Qantas makes big change to direct Sydney to New York service

Outgoing CEO Alan Joyce has revealed a major change to one of the airline’s most in-demand routes before boarding the inaugural flight.

It has been more than three years since Qantas has flown direct to New York from Sydney, but as of Wednesday, services to the popular destination have recommenced – although with a major change.

Instead of flying to the Big Apple via Los Angeles, the national carrier will now go via Auckland avoiding the hustle and bustle of what is one of the world’s busiest airports, LAX.

Qantas has officially recommenced services from Sydney direct to New York, this time via Auckland instead of Los Angeles. Picture: iStock

Why Qantas ditched LA for NY services

Outgoing CEO Alan Joyce told media at a press conference on Wednesday the move will provide better connections.

“Los Angeles had a lot of issues with connectivity — you had to pick up your bag, go through customs and immigration and had to check in again for the Qantas flight that went to NY,” he told reporters at Auckland Airport before boarding the inaugural NZ-NY flight with the airline.

“And we never had the aircraft until the 787s to be able to do Auckland to New York.”

Qantas will continue to serve Los Angeles direct from Australia with several services a day from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

But for New York passengers, transiting via Auckland will allow connectivity from more Aussie cities such as Melbourne and Brisbane, before an uninterrupted 16 hour and 15 minute flight to New York.

“It’s got the ability for the people from Australia to check their bags all the way through to New York,” Mr Joyce said during one of his last major announcements for Qantas before retiring in November.

Outgoing Qantas CEO Alan Joyce at Auckland Airport before boarding the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft direct to New York. Picture: News.com.au

Qantas’ New York announcement came shortly before Air New Zealand started its flagship Auckland to NYC route in September last year.

But the national carrier has raised the stakes by adding a fourth weekly flight from the end of October as it builds its international network back to 100 per cent of pre-Covid capacity by March next year.

“We’ve always seen Air NZ as a ‘frenemy’. We do partner with them (on certain routes), we use their domestic network here, but we are highly competitive on a range of routes.”

The airline noted the move will provide better connectivity from more Aussie cities such as Melbourne and Brisbane to connect to the flight in Auckland. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Mr Joyce has also previously said Qantas was not allowed to sell seats for the Los Angeles-New York domestic leg, but the airline had rights to sell tickets for Auckland-New York flights.

This in turn also allows dual destination inbound tourists who want to visit Australia and New Zealand, NZ Herald reported.

The new Dreamliner will also have less seats than its competitors at 236 in total with cabins designed with long-haul travel in mind with more room.

Mr Joyce also said the design, together with the airline’s expertise in long-haul flying — with three out of the five longest routes in the world — will allow for minimum diversions such as what Air New Zealand recently faced.

The Kiwi carrier had to pit stop in Fiji to refuel due to weather conditions.

“There is a few differences between our operation and Air NZ,” Mr Joyce said at the press conference.

“One, we have an aircraft that has less seats on it because it is designed for very long haul flying

“[We] have different engines which have an ability to fly a bit further and we have unique fly planning system that optimises flight plans.”

Admittedly, Mr Joyce said “there are always going to be occasions where there may be diversions”, adding that Air New Zealand has handled them well.

“But what we hope is we can minimise the ones that occur because of the way we operate and we think our expertise in super long haul flights will minimise that.”

Mr Joyce at check in for QF3 at Auckland Airport for the official relaunch of the direct New York service. Picture: James D. Morgan/Getty Images for Qantas

How much are airfares

In terms of price, Mr Joyce said while airfares are coming down, “we have got to be higher than pre-Covid”.

He said passengers can expect to pay $2100 for a return seat on economy for the direct service to New York.

“So they are very attractive airfares and we will be very competitive on this route,” he said.

The relaunch of the route now means Qantas has three of the top five longest flights in the world, including Perth-London and Dallas-Melbourne.

Qantas will operate three weekly flights from Sydney to NY, increasing to four per week from October. Picture: James D. Morgan/Getty Images for Qantas

The relaunch brings Qantas closer to returning to 100 per cent of its international network pre-Covid capacity by March 2024. Picture: David Clark Photography

The Sydney to Auckland leg is three hours and five minutes and the Auckland to JFK leg is 16 hours and 15 minutes.

Flights will initially operate three days per week before increasing to four from October, offering more than 1,800 seats on the route each week.

“Since international borders reopened, New York has been one of the most popular destinations for our customers who have been connecting on our partners from Qantas flights arriving into Los Angeles and Dallas, so it’s not surprising that we’ve seen very strong demand since our New York flights went on sale.”

He said the launch of the route has been made possible by the delivery of new 787 aircraft in recent weeks, bringing the airline closer to its international capacity to what it was before Covid.

“The flights are great news for Australian tourism, helping to bring more visitors from the United States to explore the best of New South Wales and beyond with connections from Sydney across our extensive domestic network,” Mr Joyce added.