Early return for Perth flights blamed on Russian war

The so-called Kangaroo Route between Darwin and London has been cut short while passengers from a Qantas international flight had their luggage left in the Territory.

NATIONAL carrier Qantas will close one of its two Darwin to London services and return it to Perth three weeks earlier than originally scheduled.

Flight QF9/10 will now depart from Perth instead of Darwin on May 23. They were previously scheduled to return to Perth from June 19.

The airline said its so-called ‘Kangaroo Route’ Darwin-London flights are operating “with reduced passenger numbers”, due in part to the Russia-Ukraine war.

A Qantas statement said due to the “effective closure” of Russian airspace, flights had to carry extra fuel to fly an alternative longer route.

The Qantas statement said that with bookings for these flights above pre-Covid levels, our Darwin to London services have very few seats available over the next six weeks.

“As a result, we’ve made the decision to return the QF9/10 service to Perth ahead of schedule so that we can accommodate more passengers.

“The flight path from Perth to London is more direct, which means we don’t have restrictions on the number of passengers on this route.
“The QF1/2 service will continue to operate direct between London and Darwin as scheduled until June 18 when it will return to Singapore.

Qantas boss Alan Joyce in Darwin. Picture: Glenn Campbell

“The majority of passengers who start or finish their journey in Darwin will be re-accommodated on the QF1/2 service. Qantas will contact affected passengers directly to advise of the change.”

Meanwhile, passengers of a Qantas flight departing from Darwin to London arrived without their luggage.

A Qantas spokesperson told the NT News that a temporary issue at the airport’s runway pavement resulted in weight restrictions on the flight last week.

“Unfortunately that meant we weren’t able to carry some passengers’ bags on their flight,” they said.

“All bags have now been re accommodated on later flights and will be couriered directly to customers as soon as we’re able to confirm the correct address. We apologise the inconvenience this has caused our passengers and thank them for their understanding.

“We’re advised that the pavement issue causing the weight restriction has now been fixed.”

Darwin replaced Perth on Qantas’ London route last November when the WA Government kept the state in Covid-lockdown. The agreement was extended in February when WA again failed to lift restrictions.

The Northern Territory Government worked hard to deliver for Qantas to facilitate the return of the Kangaroo Route, including Covid-proofing the international arrivals terminal.

Qantas International chief executive Andrew David thanked the NT government and Darwin Airport.

“The NT Government and Darwin Airport went above and beyond so that we could operate these services when WA kept its borders closed, and we’re extremely grateful for their partnership,” he said.

“While it has been great to operate from the Top End, we’ve always said that Perth remained the long-term home of these flights.

“We’re looking forward to reconnecting Western Australia to Europe earlier than anticipated and enabling more customers to fly.”

ChamberNT chief executive Greg Ireland said infrastructure constraints impact international capacity in Darwin.

“It would have been nice for the flights to have lasted as long as practically possible but we understand some of the constraints on those flights coming through Darwin and we hope once those challenges are rectified, something more permanent may be forthcoming,” he said.

“I understand there is insufficient hard-stand for aircraft to be placed which means aircraft have to turn around and depart. Darwin can really only handle one of those aircraft at any time, whereas if we want multiple flights this will need to be addressed.

“That will be a future opportunity for the Territory.”

Major airport delays

TRAVELLERS through Darwin Airport could face major delays as unexpected runway maintenance takes place.

Airport Development Group operations executive general manager Rob Porter said routine repairs to the runway were scheduled throughout the year, however “weather conditions have brought forward the need to conduct this work sooner than expected”.

“Maintenance activities are planned to minimise impact on airline and passenger movement however there may be occasions where flight schedules are impacted, particularly night flights,” he said.

“Further maintenance is also expected to be scheduled during the dry season, to address seasonal damage.”

Darwin International Airport (DIA) operates under a joint user agreement with the Department of Defence, with Defence responsible for the maintenance and safe operation of the runway.

“DIA are committed to providing a safe environment for all airport users and airline partners,” Mr Porter said.

“DIA recommend passengers contact their airline directly should they require updated information.”

Originally published as Early return for Perth flights blamed on Russian war