Qantas chaos as union row grounds 'Flying Kangaroo'

The travel plans of tens of thousands of Qantas passengers around the
world, from holidaymakers to heads of state, were thrown into chaos
Saturday by the airline's shock decision to ground its entire fleet.

The global network the Australian carrier has built over the past 90
years as it transformed from a desert Outback mail service into one of
the world's most successful airlines screeched to an abrupt halt at
0600 GMT Saturday.

That was the moment when chief executive Alan Joyce announced in
Sydney that all flights would be grounded, immediately and
indefinitely, until a bitter union row was resolved.

British couple Brenda and Alex Bovingdon's plane was taxiing up the
runway at Sydney airport when Joyce's bombshell edict took effect,
prompting the pilot to turn around.

"He said, 'there's a problem, don't worry it's not mechanical, I'm
very sorry to tell you this, in my career as a pilot I have never
encountered this before,'" Brenda said.

She said they spent the next two hours sitting in the plane, and
further time getting through customs, leaving them fuming.

"It's bad enough that they do it anyway, but without warning it's just
shocking," Alex Bovingdon told AFP.

His daughter Debbi Zornes said: "I will never book with Qantas again."

There were similar scenes at 22 airports around the world.

In Perth, where just hours earlier enthusiastic crowds had bid
farewell to Queen Elizabeth II, passengers stood stunned as departure
boards declared "we are very sorry Qantas is not flying due to
industrial action".

Qantas check-in desks were abandoned as passengers gathered across the
terminal at rival Virgin Australia, scrambling to get tickets out of
the city.

At least Commonwealth 17 heads of state and senior ministers, in town
for the same leaders' summit attended by the queen, faced a similar
dilemma after booking Qantas flights home.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard insisted it was not embarrassing to tell
the VIP visitors they had to find alternative flights home from Perth,
one of the world's most far-flung cities.

"Not at all, people took it in very good spirits," she said. "People
have been aware that there's been industrial disputation within
Qantas.

Joyce said he was compelled to take the "unbelievable" action because
the long-running union dispute was trashing Qantas' brand.

But Gillard said that by making the dispute global, the airline could
tarnish Australia's tourism industry.

At Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, Irish tourist Sinead Condon, 22,
said she had been hoping to escape the flooding in the Thai capital
only to be told there would be no flight.

"We're disappointed. It's a major inconvenience," she said.

Australian businessman David Stewart, 52, en route from London,
decided to buy a new ticket through to Sydney with Emirates.

"It's absolute chaos," he said. "I've tried to be as loyal as I can to
Qantas. It's going to cost me $1,900 to fly home with Emirates but
I've got to see my family."

Staff at Singapore's Changi Airport handed out biscuits and water to
thousands of irate stranded passengers, among them Australian retiree
Leigh Hogg, 70, who spent hours waiting to find out if she could get
home.

"I feel a bit deflated... it (the wait) is a bit tiring, we are not
young anymore," she told AFP.

The online backlash was also intense, with Qantas' Facebook page
inundated with comments such as "this is overkill, sack the CEO and
the board".

A Facebook page called "RIP Qantas" sprang up, declaring the airline
"died aged 90 at the hands of Alan Joyce".