Category: Business

qantas

IATA/ICAO Code

QF/QFA

Airline Type

Full Service Carrier

Hub(s)

Brisbane Airport, Melbourne Airport, Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport

Year Founded

1920

Alliance

oneworld

CEO

Alan Joyce

Country

Australia

This morning, the first Airbus A321LR to operate in the Australia and Pacific region rolled into Jetstar’s Hangar 41 at Melbourne Airport, precisely on time at 09:30. Resplendent in its new Jetstar livery, the airplane had stopovers in Mumbai and Perth on its flight from Germany’s Hamburg-Finkenwerder Airport.

The A321LR drew a big crowd to hangar 41

Jetstar CEO Gareth Evans and Airbus’ Head of Sales Pacific Marie-Frédérique Romain greeted the new Airbus A321LR. Photo: Michael Doran I Simple Flying

On hand to greet it were Jetstar CEO Gareth Evans, Airbus Head of Sales Pacific Marie-Frédérique Romain, Simple Flying and a crowd of very enthusiastic Jetstar staff with their families. After the aircraft was towed into the hangar and secured, the two senior Jetstar captains, David McCutcheon and Greg Eastaway emerged to a pop-star welcome. The long-range Airbus A321neo only needed two stopovers between Hamburg and Melbourne, the first in Mumbai (BOM), India and the second in Perth on the west coast of Australia.

When Jetstar placed the A321neo order in 2011, no one had heard of a coronavirus pandemic or expected aviation would be grounded. Speaking to Simple Flying, Evans said the decision made over a decade ago has turned out to be “absolutely the right decision.”

“It was a long time ago and it was absolutely the right decision, and if we had known then what we know now today we wouldn’t have changed a thing, these are the right aircraft for us, arriving for us at absolutely the right I think the important thing is the relationship we have with Airbus, the flexibility they have shown us as we try to manage our whole business, as Airbus has had to manage their whole business, through this roller-coaster of things over that period. of time, but particularly the last two to three years as we’ve gone through COVID.”

The Jetstar Airbus A321LR is the first of 18 to be delivered, with 20 A321XLRs to follow. Photo: Michael Doran I Simple Flying

The range of the Airbus A321LR puts east coast cities like Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane within reach of popular Asian destinations, including Bali, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Tokyo. It can reach as far afield from Perth as Shanghai, Hanoi, Colombo, the Maldives and the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. The aircraft will enter service in a few weeks between Melbourne Airport (MEL) and Cairns Airport (CNS), the gateway to the tropical mecca of the Great Barrier Reef. Evans said the A321neo’s arrival is a symbol “of the re-emergence of the airline as it comes out of COVID.”

“This is the first in a pipeline of NEO aircraft for the Qantas Group; we will be taking 18 of the long-range [LR] aircraft over the next two years and a further 20 of the extra long range [XLR], providing even longer range narrowbody flying. The aircraft will also lift the bar for us in terms of comfort for our customers, flying long distances, enabling us to fly to destinations that our existing A320 fleet can’t, and importantly will deliver a much more fuel-efficient way to fly. All of which will help make travel more affordable in Australia.”

Sustainability has not been forgotten with the LEAP engines and new paint system

The CFM LEAP-1A engines and the new paint system drive the sustainability credentials of the Jetstar A321LR. Photo: Michael Doran I Simple Flying

On sustainability, the new paint system, lightweight galley carts and freight containers reduce the weight of the Jetstar A321LR by more than 170 kilograms on each flight. Evans said this “translates to a saving of 1.2 million kilograms of fuel annually, a reduction of more than 4,000 tonnes of emissions, the equivalent of removing 1500 cars from roads annually.” The CFM LEAP 1A engines on the A321LR also add to emissions reduction, using 15% less fuel and being 50% quieter than the current A320ceo fleet.

The cabin will be a whole new experience for low-airfare passengers. In a first for low-fare carriers in Australia, Jetstar will introduce digital streaming later this year so customers can access the inflight entertainment on their own devices. Evans said:

“We’ve fine-tuned the cabin to create the best inflight experience for low fares travel, the aircraft has the widest cabin for a single-aisle aircraft, and we’ve used that space innovatively with wider seats, extra large overhead bins and in-seat USB chargers for personal devices.”

The A321LRs bring flexibility and capacity to Jetstar

The Jetstar A321LR got a warmer reception inside the hangar than the cold dreary Melbourne day. Photo: Michael Doran I Simple Flying

The A321LRs are destined primarily for domestic routes, where the extra capacity will be used to meet higher demand. Longer term Evans sees a future where they will support the current Boeing B787 international fleet in a mix of domestic and international flying. The next eight A321LRs will arrive between August 2022 and May 2023, with all 18 delivered by mid-2024. The A321XLRs will be delivered between 2024 and 2029.

