Jetstar Airways
Encyclopedia
Jetstar Airways is an Australian low-cost airline
headquartered in Melbourne
, Australia
. It is a subsidiary of Qantas
, created in response to the threat posed by low-cost airline Virgin Blue (now known as Virgin Australia). The airline operates an extensive domestic network as well as regional and international services from its main base at Melbourne Airport
, using a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft. Parent company Qantas also has stakes in sister companies Jetstar Asia Airways
and Valuair
in Singapore
(via its stake in Orange Star
); and Jetstar Pacific Airlines
in Vietnam
. Jetstar shares its parent's strong competition with Australia's biggest low-cost carrier Virgin Australia. Both Tiger Airways Singapore
and Tiger Airways Australia
are also major competitors to Jetstar in the low-cost market.
in 2003 as a low-cost domestic subsidiary. Qantas had previously acquired Impulse Airlines
and operated it under the QantasLink
brand from 2001 onwards, but following the decision to launch a low-cost carrier
, re-launched the airline under the Jetstar brand. Domestic passenger services began on 25 May 2004, soon after the sale of tickets for her inaugural flight in February 2004. International services to Christchurch
, New Zealand
, commenced on 1 December 2005. Although owned by Qantas, its management operates largely independent of Qantas through the company formerly known as Impulse Airlines — an airline acquired by Qantas on 20 November 2001.
Originally the airline was headquartered on the grounds of Avalon Airport
near Melborne, and started flying out of Avalon Airport in mid 2004, but has since relocated its registered office to the Melbourne CBD.
Despite its low-cost ethos, Jetstar currently offers a limited number of connecting services without through baggage checking — though this has changed since international flights commenced in November 2006. Baggage conectivity was added as a service offering for domestic flights connecting with international flights.
Reserved seating is currently provided on all routes and on 4 October 2006, Jetstar became the first Australian airline to allow customers to select their seat upon booking.
The first flight of sister airline Jetstar Asia Airways took off from its Singapore hub to Hong Kong
on 13 December 2004. This marked Qantas' entry into the Asian low-cost market and signified its intention to battle key competitor Singapore Airlines
on its home ground. Qantas has a 42.5% stake in Jetstar Asia's ownership.
On 1 December 2003, when Qantas announced this new low-cost carrier there was a virtual airline
named 'Jetstar International Airlines' already in existence, complete with a web-site. As part of their startup promotion, Qantas sold 100,000 airline tickets for $29, and the virtual airline's web site was swamped with would-be customers, job-seekers, and prospective vendors. The virtual airline sued Qantas, claiming Copyright Infringement, Trademark Infringement, Illegal Cybersquatting, Conversion and Lanham Act Unfair Competition in United States District Court. Qantas settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
On 1 December 2005, Jetstar commenced operations from Sydney
, Melbourne, Brisbane
and the Gold Coast
to Christchurch in New Zealand. On 7 December 2005, it was announced that Jetstar would establish the world's first global low-cost airline. At the end of 2005, it was announced that Jetstar would fly to Perth
, Western Australia
, from Avalon Airport.
In July 2006, Jetstar and Jetstar Asia were brought together under the Jetstar brand. Online bookings for both carriers were integrated into Jetstar.com.
In July 2007, Qantas acquired a 18% stake in Vietnam's Pacific Airlines, to increase to 30% by 2010. The airline was relaunched on 23 May 2008 as Jetstar Pacific.
On 1 August 2008 Jetstar announced that it had signed an agreement with the Northern Territory
Government to make Darwin International Airport
an international hub with plans for seven aircraft to be based in Darwin. Under the agreement Jetstar would be required to base three aircraft at Darwin by June 2009, with a further four by June 2012, with the Territory Government to provide A$
5 million to set up the hub and a further A$3 million for promotion of the new routes.
On 28 April 2009, Jetstar commenced daily direct services from Auckland to Gold Coast and Sydney. On 10 June the same year Jetstar commenced domestic New Zealand flights between Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown. Jetstar replaced Jetconnect
on these routes using Airbus A320 aircraft.
From 1 February 2011, Jetstar started its co-operation with the oneworld
alliance, allowing people booking an itinerary with a full oneworld member to include a Jetstar flight in the itinerary. However, the flight must be sold via Jetstar's corporate parent Qantas, under a QF flight number.
