Update October 1, 2001. Just a few days after the terrible events of September 11, 2001, Ansett Airlines collapsed causing havoc in Australia with travellers stranded and many remote routes previously serviced by Ansett left unserviced. There is at present a last effort to find a buyer for the airline which has been assessed as unviable and an emergency prop up which has some aircraft flying again although it is not known for how long. I have adjusted my rating accordingly as obviously, I can no longer recommend this airline as before. Update October 31, 2001. There are interested parties presently bidding for Ansett. Flights continue, although limited. The Australian public are getting behind Ansett, regarded as an Aussie icon of sorts.

I don't much care for flying.

In the 70's, when I was a teenager I wanted to have my ears pierced and my father told me "If God had wanted you to have a hole in each ear, you would have been born with a hole in each ear." I had to wait a while but eventually, at sixteen, I went off to town one day and got the ears pierced anyway as any teenager worth their salt would have!

All of these years later I have to admit that I feel a little that way myself when it comes to the subject of flying. Man was not born with wings. There is something about being thousands of feet up in the air over vast oceans and inhospitable terrain that makes me feel just a little bit uneasy.

There are other things about flying that I don't find endearing. The mini meals served onboard are truly trying. How do they find potatoes that small? The tiny toilets are another annoyance and what about the lack of generosity in terms of leg room.

Here in Australia,the airline industry has had a bit of a shake up in recent times. New players. Price wars. Groundings. Bad publicity.

Ansett Australia Airlines is one of the big two players in the domestic Australian aviation scene. Ansett has had perhaps it's worst ever year from a public relations point of view when the official aviation watchdog, The Civil Aviation Safety Authority grounded Ansett flights at Christmas time 2000 when it was revealed apparently that Ansett had not fulfilled its obligations in terms of safety/maintenance checks on some aircraft. Passengers were stranded. It was the big news story. A public relations nightmare for Ansett which continued and at Easter time 2001, the CASA again grounded its 767's over similar concerns.

Since then Ansett airlines has embarked on a massive public relations campaign in Australia to rebuild confidence in the airline and repair it's image before the flying public. Major Aussie celebrities feature on the television advertising and in press campaigns smiling and striding boldly & eagerly toward check-in at the Ansett gate, putting their hands up as being on the Ansett team if you like. It seems to have worked. The negative publicity has died away and many people have short memories.

It is quite ironic really that this happened to Ansett as Ansett apparently have an even better air safety record than the much touted Qantas in real terms. I guess that having been under the close scrutiny of the Aviation watchdog here in Australia, Ansett will have been prompted to rectify their previous embarassing failings and will now be the absolute model of airline safety/maintenance perfection. It may be an especially good time to fly Ansett so far as safety issues are concerned.

Over the last few years I have flown Ansett in most instances over Qantas. It was the airline of choice of my former employer. I probably have a slight preference toward Qantas but so much between the two airlines is similar that it is a border line call.

Ansett is part of the Star Alliance Group which includes Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa & others. This makes it attractive to me so far as airline reward points are concerned because for international travel, I would prefer to fly Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa or British Airlines rather than Qantas due to comfort and service factors and these in turn earn points for Ansett Global Rewards programme.

If I fly Qantas domestically, I earn points for the Qantas frequent flyer programme which is OK too however, I prefer not to fly Qantas internationally if Singapore Airlines or the Star Alliance Member Airlines are alternatives because I think that they are outstanding in terms of comfort & service.

Back to Ansett. On my last flight, I travelled with two youngsters and my husband. I had a very bad flight. The air pressure in the cabin really affected me badly and I developed a migraine. The seating was so cramped. I developed bad cramps in my lower legs. I usually try to get a window seat but was unable to do so. Fortunately it was only a four hour flight.

My children were fascinated with flying which is just as well because they received no special attention from the air hostesses who I noticed were decidedly unfriendly. Children's activity packs were given to the children without a smile. These were very very basic and as a tool to amuse little ones could certainly be improved a little.

