Tips for surviving the Qantas strike

An engineers’ strike means that Qantas services are likely to be disrupted on Thursday May 29 and Friday May 30, leading to delays and various other hassles, especially for commuters in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Flight disruptions are often an unavoidable fact of life, but there’s some useful strategies you can adopt to minimise the hassle.

* Make sure your mobile phone is registered with your airline. Obvious,
but lots of people forget to do it. Airlines will text you if there’s
been a change or cancellation with your service; in the case of this
strike, Qantas has undertaken to notify anyone affected by
cancellations at least a day in advance.
* Ditch the checked baggage. If at all possible within your airline’s
rules, don’t check any baggage. That way, if your flight gets
cancelled, you’ll have more flexibility when it comes to getting
switched onto another flight at the last minute.
* Lurk near the service counter. Rather than waiting at your flight
gate, position yourself near the service desk. That way, if a flight
does get cancelled, you’ll be right at the front of the queue.
* Take a good book. Waiting is a fact of life in airports, and reading is better for you than shopping.
Any other tips for minimising airport nastiness? Share them in the comments.