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QANTAS
Australia’s official airline is Qantas and most people don’t realize that the name is actually an acronym for Queensland And Northern Territories Aerial Services. I don’t know what it is about Qantas but the simple red tail and white kangaroo on the plane’s tail gets me all pumped up and their 747-400 series are my favorite planes to watch takeoff from LAX. To say that I was excited about flying home on Qantas would be an understatement.

BRISBANE AIRPORT
The Brisbane airport was packed and Qantas only had one line for all their international flights. That’s surprising. It took us 15 minutes just to clear the business class line; I have elite status with their One World partner American Airlines. I can’t imagine how long the economy line took since it looked about five times longer. But we didn’t stick around and went straight to security. Australia still has the old-school security rules in place so make sure you have everything in a baggie – even lip balm or lipstick. Once you’re through security, there are plenty of shops to pass time in and spend your leftover Australian dollars. Since our request for an upgrade didn’t get approved (bummer!) I stocked up for the 12 and a half hour flight. I bought TimTams for $3.50 and huge bottles of water (1.5 liter bottle for $4.50).

BRISBANE TO LOS ANGELES
When you can’t get upgraded, try asking for exit rows (if you are qualified through a frequent flyer/loyalty program). On our flight, those seats were already taken because the flight had originated in Sydney and those early morning passengers were no fools! The good news is that the plane wasn’t sold out and after asking nicely, the gate agent blocked off a whole center row (four seats) for me and Natalie to enjoy. That was key because Qantas doesn’t offer a lot of legroom. But our work wasn’t over; the way to protect those extra seats from slick travelers is to man the aisles. I took one end and Natalie took the other. Then, after takeoff, one person can lie down and sleep while the other watches TV on the 9-inch seat-back entertainment system. There were an amazing variety of options to choose from; 60 on-demand movies, 200 TV programs, 20 radio channels, 150 CDs, 10 games and the in-flight map! This really helped make the flight seem quick and painless especially because coach doesn’t have power ports to plug your laptop in.



IN-FLIGHT SERVICE
The Qantas flight attendants were also impressive. For the most part, they were friendly and hardworking. They kept dishing out snacks, water and meals and they made sure the bathrooms were clean. At times, they even treated coach passengers like they were business class with hot cloth towels before each meal and handing out menus with a timeline of the service. The food and drinks came out within an hour of takeoff. The chicken and beef meals were just OK. In addition, they doled out mango creamsicles for dessert. Midway through the flight, we were treated to a goodie bag with snacks and bottled water. Two hours prior to landing, breakfast was served. When we touched down, I was feeling good.

VIDEO
Here's a two-minute Johnny Jet video of my trip to Brisbane. We also have all the Johnny Jet videos ever made on YouTube.

NEXT WEEK
Next week we travel to an island that the locals call the sugar island! It required three flights to get there from L.A. but east coast travelers now have nonstop service from New York’s JFK.

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Happy Travels,
Johnny Jet

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All information presented here is accurate at the time of publication but prices, dates and other details are all subject to change. Please confirm all information before making any travel arrangements.

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Note: This trip was sponsored by Australia.com.




Copyright 2007 JohnnyJet, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.