QPC Briefing No. 24 2026
Blank Line Workshop
Following this week’s recommencement of bargaining with Qantas, the AFAP can confirm that a dedicated Blank Line workshop has now been scheduled for next Wednesday.
This workshop follows the clear feedback received from pilots across both post vote surveys, where Blank Lines and rostering instability emerged as the single most significant operational issue affecting Long Haul pilots.
Importantly, this workshop is not intended to simply revisit the status quo. The AFAP will approach these discussions with the objective of identifying practical solutions that improve pilot certainty, reduce disruption to personal lives, and create a system pilots can genuinely support, while still allowing the Company to keep flights crewed.
Too often throughout these negotiations pilots have heard variations of the same response; “that won’t work”, “that’s too hard”, or “we’ve tried that before.” The AFAP does not accept that the current system is beyond improvement.
One of the strengths of the AFAP’s structure is the diversity of operational, industrial and technical expertise that we are able to bring into these discussions. Our membership and support network extends across airlines, fleet types, hauls and crewing systems both within Australia and internationally.
If the current system is creating unacceptable instability for pilots along with financial uncertainty, then it is incumbent on all parties to think beyond historical limitations and seriously examine alternative approaches that may deliver better outcomes.
The AFAP will attend next week’s workshop with examples, concepts and lessons drawn from airlines and crewing systems from around the world. Our focus will not be on defending existing structures for the sake of tradition, but on identifying solutions that are operationally workable and sustainable for pilots.
As part of this process, due to the QPC’s rapid membership growth to over 500 Qantas Mainline members, the AFAP has recently expanded its scheduling and systems capability. We welcome Kylie Laukis Clements to the AFAP team as a Scheduling and Systems Officer. Kylie joins the AFAP following 10 years working in Crewing at Virgin Australia, along with previous operational management experience in General Aviation. She will attend next week’s workshop with Qantas to provide direct operational insight into what did and did not work within Virgin’s crewing and standby systems.
This is exactly the type of external operational perspective that can assist in challenging assumptions and broadening the scope of possible solutions. This allows the QPC to zoom out and not get trapped in the biases created from those that have defended the Blank Line system. The AFAP believes pilots benefit when new ideas and different experiences are brought into the room.
As outlined in our previous briefing, Qantas raised the possibility of joint discussions between the AFAP and AIPA regarding Blank Lines and broader EA issues. The AFAP made it clear that we had no objection to participating in those discussions if doing so assisted in finding solutions for pilots. We are therefore disappointed that AIPA will not be participating in discussions with the AFAP at this stage. That said, our position remains unchanged. Our focus is on achieving meaningful improvements for Long Haul pilots and progressing toward an agreement that pilots can support.
The Next Steps
The next phase of negotiations will require practical problem solving, open discussion and a willingness to challenge long-held assumptions. Pilots made it overwhelmingly clear through the no vote and survey feedback that the existing system is no longer acceptable.
The AFAP intends to approach next week’s workshop constructively, professionally and with an open mind to solutions that may previously have been dismissed as “too difficult”. We are also acutely aware of a balance between the time it takes for redesigning a new system, subsequent implementation, and the quality of that system.
The QPC will keep our members informed after next week’s meeting.
Questions and Feedback
With over 45,000 words of free text from the pilots, your criticism and suggestions around Blank Lines have been received by the QPC and Qantas. However, If you have any questions or further feedback please contact your AFAP Qantas Pilot Council representatives at
qpc@afap.org.au, or the AFAP legal and industrial team.
Regards,
AFAP Qantas Pilot Council
Michael Egan – Chair
Mark Gilmour – Vice-Chair
Rob Close – Secretary
Michael Armessen – Committee Member
David LaPorte – Committee Member
Josh Chalmers – Committee Member
Rob Gilmour – Committee Member