qantas management have been the Qantas pilots, to whom millions of Australians have literally entrusted their lives. The Australian and International Pilots Association sees Qantas management strategy as a race to the bottom when it comes to service and safety.
“On November 8 last year, QF32 experienced a serious malfunction with the explosion of an engine on an A380 aircraft,” he continued .” In the wrong hands, that plane could have crashed. But it did not, in large part because the Qantas flight crew had been trained to exemplary world-class standards and knew how to cope with such a terrifying reality.”
Senator Xenophon went on to say : “I am deeply concerned that what is being pursued may well cause training levels to fall and as a result safety standards in the Qantas Group may fall as well.” AIPA pilots and the licensed aircraft engineers were not fighting for themselves; they were fighting for the Australian public. That was why he was deeply concerned about any action Qantas management may be considering taking against pilots who speak out in the public interest.
