Jetstar, Queenstown to Auckland

“Would you be able to assist the crew in the event of an emergency?” “Yes I would” These are the words that get you upgraded when flying on a narrow-bodied Jetstar Airbus A320. With Business Class being only available on their Boeing 787 Dreamliners, this is the closest you will get to a seat with…

QantasLink, Sydney to Maroochydore (Sunshine Coast), Boeing 717, Economy Class

“What time will you arrive? I’ll pick you up” My old mate Daz texted me. “I’ll be landing at 10:35” I texted back. “Ok, see you at 10:30” was the reply. “No, its 10:35!” I responded. “Yeah, 10:30!” “No, 10:35!”….. The banter went on for weeks, “10:30?” “No, 10:35!” we laughingly texted each other. The 1 hour and…

Jetstar, Sydney to Bali on the 787-8 Dreamliner, Economy Class.

“Pop the butter on top of your meal, it will soften it” After all my years of flying,  I’d never heard something so simply ingenious when it comes to that hard frozen butter sometimes served on board a flight. I was heading on a last minute trip to Bali, partly birthday celebration, partly Christmas shopping trip but mostly…

Qantas First Lounge, Auckland

“No, this way!” Bert said as I bounded into the Qantas Business Class Lounge. He was pointing to the ‘By Invitation’ door. On our recent trip to New Zealand, I flew Emirates Business Class on a Qantas flight number between Auckland and Sydney. I was travelling with my friend Bert, myself in Business Class and Bert…

Emirates, Auckland to Sydney Business Class

“Welcome on board this Emirates flight to Brisbane” Brisbane? Am I on the right plane? “Ladies and Gentlemen, please disregard the menu stating Auckland to Melbourne, we are in fact off to Sydney” Melbourne now? “Ladies and Gentlemen, Welcome to Dubai” Either Dubai now has a harbour with replica bridge and Opera House or I’m…

Melbourne to Sydney, Qantas Airways Business Class

Have you been watching that new show ‘Ready for Takeoff’? It’s a fly on the wall documentary about Qantas and the inner workings of the airline. I loved the second episode with Qantas mega Frequent Flyer John Martin, who hails from my hometown the City of Wollongong who during the episode took his 1000th Qantas flight….

Air Bagan, Heho (Lake Inle) to Yangon, Myanmar. ATR72-500

“Should we stop and get something to eat before the flight?” I asked my travel companion Bert. It had been a long journey from the Novotel Myat Min in Lake Inle to Heho Airport in Myanmar for our flight to Yangon. We did enjoy a delicious a-la-carte breakfast rather early at the hotel, eggs, bacon,…

QANTAS Airways, Sydney to Brisbane Business Class

“Tonight we have the traditional lasagne with steamed greens or the seared beef on glass noodles.” the cabin crew member discretely repeated to each passenger as he made his way down the centre aisle of the secluded Business Class cabin. The food, it is the thing I get most excited about when taking a short flight in Business…

Melbourne to Perth – QANTAS Airways Business Suite.

Mints and mince, although sound similar are two very different things – especially to a vegetarian! I was at a party once, enjoying a delightful array of finger foods while chatting to a vegetarian over the loud pumping music. The lights were low and she was relying on me to let her know what each of the…

Jet Flight Simulator – Sydney – Boeing 737-800

  “This is your Co-pilot FreakyFlier speaking, welcome on board. Todays flight from London Heathrow to London City Airport will take approximately 24 minutes. In the mean time, please sit back and relax and enjoy the superior service and wonderful views of London on this short flight”. “Was that ok Captain?” “That was fine Freaky….

Jetstar Airways – Sydney to Brisbane

“I only fly Qantas so I can earn Qantas Frequent Flyer Points and Status Credits” Said the Gold Frequent Flyer (GFF) over lunch one day. “But you can earn points when flying Jetstar as well” I remarked, “You just need to add the plus bundle, its a couple of dollars more than the lead in fare,…

Wellington to Sydney, QANTAS AIRWAYS Economy Class

Using points, I’d requested an upgrade from Economy to Business Class which unfortunately was declined probably as this route is heavily used by politicians travelling from New Zealands capital, Wellington. That was ok, the flight was under 4 hours so I was content with trying the Economy Class product on this sector. There is a…

QANTASLINK Sydney to Dubbo Bombadier Dash 8 – Q400

It was to be a sequin and glitter free weekend when my friend Bert and I decided to get out of Sydney over the Mardi Gras weekend.  Yes, we were heading to Dubbo in Regional New South Wales and we flew on one of the Qantas group of companies smallest aircraft a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400, operated…

China Airlines Sydney to Auckland Business Class – Airbus A330-300

Question: China Airlines comes from what country? Answer: Taiwan (Republic of China) Bloody Mary. People often think China Airlines is from mainland China (The Peoples Republic of China) but its not, it’s Taiwan’s (Republic of China) national carrier and largest airline based the country’s capital Taipei. Now I’m not going to go into the how, why and…

Inspecting a Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 at Sydney Airport

   Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Cathay Pacific, Happy Birthday to you! Cathay Pacific recently celebrated its 40th year of operating flights from Hong Kong to Australia and FreakyFlier was invited on board one of their Airbus A330-300 aircraft which fly the route between Hong Kong and Sydney up to…