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…
Category: Airline
Review: Air Asia X Sydney to Kuala Lumpur Economy Class
“Passengers please note, we have shut the doors and will be making our departure 15 minutes earlier than scheduled, we trust this is convenient for everyone” ‘Very rare to hear that announcement…..Damn!’ I mumbled to myself as I peered into my empty wallet. I’d forgotten to go to an ATM and get cash out. I use cards…
QANTASLINK Hobart to Sydney Business Class
As we returned the hire car, the young lady asked my friend Bert: “Are you returning the car with a full tank of petrol?” “Yes” said Bert. “And has there been any damage?” she asked. “Only to our livers” I replied. We were flying home to Sydney after a weekend in Hobart and after checking in…
UPDATE: Air Asia’s Taylor Swift Aircraft Livery + Get your Own Model Aircraft!
Finally a picture of the actual aircraft with Taylor Swift herself! And if you cant get to see the actual aircraft own a model of it yourself! Air Asia is offering die-hard Taylor Swift fans the exclusive opportunity to own the Air Asia Taylor Swift aircraft model. The exclusive aircraft models come in two…
Air Asia RED HOT PARTY – Launch of Air Asia’s new Taylor Swift Aircraft livery & the Taylor Swift Tour
“Hello, my name is Alfred, what is your name and where have you come from for this party?” “Hi. Matthew. I’ve flown in from Sydney” “From Sydney! You must really like Taylor Swift!” “Yeah, she’s great, and I also love Air Asia, this is so exciting!” Spoken to first person I met at the launch of…
REVIEW: Virgin Australia, Sydney to Hobart Economy Class
“Please do not fasten your seat belts as the aircraft is refueling” I’d actually never heard that announcement before, but it makes perfect sense for safety reasons. It had been almost a year and a half since I had flown Virgin Australia and while the main decision to fly them on this trip came down to…
A QantasLink Dash-8 Q400 gets A FREAKY-TYRE or is that a Leaky-Tyre?
Don’t you hate getting a flat tyre? It always happens when you are in a hurry or out on the road in your Sunday best. Recently, while at Melbournes Tullamarine Airport, I watched this QantasLink Dash-8 Q400 undergoe a wheel change. The Sunstate Airlines arm of QantasLink, a subsidiary of Qantas Airways operates this particular…
An Aircraft fit for a Duke, a Duchess & a Baby Prince
“This is it! This is them! WAVE!!!” A couple of work colleagues and I went to the best viewing point of the airport, the 8th level of the International Airport Car Park, to witness today’s arrival of the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge, William and Kate, and baby Prince George to Sydney. Us three loyal subjects…
Best Australian Blogs 2014 – Peoples Choice Awards
I received an email the other day from a reader, thanking me for my stories on FreakyFlier and explaining how he has now made a decision to travel to a certain destination on a particular airline with thanks to my reviews. I always feel pretty chuffed when I receive an email of thanks from my…
Review: Qantas Airways Sydney to Melbourne Business Class
Many years ago, a few months after Jetstar took to the skies as the low cost carrier offshoot of Qantas Airways, I was travelling with a friend, Business Class, on a Qantas Flight between Melbourne a Sydney. After a few glasses of wine we were having a good old time, laughing at the fact we…
Review: Tigerair Melbourne to Sydney
Younger siblings – little brothers or sisters, can be annoying, seemingly going about things the wrong way and sometime acting as if they have no idea at all! Then suddenly they grow up, aren’t nearly as embarrassing as usual and work alongside others 🙂 This is what I feel has happened with Tigerair, since Virgin…
Review: Canberra to Sydney by QANTASLINK on a refurbished Boeing 717 – Business Class
I can hear you now – not another Qantas Review!!! – But stay with me, its small and short – this is actually the regional arm of the airline – QantasLink and I’m travelling on one of their the newly refurbished Boeing 717-200’s in Business Class, something new for the airline. These narrowbodied rear mounted…
One Day In November – A FreakyFlier Day Trip
Let me take you on a day trip, its not your regular outing but for an aviation enthusiast its going to be a freaky good day! Late last year, when Jetstar received its first Boeing 787 Deamliner, they offered a few sectors domestically to ‘break-in’ the new aircraft and give the Australian travelling public a…
Review: Qantas Airways – Canberra to Melbourne, Economy Class
Isnt it wonderful when you are on a flight and a flight attendant does something out of the ordinary when its a special occasion? This happened to me recently on a flight from Canberra to Melbourne with Qantas Airways. The special occasion was that I was flying from Canberra to Melbourne to take the new Jetstar Boeing…
Review: China Southern Airlines 中国南方航空, Seoul Incheon to Guangzhou, Economy Class
After a wonderful week in Seoul it was time to head home on China Southern Airlines, an airline I had never flown before. After checking my bags in, I spent a few hours in the HUB Lounge and then made my to the departure gate for the first sector to Guangzhou, China, the airlines hub, where I…
Lounge Review: The Qantas Club – Melbourne Domestic Airport
As you know, I love airport lounges! – Almost, just almost – as much as I love flying. Recently I had a guest pass to visit any Domestic Qantas Club Lounge, so before I took off on my first Jetstar 787 flight to the Gold Coast, I visited the Melbourne lounge, What a great way to start this…
Review: QANTAS AIRWAYS – Gold Coast to Sydney, Business Class
“Why do you want to fly Business Class?” my friend Liz asked me the other day. “Huh? Did you seriously just ask me that?” I replied, stunned. Obviously Liz hasn’t flown Business Class very often. Even though this was a short 1 hour 25 minutes sector, one of the many benefits of flying Business Class is lounge access and with…
Review: Jetstar Airways – Boeing 787 Dreamliner – Melbourne to Gold Coast Business Class
“We’re flying on a plastic plane daddy?” I over heard the young boy ask his father…. “Well,…um,…kinda” came the reply….. I think the father wanted to explain that the aircraft was made up of carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer making the aircraft stronger yet lighter but it might just be a little to much for the youngster to understand….
Lounge Review: The Qantas Club – Gold Coast
The other day a work colleague said to me “I love following your trips on Facebook and seeing what airport lounge you are in each day” Yes O.K, I love airport lounges. They’re a place to sit and relax with some food and a drink and wi-fi, not paying extortionate airport prices for the privilage of eating, away from hordes of people lining up…
Review: 中国南方航空 – China Southern Airlines, Guangzhou to Sydney, Airbus A380, Economy Class (Part 2)
Continued on from Part 1. To summarise Part 1 – I’d spent 3.5 hours in the non transit friendly Guangzhou Airport, boarded the aircraft in a well executed manner, turned down a not so badly priced on board upgrade and asked my seat-neighbour to move from my pre-assigned window seat in order to have the luxury of…
Happy New Year 2014 + 100 Years of Commercial Flights
On January 1st 1914, the first commercial flight took place across Tampa Bay in Florida, USA, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). How far we have come in those 100 years, not only has commercial aviation helped bridge gaps between nations and brought the world closer together – so has the internet….. In…
Matty Somewhere 