Qantas adds a million seats to Adelaide routes

Adelaide domestic travel is on the rise, but some travellers have been left scratching their heads after booking Qantas flights and being offered another aircraft. Here’s why.

Domestic travel is on the rise since border restrictions were lifted across the nation with some airlines sending the most planes into South Australian skies that they have since the start of the pandemic.

In February, domestic passenger numbers were up more than 40 per cent compared with February 2021.

While the official numbers are still about half of where they were before Covid, Adelaide Airport managing director Brenton Cox said the growth trajectory was strong.

“Last week domestic traffic volumes at Adelaide Airport exceeded 75 per cent of where it was for the corresponding period in 2019,” Mr Cox said.

“People are rediscovering the joy of connecting in real life and are starting to get out and explore the world again.”

Angus Armstrong with kids Marli, 10, and Lucas, 13, from London after arriving in Adelaide from Canberra on an Alliance plane to holiday on the Yorke Peninsula. Picture: Tom Huntley

The domestic travel spike comes after Qantas recently ramped up its use of Alliance aircraft when a three-year partnership was struck between the airline companies last year.

Adelaide became home to five Alliance Embraer E190 aircraft, which are 94-seat jets that can travel up to five hours.

The deal included 200 jobs for pilots, engineers and crew.

QantasLink chief executive John Gissing said it had allowed Qantas to offer more services to different parts of Australia, including a route to Newcastle that started last week.

“These aircraft allow us to better service South Australians, with more direct flights helping to bring more visitors to the state,” he said.

“With the addition of the E190 aircraft, we can offer almost one million additional seats to and from Adelaide each year.”

Adelaide recently became home to five Alliance Embraer E190 aircraft, which are sometimes used on Qantas booked routes. Picture: Tom Huntley

However, the aircraft were also being used on several major routes from Adelaide.

Angus Armstrong arrived in Adelaide from Canberra with his family Wednesday on one of the planes.

“If you want me to be frank, it wasn’t the best flight,” he said.

“I’ll probably be making sure we book a more modern plane in the future.”

Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Malaysia Airlines and Qantas are the only operators currently offering a small selection of international flights.

But Mr Cox said overseas passenger numbers were building into Easter.

“The month of February was still low – only 15 per cent of where we were pre-Covid, but demand has climbed steeply since international borders reopened on February 21,” he said.