In August 2011 Jetstar's parent Qantas announced that it will set up a new airline to be called Jetstar Japan
, a joint venture of Jetstar, Japan Airlines
, and Mitsubishi
. The airline was expected to start operating in December 2011.
Jetstar previously operated Boeing 717
s, which are now in service with Qantaslink
.
In October 2011 Qantas announced a 110-aircraft A320 order for its Jetstar-branded airlines and its new full-service Asian-based airline, including 78 A320neos. 99 will be for Jetstar Airways, Jetstar Asia and Jetstar Pacific; and to establish the new airline Jetstar Japan. The remaining 11 will be used to establish the proposed new premium Asian airline.
.
The advertising slogan of Jetstar is "All day every day low fares". In 2006, the jingle "Let's Fly Jetstar" and the use of Szubanski ceased and was replaced with "It's All About Choice / Fly Away" (later "Low Fares, Good Times").
In 2007, Jetstar won the low-cost carrier section of the Skytrax World Airline Awards. Since then it has not won any Skytrax awards with competitor Virgin Blue winning in 2010.
Jetstar Airways is the major sponsor of the National Rugby League
team, the Gold Coast Titans
. In July 2008 Jetstar Airways was named the Official Airline of the Australian national rugby league team
. One of its A320s was decorated with special decals to advertise the relationship.
Jetstar sponsorship logos appears at the credits for Channel Seven
game show Deal Or No Deal and Network Ten
soap Neighbours under the banner of We choose to fly.... They use it for two of Channel Seven's programs Sunrise/Weekend Sunrise & The Morning Show, under the banner of Travel Partner....
single class service offering food and drinks for purchase.
On all A330 international routes, Jetstar offers a two-class service.
Business Class
Jetstar offers Business Class on its A330-200 aircraft. The Business Class cabin is fitted with 38 leather premium class seats in a 2-3-2 configuration, similar to Qantas domestic Business Class or Qantas international premium economy class. The service is inclusive of all meals and beverages, in-flight entertainment, International Qantas Club access where available, and includes an increased baggage allowance of 30 kg.
Economy Class
Jetstar offers either pre-purchased meals on board or buy on board service with food and beverages.
for use as in-flight entertainment devices. The units, which are pre-loaded with movies, games and magazines, are provided on flights over two hours duration and are available for a fee in Economy Class but are complimentary in the international Business Class cabin.
was involved in a well publicised confrontation with Jetstar. When asked to check-in his wheelchair and transfer to an attendant propelled chair at check-in, rather than the preferred practice of transferring only at the gate, Fearnley refused to give up his independence and crawled through the terminal instead.
Again in November 2009, Jetstar came under more scrutiny after they refused to book a guide dog
of a visually impaired couple. Jetstar later apologised for the incident and blamed it on a break down in communications.
Jetstar has been criticised by the union representing its pilots for its move to hire foreign cabin crew and pilots and place them on Australian-registered aircraft. The crews would be paid less and have worse working conditions than their Australian counterparts. The foreign crews would not have working visas in Australia even though they will be working on board Australian-registered aircraft.
to Gold Coast Airport
had a fire in the cockpit, which was extinguished by the pilots who subsequently diverted the aircraft to Guam International Airport. None of the 203 passengers and crew on board were injured and the aircraft landed safely. An investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau
found that the fire was caused by the use of a particular sealant
within the electrical connection of the windshield heating system, which caused unintended electrical heating during normal windshield heating operation. This subsequently led to overheating causing a localised fire due to thermal breakdown of the sealant. Following the incident, other cases of windshield overheating were reported on Airbus A320 and A330 aircraft, leading Airbus to identify all 1,500 windshields produced using the particular sealant. Due to limited compliance by airlines of the replacement recommendation, the European Aviation Safety Agency
is considering the implementation of an airworthiness directive
requiring European operators of applicable Airbus aircraft to comply with the Airbus windshield replacement program.
began airing the series Going Places
from October 2007. The eight-part series depicted the everyday lives of selected members of Jetstar's Melbourne airport staff. The show followed the dramas of the check-in staff, mid-flight staff, and the induction program for new international recruits.
