Covid curbs force record flight cancellations

More than 9000 domestic flights were axed in June due to lockdowns and border closures, and July could be even worse.

Jetstar had the largest proportion of services cut. Picture: Gaye Gerard

A combination of city lockdowns and state border closures saw more than 9000 domestic flights cancelled in June – the highest number since records began.

New data from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) showed one in every four services was axed, or a total of 9406 flights.

Qantas had the highest number of cancellations with 3614 flights scrapped, but low fares partner Jetstar had the largest proportion of services cut, with almost 40 per cent being scratched.

Virgin Australia wiped 2617 services, or just under 30 per cent, while Rex axed just over 10 per cent, or 603 flights.

Melbourne-Perth was the most affected route with 72.6 per cent of flights pulled, with Melbourne-Sydney and Melbourne-Adelaide not far behind.

On the Melbourne to Sydney route – normally Australia’s busiest and most lucrative – Jetstar cancelled close to 80 per cent of services, flying just 61 of 300 scheduled sectors.

Qantas operated only 184 of 674 scheduled flights, and Virgin 176 out of 555 flights.

Newcomer Rex, which only launched services on the route in March, operated just 54 of 148 it had scheduled.

The enormous number of cancellations was expected to significantly set back airlines’ financial recovery timelines, with July data likely to be even more grim.

Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney were all in lockdown at some stage in June due to Covid outbreaks, and stay-at-home orders are still in place in Sydney, with Melbourne and Adelaide now also in lockdown.

The Qantas Group was aiming to be back to above pre-Covid capacity in the second half of this year while Virgin Australia was expecting to be above 80 per cent by now.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce is due to deliver the group’s annual results and update the market on August 26.

The BITRE report noted flight cancellations were the highest since on-time reporting began in 2003, as a result of travel restrictions.

Flights that did operate were largely “on time” with an average 84 per cent of services getting away or landing within 15 minutes of schedule.

The figure was above the long term average for on time performance but the overall cancellation rate of 24.5 per cent was way above the 1.8 per cent long term average.

At the same time, Brisbane Airport released its annual passenger traffic data for the year to June 30, showing a 56 per cent drop to just under 7.9 million, the worst result in 27-years.

Airport chief Gert-Jan de Graaff said Brisbane still fared better than most, with Sydney Airport recording 7.8 million passengers and Melbourne 6.1 million.

“The Covid-19 pandemic is undoubtedly one of the toughest challenges the aviation industry has faced, but we have managed the financial losses better than many due to our significant intrastate network,” said Mr de Graaff.

“Brisbane Airport continued to connect to 27 destinations across the state, sustaining the valuable resources sector by connecting FIFO workers to regional Queensland.

“We remain thankful for the strength of our intrastate market which has demonstrated the essential nature of aviation to the Queensland community and economy.”