Chris

Idle Thumbs 180: Wars and Pieces

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I never check bags if I can avoid it, but that's entirely because of the hassle involved with retrieving said luggage.  I've flown literally half way around the world several times and have yet to lose a single piece of luggage, and I've flown on every major US airline (and a few minor ones).  I count myself lucky though.

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Ah, right, in Australia only shitty airlines have been brave enough to make you pay for checked luggage. I don't mean 'low-cost' airlines, I mean the ones that people say 'don't fly with them, just get a bus instead'.

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It's just become accepted as a good way to save money for us and the airlines over here. I've had a few flights where I just cram a carrier bag with clothes rather than pay for the cabin baggage.

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I've never lost a checked bag, but I've also always avoided checking, even when it was free, because I'm just the kind of irritating person who likes to get off the plane first and get on my way as quickly as I can.

As far as charging for checking baggage goes, it's not really fair to criticize airlines for charging for it. The reality is, airlines have INCREDIBLY low profit margins, and essentially all non-business travelers buy their airfare based on one criterion only: price. (Business travelers who pay full-fare, especially on business and first class, essentially subsidize air travel for other travelers.) So airlines have to compete on lower airfare above all else. Some airlines are more expensive, and some less expensive, based on a broader reputation as a "budget" airline or a higher-end airline, but they all feel the constant pressure to lower prices for whatever category of service they provide, because it's the main way to attract travelers. And since their margins are so low already, the only way to do that is by charging for services that not all travelers may need.

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I think that's what I find so weird, that in America basically everyone buys airfare based solely on price. I guess it's because in Australia we have Qantas, and there's a little bit of pride in Qantas' quality and safety record. I know Tiger, a very low cost airline in Australia, nearly went under because its safety record deteriorated to the point where people didn't want to fly them.

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I've never lost a checked bag, but I've also always avoided checking, even when it was free, because I'm just the kind of irritating person who likes to get off the plane first and get on my way as quickly as I can.

As far as charging for checking baggage goes, it's not really fair to criticize airlines for charging for it. The reality is, airlines have INCREDIBLY low profit margins, and essentially all non-business travelers buy their airfare based on one criterion only: price. (Business travelers who pay full-fare, especially on business and first class, essentially subsidize air travel for other travelers.) So airlines have to compete on lower airfare above all else. Some airlines are more expensive, and some less expensive, based on a broader reputation as a "budget" airline or a higher-end airline, but they all feel the constant pressure to lower prices for whatever category of service they provide, because it's the main way to attract travelers. And since their margins are so low already, the only way to do that is by charging for services that not all travelers may need.

Not only that, but an extra 30KG of luggage requires a non-trivial increase in fuel (and cost to the airline).

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Not only that, but an extra 30KG of luggage requires a non-trivial increase in fuel (and cost to the airline).

 

They're really missing a trick by not adjusting ticket prices proportionally to passenger weight.

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They're really missing a trick by not adjusting ticket prices proportionally to passenger weight.

 

It can only be a matter of time...

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I think that's what I find so weird, that in America basically everyone buys airfare based solely on price.

 

That's not entirely true. I heavily favor certain airlines, even if others are cheaper (to a point). For example, I'll pretty much always fly Virgin America if they cover the route I need (horrible safety video notwithstanding), even though Southwest is usually cheaper (though I don't mind Southwest as much as other people).

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I think that's what I find so weird, that in America basically everyone buys airfare based solely on price. I guess it's because in Australia we have Qantas, and there's a little bit of pride in Qantas' quality and safety record. I know Tiger, a very low cost airline in Australia, nearly went under because its safety record deteriorated to the point where people didn't want to fly them.

American air carriers have very strong safety records, as do air carriers in most developed countries. There is no significant safety concern when traveling on a low-cost American carrier. An airline closing because of poor safety in either country is, I would imagine, an outlier of an event, but it also looks like Tigerair is still in operation and was recently fully acquired by Virgin Australia.