Low-cost carrier
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline is an airline that generally has lower fares and fewer comforts...
headquartered in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It is a subsidiary of Qantas
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
, created in response to the threat posed by low-cost airline Virgin Blue (now known as Virgin Australia). The airline operates an extensive domestic network as well as regional and international services from its main base at Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the...
, using a mixed fleet of narrow- and wide-body aircraft. Parent company Qantas also has stakes in sister companies Jetstar Asia Airways
Jetstar Asia Airways
Jetstar Asia Airways Private Limited , operating as Jetstar Asia, is a low-cost airline headquartered in Singapore. It is the Asian offshoot of Qantas Jetstar Airways...
and Valuair
Valuair
Valuair Limited is a Singapore-based low-cost carrier. It was launched in 2004, offering initial services to Bangkok and Hong Kong. It differentiates itself from other low-cost carriers in that it offers frills such as a baggage allowance of over 20 kg, in-flight food, allocated seats, and...
in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
(via its stake in Orange Star
Orange Star
Orange Star is an airline holding company that was formed on July 24, 2005, when Jetstar Asia Airways and Valuair announced their merger in the light of growing competition from other low-cost carriers, price wars and rising fuel costs. Jetstar Asia Chief Executive Officer Chong Phit Lian became...
); and Jetstar Pacific Airlines
Jetstar Pacific Airlines
Jetstar Pacific Airlines Joint Stock Aviation Company is a low-cost airline headquartered in the Tân Bình District of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. It operates domestic and international services, and charter flights. Its main base is Tan Son Nhat International Airport, the main airport in Ho Chi...
in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Jetstar shares its parent's strong competition with Australia's biggest low-cost carrier Virgin Australia. Both Tiger Airways Singapore
Tiger Airways
Tiger Airways Singapore Pte Ltd, operating as Tiger Airways Singapore, is a low cost airline which commenced services on 25 March 2005. It is a subsidiary of Tiger Airways Holdings, a Singapore-based company, which is owned partially by Singapore Airlines...
and Tiger Airways Australia
Tiger Airways Australia
Tiger Airways Australia Pty Ltd, operating as Tiger Airways Australia, is a low cost airline which commenced services in the Australian domestic airline market on 23 November 2007. It is a subsidiary of Tiger Airways Holdings, a Singapore-based company, which is owned partially by Singapore Airlines...
are also major competitors to Jetstar in the low-cost market.
History
The airline was established by QantasQantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...
in 2003 as a low-cost domestic subsidiary. Qantas had previously acquired Impulse Airlines
Impulse Airlines
Impulse Airlines was an independent airline in Australia which operated regional and low cost trunk services between 1994 and 2001. It was acquired by Qantas in 2001 and later formed the basis of Qantas' low-cost airline Jetstar...
and operated it under the QantasLink
QantasLink
QantasLink is a regional brand of Australian airline Qantas and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is a major competitor to Regional Express Airlines, Virgin Australia and Skywest Airlines. As of September 2010 QantasLink provides 1900 flights each week to 54 domestic and...
brand from 2001 onwards, but following the decision to launch a low-cost carrier
Low-cost carrier
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline is an airline that generally has lower fares and fewer comforts...
, re-launched the airline under the Jetstar brand. Domestic passenger services began on 25 May 2004, soon after the sale of tickets for her inaugural flight in February 2004. International services to Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, commenced on 1 December 2005. Although owned by Qantas, its management operates largely independent of Qantas through the company formerly known as Impulse Airlines — an airline acquired by Qantas on 20 November 2001.
Originally the airline was headquartered on the grounds of Avalon Airport
Avalon Airport
Avalon Airport is the second busiest of the four airports serving Melbourne and is located in Avalon, Victoria, Australia, which is north-east of the city of Geelong and to the south-west of the state's capital city of Melbourne....
near Melborne, and started flying out of Avalon Airport in mid 2004, but has since relocated its registered office to the Melbourne CBD.
Despite its low-cost ethos, Jetstar currently offers a limited number of connecting services without through baggage checking — though this has changed since international flights commenced in November 2006. Baggage conectivity was added as a service offering for domestic flights connecting with international flights.
Reserved seating is currently provided on all routes and on 4 October 2006, Jetstar became the first Australian airline to allow customers to select their seat upon booking.
