Qantas delays international flight restart, again

Qantas has pushed back the start date of international flights in the hope more travel bubbles will be established once the vaccine rollout is complete.

A Qantas 787-9 in Sydney. The aircraft, typically used for international flights are being used elsewhere in the network as borders remain closed. Picture: David Gray/Getty Images

Qantas has pushed back the planned start date of international flights to the end of the year, in the hope more travel bubbles will be established once the vaccine rollout is complete.

The airline had scheduled long-haul services on most of its pre-COVID routes from October 31, but recognised this was no longer practical given recent comments by government.

A statement from Qantas acknowledged the government’s timeline for significantly reopening international borders had shifted to mid-2022, but the airline remained hopeful of returning to long-haul operations this year.

“We remain optimistic that additional bubbles will open once Australia’s vaccine rollout is complete to countries who, by then, are in a similar position, but it’s difficult to predict which ones at this stage,” the statement said.

“This planning assumption will allow Qantas, and Australia, to be ready to take advantage of pockets of tourism and trade opportunity as they emerge in a post-COVID world."

It is the third time Qantas has been forced to postpone the resumption of significant international services since the COVID crisis erupted, and it may not be the last.

A Qantas spokeswoman said plans would be reviewed as December approached and circumstances evolved.

“In the meantime, the Qantas Group will continue to provide critical repatriation and freight flights overseas, and support the recovery of travel at home. The resurgence of domestic travel remains the most important element of the group’s recovery,” said the spokeswoman.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce announced last month the airline would exceed pre-COVID domestic capacity by mid-year, following strong demand for air travel.

Anyone with international flight bookings between October 31 and December 19 would be contacted by the airline, to discuss their options.

The spokeswoman said booking levels had been relatively low in that period, due to the level of uncertainty about international borders.

“Please note that trans-Tasman flights are unaffected,” she said.

Long call wait times continued to be an issue for passengers trying to contact Qantas, and the spokeswoman said more resources were being added.

“We encourage customers who are not travelling in the next 24-hours to please wait for us to contact you directly regarding these latest changes,” she said.

Aviation and tourism were largely overlooked in the budget, despite the severe impact of the COVID crisis and border closures on the industry.

To date, the industry has received $4.5bn in assistance from taxpayers, with the lion’s share going towards airline to maintain vital air links within Australia and overseas.