The freshness and smell of a new airplane are a little surreal, so if you have been on one, please tell us about your experience.

But there are reasons to remain cautious, or at least watchful.

1. The Fed still has plenty of work to do on inflation. The market sees US rates getting to about 3 per cent and then falling as the central bank tries to support a weakening economy. But if inflation remains sticky – which it clearly has for 18 months – then the Fed may need to go much harder. And remember, stronger equity and bond markets represent a loosening of financial conditions, which ironically may force the Fed to take higher rates to cool things down. Friday’s employment cost index in the US rose 5.1 per cent in the June quarter. The Fed will want to be sure the labor market is cooling before it can breathe easier on inflation.
2. Earnings were less worse than feared but were still not amazing. Apple’s much-hyped results saw it deliver revenue growth of 2 per cent in an environment of surging global inflation. Further, profit margins are still close to all-time highs despite the factors that have increased them in the last decade – falling rates, cheap offshore labor, falling tax rates, uncomplicated supply chains – all reversing.
3. Stocks remain relatively expensive. Wall Street’s forward price to earnings multiple of about 16 times is obviously down from 21.4 times in January, but remains higher than it was in 2007, before the global financial crisis started.
4. Dead cat bounces happen frequently in real bear markets. From March 2000 to April 2002, the Nasdaq lost 78 per cent. But during that time stocks rallied more than 10 per cent on 11 occasions, with one rally adding 45 per cent across 15 weeks.
5. The world remains susceptible to shocks. The war in Ukraine means energy markets remain fragile. Housing bubbles in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, Germany are deflating in potentially unpredictable ways. How China navigates its COVID-19 mess will have consequences for inflation and supply chains.

“I was just like, yep, this is it,” Hembrow says. “This is what I am going to be. My own boss. I want to start my own businesses.

“It was the only class that sort of made sense to me. And then I actually dropped out of uni. I was like, ‘See you later, don’t need this any more.’ ”

It was while studying that she’d post pictures of herself exercising on Instagram, which had only been around a couple of years when she was posting in 2012. Then, at 19, she fell pregnant. She was told her life was ruined.

‘so much influence’

Hembrow had other ideas. She posted her pregnancy and fitness journey on Instagram and more followers flocked. She now earns millions each year by endorsing brands on social media.

“I remember how I had like 15,000 followers or something, which I thought was a huge deal at the time because, like, there weren’t a lot of people on Instagram,” she says.

“I followed a few women who had like a million followers. And I just thought it was the craziest thing. And I was like I’m going to get to that. But I also saw them and thought why they aren’t doing more with what they have. They had this big audience and they had so much influence over these people. And I couldn’t really see them taking advantage of that or starting businesses with it.”

One of the businesses she started to market to her followers was her fitness app, Tammy Fit, which she started with just $400. It began as a PDF of her workout exercises from her.

“My initial investment was about $400 I spent with someone to illustrate the exercises on the programs I was making,” she says.

“But then from that I just wanted to elevate it more and more. And then eventually came Tammy Fit the app.”

From the outside, it all looks a bit easy: post pictures of trim physique while working out; share workout tips; getrich.

But behind the filters is an ambitious business builder. And it has not all been smooth sailing, she tells the podcast. “I ended up trusting some people I shouldn’t have,” Hembrow reveals. “I didn’t really know better at the time, but I got taken advantage of and actually ended up wasting a lot of money, like hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“It was a supplier, someone we were paying to do something for the app, and they sort of just took advantage of us.”

Consult the experts

She now takes precautions. “A lot of people look at me and think this young blonde girl, like she doesn’t know anything,” she says.

“Unfortunately, what I’ve learned from that is to really take precautions and triple- and double-check things.

“If you are not an expert in something, consult with someone that is, like a third party that could maybe let you know this person is taking advantage of you.”

She’s not the first influencer who has been taken for a ride. Jessica Sepel, who’s behind vitamins and skincare group JS Health, revealed in the first season of How I Made It that she blew a lot of money when she was trying to get her business off the ground.

“We put money towards people who screwed us basically. I had an awful experience where it was basically someone who led us on. I think at the end, it was $10,000 to $12,000 down the toilet,” Sepel told the podcast.

Hembrow admits she got a first mover advantage that’s helped fuel her business. She gained a healthy following when the platforms were in their infancy. But it doesn’t mean people can’t replicate success if they’re starting out today – the trick is to try and stand out.

“I think timing did help a lot. In my situation, I got in there at a really good time. Instagram is so saturated now. It’s a lot of people trying to do the same sort of thing. Whereas when I started, I couldn’t really see anyone doing what I was trying to do. And it was just really perfect timing. But that being said, you can still do it. You definitely can, it just might be a bit harder.”