The first flight of sister airline Jetstar Asia Airways took off from its Singapore hub to Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
on 13 December 2004. This marked Qantas' entry into the Asian low-cost market and signified its intention to battle key competitor Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines
Singapore Airlines Limited is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. Singapore Airlines operates a hub at Changi Airport and has a strong presence in the Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and "Kangaroo Route" markets...
on its home ground. Qantas has a 42.5% stake in Jetstar Asia's ownership.
On 1 December 2003, when Qantas announced this new low-cost carrier there was a virtual airline
Virtual airline
A virtual airline is a dedicated hobby organization that uses flight simulation to model the operations of an airline. Virtual airlines generally have a presence on the Internet, similar to a real airline...
named 'Jetstar International Airlines' already in existence, complete with a web-site. As part of their startup promotion, Qantas sold 100,000 airline tickets for $29, and the virtual airline's web site was swamped with would-be customers, job-seekers, and prospective vendors. The virtual airline sued Qantas, claiming Copyright Infringement, Trademark Infringement, Illegal Cybersquatting, Conversion and Lanham Act Unfair Competition in United States District Court. Qantas settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
On 1 December 2005, Jetstar commenced operations from Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Melbourne, Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
and the Gold Coast
Gold Coast, Queensland
Gold Coast is a coastal city of Australia located in South East Queensland, 94km south of the state capital Brisbane. With a population approximately 540,000 in 2010, it is the second most populous city in the state, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous...
to Christchurch in New Zealand. On 7 December 2005, it was announced that Jetstar would establish the world's first global low-cost airline. At the end of 2005, it was announced that Jetstar would fly to Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, from Avalon Airport.
In July 2006, Jetstar and Jetstar Asia were brought together under the Jetstar brand. Online bookings for both carriers were integrated into Jetstar.com.
In July 2007, Qantas acquired a 18% stake in Vietnam's Pacific Airlines, to increase to 30% by 2010. The airline was relaunched on 23 May 2008 as Jetstar Pacific.
On 1 August 2008 Jetstar announced that it had signed an agreement with the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
Government to make Darwin International Airport
Darwin International Airport
Darwin International Airport is the busiest airport serving the Northern Territory and the tenth busiest airport in Australia. It is the only airport serving Darwin....
an international hub with plans for seven aircraft to be based in Darwin. Under the agreement Jetstar would be required to base three aircraft at Darwin by June 2009, with a further four by June 2012, with the Territory Government to provide A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
5 million to set up the hub and a further A$3 million for promotion of the new routes.
On 28 April 2009, Jetstar commenced daily direct services from Auckland to Gold Coast and Sydney. On 10 June the same year Jetstar commenced domestic New Zealand flights between Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown. Jetstar replaced Jetconnect
JetConnect
Jetconnect is an airline based in Auckland, New Zealand. It is a shell company of Qantas. It was established in July 2002 and started operations in October 2002. It operates trans-tasman services between New Zealand and Australia under the Qantas brand. It employs crew based in New Zealand and...
on these routes using Airbus A320 aircraft.
From 1 February 2011, Jetstar started its co-operation with the oneworld
Oneworld
Oneworld , branded as oneworld, is one of the world's three largest global airline alliances with its central management team, oneworld Management Company, based in New York City, New York, USA. Oneworld was founded in 1999 by American Airlines, British Airways, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific...
alliance, allowing people booking an itinerary with a full oneworld member to include a Jetstar flight in the itinerary. However, the flight must be sold via Jetstar's corporate parent Qantas, under a QF flight number.
In August 2011 Jetstar's parent Qantas announced that it will set up a new airline to be called Jetstar Japan
Jetstar Japan
Jetstar Japan is a low fare domestic Japanese airline that will start service in late 2012. It is owned by Qantas, Japan Airlines , and Mitsubishi Corp . It will fly to Kansai International Airport and Tokyo Narita Airport as well as Sapporo, Fukuoka, and Okinawa, and short haul services to other...
, a joint venture of Jetstar, Japan Airlines
Japan Airlines
is an airline headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. It is the flag carrier of Japan and its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport , as well as Nagoya's Chūbu Centrair International Airport and Osaka's Kansai International Airport...
, and Mitsubishi
Mitsubishi
The Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...
. The airline was expected to start operating in December 2011.
