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A t-shirt emblazoned with one of the most memorable lines from the classic adventure film The Princess Bride caused a furore on a Qantas flight last week. Wynand Mullins boarded a plane bound for Auckland on Sunday with “My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die” printed on the front of his top. While some fellow fliers recognised that the line was from the swashbuckling 1987 film The Princess Bride, it went over the heads of other passengers, who told cabin crew they felt threatened by the t-shirt’s message. Mr Mullins told Fairfax New Zealand: "The...

Airlines paying more for fuel because waistlines are expanding by: Anne Wright From: Herald Sun January 12, 2012 12:00AM PEOPLE weighing more than average should pay more for their airfares than slimmer passengers, a former Qantas executive says. Tony Webber said airlines were paying more for fuel because the average weight of the population had increased. The extra fuel needed cost about $472 a plane, he said, and additional weight of passengers affected airlines' profits. "It's just a fact, and the thing is airlines consider these things when deciding how much fuel to put on the plane," said Mr Webber,...

The former chief economist of Quantas Airlines believes the super-sized set is costing airlines way too much. He claims heavier passengers are costing an additional $472 per flight, in added fuel costs. His solution, charge passengers by the pound. If you're above average in weight, you pay a price for each additional pound. Not that he's going to give supermodels discounts even though they're "saving" the airlines a fortune. After all, that lower BMI is money in the bank for every greedy airline industry. The nickel and diming that the flying public is continually subjected to isn't addressed either. From...

More than $3 million will be spent by the Federal and NSW governments getting talk show queen Oprah Winfrey to Australia, but Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson says it will be worth every cent. Winfrey announced overnight she would fly 300 members of her audience to Australia for an eight-day trip in December. During the visit Winfrey will shoot several episodes of her daytime talk show, which has a weekly following of 40 million Americans and is screened in 145 countries. The trip will be partly financed with $1.5 million from Tourism Australia's current financial year marketing budget.

QANTAS has cancelled orders for 15 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and deferred the delivery of a further 15 aircraft, due to turbulent conditions. The airline said it delayed by four years delivery of 15 Boeing 787-8 aircraft and cancelled orders for 15 787-9 aircraft that were scheduled for delivery in 2014-15. The delay and cancellation in the orders "were appropriate in the current climate, and discussions with Boeing, which commenced some months ago, had not been influenced by the announcement this week of a design issue and further delay to the aircraft's first flight," said Qantas chief executive Officer Alan Joyce......

QANTAS'S reputation as the world's safest airline took another blow last night with a passenger jet forced to make an emergency landing after an undercarriage door failed to close. The Boeing 767-338 flying from Melbourne to Adelaide was forced to turn around 20 minutes after it took off at 5.40pm and make an emergency landing at 6.15pm. The incident came only three days after a Qantas Boeing 747-400 was forced to make an emergency landing in Manila after a gaping hole was found its fuselage.

MANILA (AFP) - A Qantas Boeing 747 flying to Melbourne made an emergency landing in Manila on Friday after a dramatic mid-air rupture that left a "gaping hole" in its fuselage, officials and passengers said. Stunned passengers reported how the jumbo, which had taken off from London and stopped in Hong Kong, plunged 20,000 feet (6,000) metres in what one said was an "absolutely terrifying" ordeal...

MANILA, Philippines — A Qantas flight en route to Australia from London made an emergency stop in Manila on Friday after a loud bang punched a hole in the Boeing 747-400's fuselage, officials and passengers said.

QANTAS chairman Margaret Jackson was suspected of being a terrorist and frisked during a visit to the US last year. The airport security guard who checked her was reluctant to believe that a woman could be the head of an airline. Mrs Jackson said yesterday her briefcase was searched after she went through a security check at Los Angeles airport. Among her documents were detailed plans of new aircraft, including cross-section diagrams showing seat layouts. "The guy said `Why have you got all of this?'," she told the Herald Sun. "And I said, 'I'm the chairman of an airline. I'm...

A SYDNEY man allegedly telephoned the suspected leader of al-Qa'ida in Spain – Abu Dahdah – seeking help to move a "brother" and his family throughout Europe. The allegation about former Qantas baggage handler Bilal Khazal – made in documents tendered in Mr Dahdah's terrorism trial – contradicts claims by him that he had never spoken to the alleged terror chief, or even knew who he was. As more details of a network of alleged terror supporters in Australia emerged yesterday, it has been claimed a second Australian named in the Spanish court documents, Melbourne cleric Sheikh Mohammed Omran, was...

The board of Qantas Airways has delayed until next Wednesday a decision on what could be the year's biggest jetliner order -- for up to 100 Boeing or Airbus planes worth as much as $16 billion. Although the board met Wednesday in Sydney, it apparently did not reach any decision. Geoff Dixon, chief executive of Qantas, said in a news release that the board will hold a special meeting Wednesday to "further consider" its long-term fleet plan. "This meeting is expected to discuss and approve major aircraft purchases, including the new aircraft for Jetstar's international operations," Dixon said

While flying on Qantas Airlines, New Zealander Mark Worsley was asked to change his seat. You see, the airline viewed him as a threat to the child seated next to him. What was Mr. Worsley’s crime? Was he on a sex-offenders database? Far from it. The shipping manager and father of two-year-old twins was the victim of a blanket policy, adopted by Qantas and Air New Zealand, whereby they prohibit all men from sitting next to children traveling alone. Said a shocked Worsley, “At the time I was so gobsmacked that I moved. I was so embarrassed and just stewed...

Australia’s Qantas Airways has deferred a decision on a major order for new aircraft for at least a week. The Oneworld alliance carrier’s board met yesterday to consider orders for as many as 100 long-range widebodies and chief executive Geoff Dixon had hinted that decisions were likely at that time. Qantas says in a statement today, however, that no firm decisions were taken and that its board has called a special meeting for 14 December “to further consider its long-term fleet plan”. Dixon adds: “This meeting is expected to discuss and approve major aircraft purchases, including the new aircraft for...

BOEING and Airbus executives have been left waiting on a knife-edge after the Qantas board decided last night to withhold any announcement about its plans to buy up to 100 new aircraft in a multi-billion dollar fleet upgrade. An all-day meeting of the 12 directors, billed as one of the most significant in the airline's 85-year history, ended with both companies advised not to expect a decision before today. The board also deferred making a separate announcement about proceeding with plans to create the world's first global low-cost carrier, Jetstar International. The fleet decision has involved a head-to-head bidding war...

QANTAS will this week decide on A$20bn ($15bn) worth of orders for 90 aircraft, with the lion’s share tipped to go to manufacturer Boeing. Boeing’s 777 and 787 are pitted against Airbus’s A340 and A350 in the competition to equip the Australian airline with new planes. The Qantas board meets this Wednesday and an announcement is expected the same day. The Business can also reveal that Airbus is studying a revamp of the A340, its 777 equivalent, after a raft of wins by its American rival. Last week, Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong’s de facto flagcarrier, placed an order for a...

A PASSENGER told tonight how a Qantas flight attendant ignored serious stab wounds to his head to repeatedly tackle a 'would-be hijacker' until he could be subdued. Derek Findlay described today's dramatic hijack bid by a man in a suit and armed with wooden stakes, who attacked two flight attendants and tried to crash a Melbourne to Launceston domestic flight. Mr Findlay, 30, was among passengers who wrestled the attacker to the cabin floor after he ran towards the cockpit, lunging at the male purser and female flight attendant. As well as sticks, the man was also brandishing an aerosol...