The children were served first when the meals were distributed which was merciful. The tiny meals were just perfect for them and they enjoyed what they received.

I usually order a vegetarian meal when flying, not because I am vegetarian but rather because I don't take milk and this is the way to ensure a milk free meal on Ansett. The up side to this is that one gets served before the rest.

On my last Ansett flight however, I ommitted to do this. My mistake entirely, but one which I wished I had not made when I saw the breakfast tray. I won't forget the look of the sausage in a hurry. It was grey and hideous. Amazingly, it tasted even worse than it looked, and then there was the texture! The egg wasn't looking too good either.

The meals on Ansett are at best OK, but always too little. (I am not saying here that the competition provide anything much better either!) On my last few flights I have had some really fairly ordinary food in many instances. The cabin crew on Ansett sometimes take a very long time to clear the trays after the meal which is something that could be improved.

A grumble which I have with the catering department is that as a non milk drinking person, I may order a vegetarian meal, yet, on the aircraft no soy milk is on offer for those who cannot drink cows milk. Oh to be able to have a nice cup of tea on a flight rather than hot water with a tea bag dashed through it and no milk.

Several Ansett flights I have been on have had rather shabby aircraft interiors. On a flight from Sydney to Brisbane I had an arm rest which had no cover on upon which to rest ones arm. The internal wiring was all exposed and the edges were sharp and rough. I complained to the cabin steward who did not offer any solution telling me simply and with a blank face that there were no other seats. I ended up asking for a pillow to place over the arm rest. There were not enough pillows to go around (a common scenario) and so I was given an airline blanket instead which I duly folded up to cover the offending armrest (or lack of one).

I have been on a couple of Ansett flights also where the rubbish from the previous passenger has remained stuffed in the pockets at the back of the seats including ear pieces for the onboard entertainment. On one flight the sound on the television channels was completely distorted by severe static for the whole flight. On another flight from Sydney to Perth, I was positioned in a window seat near the wing. There was some kind of technical problem. We circled Sydney in the air for some time before we went on our way. A loud noise started up which was incredibly loud and was accompanied by severe vibration of the window area which lasted for the whole flight. People on the flight were extremely nervous, especially when we had bad turbulence as we travelled west. Impossible to relay to you reading this how awful this flight was with this terribly loud engine noise booming into the cabin for the whole flight.

Despite these less than excellent flight experiences, in all instances, I have to say that I have found Ansett to be very punctual. One flight I was on was delayed for an hour taking off and the same one was delayed almost another hour in the air, but this was due to bad weather in Brisbane.

Whilst the friendliness and attentiveness of the Ansett cabin crew may not be a highlight of the service, I have found the airport staff at check in extremely helpful,cheery and professional at all Aussie ports except perhaps Sydney (where nobody ever looks chirpy). The Ansett telephone bookings people are also very efficient and eager to help and if you take a look at Ansett's web site you will find it very user friendly and easy to navigate.

Ansett is offering great deals at the moment. The Australian market is very competitive making it more attractive for travellers. Ansett and Qantas are continually matching each other's offers in the ongoing price war.

In summary, Ansett have had to lift their game in terms of maintaining proper safety and maintenance standards as set down, since coming under notice during the last year for their oversights in this area. Apart from this instance, Ansett has had an excellent practical safety record to date. Most of the aircraft are satisfactory in terms of comfort and cleanliness but not all. Food is average only. Service overall is above average. Membership in The Star Alliance is advantageous for travellers interested in rewards through Ansett's Global Rewards. (Membership to this programme is free.) With the exception of the grounding of the airline as outlined in this opinion which was an extraordinary circumstance, Ansett is reliable and flights are by and large to schedule. Ansett's fares are comparable to Qantas which is their main competitor in the Australian domestic market.

Thanks for reading.











Recommended: No