Destinations
Fleet
As of October 2011, the Jetstar Airways fleet consists of the following aircraft:| Aircraft | Total | Orders | Passengers | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | Y | Total | ||||
Airbus A320 family The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001... |
Asian and trans-Tasman routes; Sydney to Nadi |
|||||
Airbus A320 family The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001... |
Asian routes. |
|||||
Airbus A330 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body twin-engine jet airliner made by Airbus, a division of EADS. Versions of the A330 have a range of and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry of cargo.... |
To transfer to Qantas when Boeing 787 delivery commences. |
|||||
| 330+ | To be delivered from 2013. |
|||||
Jetstar previously operated Boeing 717
Boeing 717
The Boeing 717 is a twin-engine, single-aisle jet airliner, developed for the 100-seat market. The airliner was designed and marketed by McDonnell Douglas as the MD-95, a third-generation derivative of the DC-9. Capable of seating of up to 117 passengers, the 717 has maximum range of...
s, which are now in service with Qantaslink
QantasLink
QantasLink is a regional brand of Australian airline Qantas and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is a major competitor to Regional Express Airlines, Virgin Australia and Skywest Airlines. As of September 2010 QantasLink provides 1900 flights each week to 54 domestic and...
.
In October 2011 Qantas announced a 110-aircraft A320 order for its Jetstar-branded airlines and its new full-service Asian-based airline, including 78 A320neos. 99 will be for Jetstar Airways, Jetstar Asia and Jetstar Pacific; and to establish the new airline Jetstar Japan. The remaining 11 will be used to establish the proposed new premium Asian airline.
Marketing and sponsorship
From 2004 to 2006 the airline's mascot, Julie The Jetstar Girl, was played by actress Magda SzubanskiMagda Szubanski
Magda Szubanski is a British-born Australian actress, comedian, television presenter, radio host and author.Szubanski's career began while she was studying at university and she progressed to television sketch comedy, as both a writer and performer...
.
The advertising slogan of Jetstar is "All day every day low fares". In 2006, the jingle "Let's Fly Jetstar" and the use of Szubanski ceased and was replaced with "It's All About Choice / Fly Away" (later "Low Fares, Good Times").
In 2007, Jetstar won the low-cost carrier section of the Skytrax World Airline Awards. Since then it has not won any Skytrax awards with competitor Virgin Blue winning in 2010.
Jetstar Airways is the major sponsor of the National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
team, the Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans are an Australian professional rugby league football club, based in the Gold Coast, Queensland. The club competes in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership. It is the newest of the sixteen clubs in the league, having commenced its...
. In July 2008 Jetstar Airways was named the Official Airline of the Australian national rugby league team
Australian national rugby league team
The Australian national rugby league team have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competition since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian Rugby League, the Kangaroos' are ranked number one in the RLIF World Rankings...
. One of its A320s was decorated with special decals to advertise the relationship.
Jetstar sponsorship logos appears at the credits for Channel Seven
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
game show Deal Or No Deal and Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
soap Neighbours under the banner of We choose to fly.... They use it for two of Channel Seven's programs Sunrise/Weekend Sunrise & The Morning Show, under the banner of Travel Partner....
In-flight service
On all domestic routes Jetstar has a buy on boardBuy on board
In commercial flight, buy on board is a system where food or beverages are paid for on board; often food or beverages are not included in the ticket price for certain fare classes....
single class service offering food and drinks for purchase.
On all A330 international routes, Jetstar offers a two-class service.
Business Class
Jetstar offers Business Class on its A330-200 aircraft. The Business Class cabin is fitted with 38 leather premium class seats in a 2-3-2 configuration, similar to Qantas domestic Business Class or Qantas international premium economy class. The service is inclusive of all meals and beverages, in-flight entertainment, International Qantas Club access where available, and includes an increased baggage allowance of 30 kg.
Economy Class
Jetstar offers either pre-purchased meals on board or buy on board service with food and beverages.
In-flight entertainment
In November 2011 Jetstar became the first airline to offer passengers iPadsIPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
for use as in-flight entertainment devices. The units, which are pre-loaded with movies, games and magazines, are provided on flights over two hours duration and are available for a fee in Economy Class but are complimentary in the international Business Class cabin.