I would also venture to say that most of what I've said about American carriers' financial struggles are nearly identical to those of Australian carriers. Qantas, despite what I assume you correctly state as a strong national reputation, has been suffering financial losses and embarking on severe cost-cutting measures, as well as seeking government assistance after claiming that its main competitor Virgin Australia has unfair advantage due to its foreign backing--except that Virgin Australia is also in a poor spot financially.

http://www.news.com.au/finance/business/rex-coo-garry-filmer-warns-australian-aviation-is-on-the-brink-of-collapse/story-fnkgde2y-1226822417712

http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/qantas-and-virgin-australia-battle-for-market-share-good-for-travellers/story-e6frfq80-1226840662633

It appears that the same price-based competition occurs, maybe just among fewer players than in the United States, which makes sense given the United States is 25% bigger by area and has a population some 13 times higher.

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Bad things happen when you're traveling because life is a confusing and chaotic mess of the unknown but I've always found it pretty fucking remarkable that I can go anywhere on this planet in 24 hours.

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Bad things happen when you're traveling because life is a confusing and chaotic mess of the unknown but I've always found it pretty fucking remarkable that I can go anywhere on this planet in 24 hours.

 

Or in Danielle's case 22 hours   :eyebrow:

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I would also venture to say that most of what I've said about American carriers' financial struggles are nearly identical to those of Australian carriers. Qantas, despite what I assume you correctly state as a strong national reputation, has been suffering financial losses and embarking on severe cost-cutting measures, as well as seeking government assistance after claiming that its main competitor Virgin Australia has unfair advantage due to its foreign backing--except that Virgin Australia is also in a poor spot financially.

 

One of the tricks here is that Qantas operates a low-cost carrier, Jetstar, and there's a theory going around that Qantas management has been diverting resources to the more profitable Jetstar in order to rustle up government assistance.

 

Obviously I'm not claiming that price competition doesn't happen, this is capitalism, but there seems to be somewhat higher expectations for what you get for your ticket. (I know that the ACCC has had concerns about 'additional' fees in the airline industry for a while now; I'd imagine that, like the mobile phone industry, eventually it's going to end up with Qantas and Virgin dobbing on each other to the ACCC.)

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One of the tricks here is that Qantas operates a low-cost carrier, Jetstar, and there's a theory going around that Qantas management has been diverting resources to the more profitable Jetstar in order to rustle up government assistance.

 

Obviously I'm not claiming that price competition doesn't happen, this is capitalism, but there seems to be somewhat higher expectations for what you get for your ticket. (I know that the ACCC has had concerns about 'additional' fees in the airline industry for a while now; I'd imagine that, like the mobile phone industry, eventually it's going to end up with Qantas and Virgin dobbing on each other to the ACCC.)

 

On the idea that you get more for your ticket in your neck of the woods - I was genuinely *shocked* by how kind and considerate security and other airport staff were when I traveled to Australia and New Zealand. Smiling, friendly folks actually helped me with my bags instead of, say, berating me for opting out of the scanner machines. It was the best flying experience I've ever had in my life.

 

I flew... ten times in two weeks during my trip to NZ and Australia, and it was consistently wonderful.

 

I say this as a fairly frequent flier. I also used to fly from Boston to SF and back at least once a month and have many wonderful and terrible airplane stories. But that 22 hours at LAX was pretty annoying.

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On the topic of video game detective games: this looks pretty interesting.

 

The presentation is lovely, but their stretch goals seem to suggest a lack of confidence in their own writing (which isn't ill-founded judging by the video)...

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The writing -- from the small sample there is in the video -- reminds me of Dangerous High School Girls in Trouble! which was both terrible and really fun in turns.

And I think it's okay to be on unsure footing with your mystery writing skills. It's a really difficult genre to work in. Not everyone is JB Fletcher.

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I don't know, saying that hiring an editor will improve you writing is true whether you're fan fiction writer or Ernest Hemingway. Another eye is always good.

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