Global General

Qantas pressures pilots to cut fuel costs

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-20 11:19
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CANBERRA - Australian pilots on Friday said the Qantas airline is pressuring them to cut costs by taking on less fuel.

Qantas has hiked surcharges and fares several times in the last three months, and warned its shareholders and customers that it faces rising costs because of the skyrocketing fuel price.

Earlier this week, two Qantas long-haul jets were forced to divert because they did not have enough fuel on board to reach their destinations.

Captain Richard Woodward is the vice president of the Australian and International Pilots Association, a union whose members fly for Qantas.

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He said passengers are starting to feel the effects of its attempts to cut costs, and warned that while safety is not being compromised, passengers can expect a lot more inconvenience in the future.

He was quoted as saying by ABC Radio on Friday that Qantas ranks its pilots on the amount of fuel they carry and use, which has put pressure on pilots to make as many fuel savings as they safely can.

"There is subtle pressure to make sure that you only carry the minimum necessary and, as I said, I must emphasis that the fuel system is not unsafe," he explained.

"It's agreed to by the civil (aviation) authority, but it is an absolute minimum and, as I said, it is up to the captain to apply discretion so we get things like asking us not to start the ancillary power unit engine in the tail when we land until we have to at the last minute.

"That saves 90 or 100 kilos a time. That doesn't sound like much fuel, but if you've got as many flights as we've got, that adds up."

In responses, Qantas said it rejects any suggestions pilots are being pressured to carry low levels of fuel. However, it does say that pilots are encouraged to closely monitor how much fuel they put on board the aircraft.

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