Controversies
On 14 November 2009, Jetstar passenger Paralympian Kurt FearnleyKurt Fearnley
Kurt Fearnley OAM is an Australian wheelchair racer, who competes at the Olympic level. At the 2004 Olympic Games, he finished 5th in the demonstration sport of Men's 1500m wheelchair...
was involved in a well publicised confrontation with Jetstar. When asked to check-in his wheelchair and transfer to an attendant propelled chair at check-in, rather than the preferred practice of transferring only at the gate, Fearnley refused to give up his independence and crawled through the terminal instead.
Again in November 2009, Jetstar came under more scrutiny after they refused to book a guide dog
Guide dog
Guide dogs are assistance dogs trained to lead blind and visually impaired people around obstacles.Although the dogs can be trained to navigate various obstacles, they are partially color blind and are not capable of interpreting street signs...
of a visually impaired couple. Jetstar later apologised for the incident and blamed it on a break down in communications.
Jetstar has been criticised by the union representing its pilots for its move to hire foreign cabin crew and pilots and place them on Australian-registered aircraft. The crews would be paid less and have worse working conditions than their Australian counterparts. The foreign crews would not have working visas in Australia even though they will be working on board Australian-registered aircraft.
Incidents
On 10 June 2009, Jetstar Flight 20 flying from Kansai International AirportKansai International Airport
is an international airport located on an artificial island in the middle of Osaka Bay, southwest of Ōsaka Station, located within three municipalities, including Izumisano , Sennan , and Tajiri , in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The airport is off the Honshu shore. The airport serves as an...
to Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport, or Coolangatta Airport, is an Australian domestic and international airport on the Gold Coast and is located some south of Brisbane and 25 km south of Surfers Paradise. The entrance to the airport is situated in the suburb of Bilinga on the Gold Coast...
had a fire in the cockpit, which was extinguished by the pilots who subsequently diverted the aircraft to Guam International Airport. None of the 203 passengers and crew on board were injured and the aircraft landed safely. An investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau
Australian Transport Safety Bureau
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is Australia’s national transport safety investigator. The ATSB is the federal government body responsible for investigating transport-related accidents and incidents within Australia. It covers air, sea and rail travel. The Australian Transport Safety...
found that the fire was caused by the use of a particular sealant
Sealant
A sealant may be viscous material that has little or no flow characteristics and stay where they are applied or thin and runny so as to allow it to penetrate the substrate by means of capillary reaction...
within the electrical connection of the windshield heating system, which caused unintended electrical heating during normal windshield heating operation. This subsequently led to overheating causing a localised fire due to thermal breakdown of the sealant. Following the incident, other cases of windshield overheating were reported on Airbus A320 and A330 aircraft, leading Airbus to identify all 1,500 windshields produced using the particular sealant. Due to limited compliance by airlines of the replacement recommendation, the European Aviation Safety Agency
European Aviation Safety Agency
The European Aviation Safety Agency is an agency of the European Union with offices in Cologne, Germany, which has been given regulatory and executive tasks in the field of civilian aviation safety. It was created on 15 July 2002, and it reached full functionality in 2008, taking over functions...
is considering the implementation of an airworthiness directive
Airworthiness Directive
An Airworthiness Directive is a notification to owners and operators of certified aircraft that a known safety deficiency with a particular model of aircraft, engine, avionics or other system exists and must be corrected....
requiring European operators of applicable Airbus aircraft to comply with the Airbus windshield replacement program.
Television series
The Nine NetworkNine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
began airing the series Going Places
Going Places (Australian TV series)
Going Places was an Australian television series broadcast by the Nine Network in late 2007. It consisted of 8 half-hour-long episodes.Australian actor Sue McIntosh narrates the series, while her husband, John McIntosh, produces.-Overview:...
from October 2007. The eight-part series depicted the everyday lives of selected members of Jetstar's Melbourne airport staff. The show followed the dramas of the check-in staff, mid-flight staff, and the induction program for new international recruits.
See also
- Ansett AustraliaAnsett AustraliaAnsett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...
- List of low-cost airlines
- Transport in AustraliaTransport in Australia-Roads:Australia has the second highest level of car ownership in the world. It has three to four times more road per capita than Europe and seven to nine times more than Asia. Australia also has the third highest per capita rate of fuel consumption in the world. Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane are...