Qantas announces network changes following Emirates deal

Following a strategic tie-up with Emirates (see story here), Qantas International has announced a shake up of its network that will strengthen its presence in Asia – with Singapore acting as its main connecting regional hub. The changes reflect a slight shift away from flying to the rest of the world from Australia via Asia (the so-called "kangaroo route") and Asian countries being increasingly seen as an end destination.

On March 31, the carrier will add four additional flights to the Sydney-Singapore route, which will then increase to daily from June 24 onwards while the Brisbane-Hong Kong flight will go from four to five flights per week on May 6, becoming a daily operation on June 24. It has also announced it will cease its Singapore-Frankfurt service earlier than expected on April 15 instead of on October 26, 2013.

As reported earlier (see story here), several flights to Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangkok will also be rescheduled in order to allow seamless onward connections across the Emirates-Qantas joint network (see table below and for more details, click here). Furthermore, codeshares with Emirates will add a daily Melbourne-Kuala Lumpur service to its network, operated by a Boeing 777-300ER – although this arrangement is subject to regulatory approval. The flight departs Melbourne at 0245, arriving in Kuala Lumpur at 0845.

The carrier will however drop the Perth-Hong Kong and Adelaide-Singapore flights on March 31 and April 14 respectively. On March 31, the Sydney-Hong Kong flight will be reduced from 11 per week to seven times per week while Perth-Singapore will go from being a double daily operation to daily from April 15 onwards. 

On top of these operational changes, the carrier is poised to open a new lounge in Singapore's Changi Airport on March 31 and a new First Lounge in Hong Kong International Airport in September this year.

A statement from the carrier claims it is also investigating launching new destinations “using the Qantas Group’s B787-9 options from 2016, coinciding with the turnaround with Qantas International.” Potential destinations under consideration include Beijing, Seoul, Mumbai, Delhi and Tokyo-Haneda. The carrier “is also examining a refresh of its international A330 fleet to include a lie-flat bed in business class.” 

For more information, visit www.qantas.com.au

Alisha Haridasani