Re: East Coast Very High Speed Train Scoping Study

["Al" <alpout@optusnet.com.au>]

> After all, a plane that is going to fly with 250 bodies is not going to cost
> much more to fly with 300 bodies, if those extra 50 seats have been sold at
> AUD50 each (that is an extra AUD2500 in revenue for that flight). This is
> something that Impulse and VirginBlue do not have. (And if the safety record
> re: Impulse was known, they would have almost NO passengers).

What nasties has Impulse done?  I'd say what Ansett failed to do scares me a
hell of a lot more.  From my materials/metallurgy classes, once metals crack,
there is no way to predict how badly or when the crack will propogate into
catastrophic failure.  Considering that Ansett's problems have been with 2 of
the 3 most critical structural elements of the aircraft (engine mounts and
tailplane, the only one they've missed is the wing), I'd be worried.

As an experiment, the next time you're drinking a can of something, pull the
ring tab back and forwards until it breaks off, counting as you go.  Watch for
when the aluminium first cracks, then try to predict when it will break right
off.

> Once they get people locked into FF programs, then that will dictate future
> travel patterns. If someone has 15,000 points, and only needs 20,000 for a
> return from SYD to BNE, and a one-way from SYD to BNE is worth 1000 points,
> who are they going to fly with the next few times?
>
> I think this is one of the reasons Qantas has changed their program rules,
> in order to encourage people to try out the service.
>
> Back onto rail, all of this can only be detrimental to rail, as it reduces
> any opportunity for a viable point-to-point market. Rail will instead have
> to be looking to the land-cruise market,which is currently served (rather
> well) by the Indian-Pacific, The Ghan, The Queenslander, The Sunlander, etc.