Ultimately, it’s incumbent on lawmakers to take steps to ensure this practice is discouraged.

Major airline faces backlash after using ‘ghost flights’ to exploit a legal loophole: ‘They weren’t even selling tickets’::Ultimately, it’s incumbent on lawmakers to take steps to ensure this practice is discouraged.

  • @InverseParallaxEnglish
    85•1 year ago

    In this case, Qatar Airways was making these extra journeys to avoid caps that allow it to make only 28 weekly trips to Australia’s major airports, which includes Melbourne. Landing at Adelaide Airport, which is not among that list, as the final destination enabled the airline to make additional journeys to Melbourne, as there were no limits on flights to non-major airports.

    Cute.

    • @ShakeThatYamEnglish
      61•1 year ago

      Love the double standard. When you do this as a passenger to get a cheaper fare the airliner will ban you for life.

      • @KiernianEnglish
        28•1 year ago

        When you do this as a passenger to get a cheaper fare the airliner will ban you for life.

        Wait, are you saying if you buy a ticket from Orlando to Las Vegas and the flight stops for a planned plane change in Atlanta, if you get off in Atlanta because that was your actual destination and DON’T continue on to Vegas you can get in trouble?

        • @[email protected]English
          29•1 year ago

          Correct. “In trouble” depends on your definition though. They ban ot because they give discounts for common destinations but they don’t like it if you take advantage of the discount to fly to some less popular destination as a layover that would typically cost more if booked directly.

          • @[email protected]English
            2•1 year ago

            How can they even find out? You just go down with the other people who paid the direct trip there. Do they keep track somehow?

            • @[email protected]English
              10•1 year ago

              They know who’s aboard the plane and aboard any connecting flights. Not sure if they’d be able to tell if it was one where you stay on the same plane the whole time, but those aren’t as common IME.

        • @[email protected]English
          13•1 year ago

          Not in legal trouble but the airline might decide not to sell tickets to you in the future.

    • @JackcooperEnglish
      7•1 year ago

      So I get how that’s bad for the environment and all

      But why are their flights limited to 28 in the first place?

      • @doczombieEnglish
        21•1 year ago

        There is a bit of a scandal in aus at the moment about this. Qatar asked for more international flights (they back Virgin Australia, one of 2 major domestic carriers in Australia). Government said no, for undisclosed reasons.

        The “national” carrier Qantas are scumbags with the government in their pocket and likely quietly lobbied against it, but also Qatar International Airport did this to Australian citizens not that long ago:

        https://amp.abc.net.au/article/12817070

        So it’s just kind of dickheads all the way down.

        • @WHYAREWEALLCAPSEnglish
          5•1 year ago

          I’m sure they investigated themselves and found no trace of wrong doing.

          • @WHYAREWEALLCAPSEnglish
            4•1 year ago

            Like Qatar gives a good god damn about human rights.

        • @[email protected]English
          2•1 year ago

          At the time, the airline also said it wasn’t their fault or responsibility it happened (i.e., they had no power over it happening), but now at the hearing they claim they will ensure it won’t happen again. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️