Long-haul Qantas flight nearly cancelled after pilot calls in sick just three hours before take-off

Australia’s largest airline was nearly forced to cancel a long-haul flight after a pilot called in sick, in the latest incident in the nation’s pilot shortage crisis.

Qantas sent out an ‘urgent request’ for a suitably qualified pilot to fill in on a Qantas 747-400 flight to Chile from Sydney on Sunday, Brisbane Times reported. 

The flight narrowly avoided being cancelled when a stand-in was found just in time, but travellers faced a delay of 45 minutes as they waited for the issue to be resolved.

Qantas sent out an ‘urgent request’ for a suitably qualified pilot to fill in on a Qantas 747-400 flight to Chile from Sydney on Sunday

‘Scheduling is desperately seeking a first officer or suitably qualified [right-hand seat] captain to crew the QF27,’ a Qantas manager of base operations wrote in an email.

‘All standby crew have been used and SMS messages sent plus management pilots contacted. There’s no one. The flight is likely to be cancelled.’ 

The desperate email was sent out just three hours prior to the flight’s scheduled take-off time, and about two and a half hours after the company sent out a text.

More than 100 pilots were contacted over the phone but none were available to step in.

Several flights bound for Santiago, Chile, leave from Sydney Airport daily. 

The close-call highlighted a major shortage of commercial pilots in Australia, which has created pressure for airlines to consider employing internationally trained workers. 

The desperate email was sent out just three hours prior to the flight's scheduled take-off time, and about two and a half hours after the company sent out a text (CEO Alan Joyce pictured)

The desperate email was sent out just three hours prior to the flight’s scheduled take-off time, and about two and a half hours after the company sent out a text (CEO Alan Joyce pictured)

Strong demand for flights and high utilisation of aircraft has placed increased pressure on crewing, subsequently raising the likelihood of disruptions when the airline faces technical issues. 

A Qantas A330 flight bound for Bangkok was forced to turn back to Sydney Airport shortly after take off on Friday when one of its two engines suffered a ‘high vibration event’.

Passengers bordered a replacement plane but the affected A330 remains grounded as it waits for its engine to be replaced. 

Late Friday night a flight from Brisbane to Hong Kong was delayed for three hours because of a flight-control malfunction.

Qantas' deputy manager for Airbus fleet operations warned pilots they should expected their rosters to be disrupted in the days following the two events

Qantas’ deputy manager for Airbus fleet operations warned pilots they should expected their rosters to be disrupted in the days following the two events

Qantas’ deputy manager for Airbus fleet operations warned pilots they should expected their rosters to be disrupted in the days following the two events.  

Six international flights were delayed by an average of three hours over the weekend, spurring the airline into its ‘largest pilot recruitment programs in its history’.

Qantas will recruit 150 pilots in the next financial year and open its own training academy next year with the capability of training 500 pilots annually.

Earlier this year, the government allowed foreign pilots into Australia on two-year visas for regional air routes.

But QantasLink wanted visas extended because experienced pilots were hesitant to move themselves and their families to Australia for less than five years. 



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