Industrial action may disrupt flights for AFL Grand Final week

Kassia Byrnes Kassia Byrnes
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Union action could put a dent in Melbourne’s grand AFL plans.

Buzz has been growing for the AFL Grand Final between the Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions on Saturday 28 September. But if you’ve bought a ticket to see the game live in Melbourne, you might have a bit of trouble getting there.

Thanks to an ongoing pay dispute, local Qantas aircraft maintenance workers are expected to continue industrial action ahead of the AFL grand final weekend. This could mean disruption in services.

qantas plane in mid air
Qantas passengers might be dealing with delays.

Unions are pushing for a 15 per cent pay rise this year and a further 5 per cent per year after that, to make up for over three years of wage freezes. Those same unions are saying this action is highly likely to affect Qantas flights not just in Melbourne, but in all capital cities. Qantas itself has also warned of possible delays.

Some passengers have been warned the airline is “anticipating a busy period which may affect your flight" (but if you’re one of these people, you would have already received an invitation to switch to an earlier flight with no extra costs.

Operations Manager at the RMIT Aviation Academy and former network controller for major airlines, Justin Brownjohn, says Melbourne will likely be fine, but other cancellations might be expected.

an afl game in melbourne stadium
It might be worth planning ahead if you plan to see the game.

“Although Qantas will likely protect flights associated with the AFL grand final, there may be cancellations to other routes," he said.

“If a flight is cancelled, passengers will likely be moved to remaining available seats that same day. That could mean a lengthy delay if you don’t hold status with your carrier or if you bought a low-cost budget airline fare, which won’t be prioritised for another service."

If Qantas experiences disruptions, it is unlikely that flights will be increased at Virgin or Jetstar because their available capacity would already have been deployed. Besides the passengers already contacted, however, a Qantas spokesman said it doesn’t think the action will affect travellers.

“We’re putting contingencies in place and don’t currently expect this industrial action to have an impact on customers," they said.

tip of qantas plane wing flying over australian city
Although experts feel Melbourne flight will be protected, while other cities might see cancellations.
Kassia Byrnes
Kassia Byrnes is the Native Content Editor for Australian Traveller and International Traveller. She's come a long way since writing in her diary about family trips to Grandma's. After graduating a BA of Communication from University of Technology Sydney, she has been writing about her travels (and more) professionally for over 10 years for titles like AWOL, News.com.au, Pedestrian.TV, Body + Soul and Punkee. She's addicted to travel but has a terrible sense of direction, so you can usually find her getting lost somewhere new around the world. Luckily, she loves to explore and have new adventures – whether that’s exploring the backstreets, bungee jumping off a bridge or hiking for days. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @probably_kassia.
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