Qantas eyes ultralong-haul to Europe

The airline is still “some time away” from a decision as it considers next generation, ultralong-haul planes.

Qantas “is some time away from a decision” to order the next generation planes. Picture: AAP.

Qantas Airways is looking at new ultralong-haul planes that will be able to fly non-stop between Australia and Europe, but hasn’t started discussions with aircraft makers on orders.

Qantas “is some time away from a decision” to order the next generation planes announced by both Airbus Group S.E. and its rival Boeing Co. that can fly routes of more than 18 hours relatively economically, Alan Joyce, the Australian carrier’s chief executive told The Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

Last year, Singapore Airlines became the first customer to order the Airbus A350-900ULR, which it plans to fly non-stop to US cities such as New York and Los Angeles. Boeing too has announced a new plane, called 777-8X, which can fly extra-long routes.

Customers prefer non-stop flights directly to their ultimate destinations, which has helped mid-size plane models such as the Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” and Airbus A350 jets get orders in recent years.

Mr Joyce said Qantas is currently focused on taking delivery of its Boeing 787-9 jets that will replace its bigger Boeing 747 jets and will be used to fly on long-haul routes.

The airline expects to announce its first route with the Dreamliner jets by the end of this year, Mr Joyce said. The new planes are capable of flying non-stop on routes such as Perth-London, which take about 18 hours of flying time. Currently, the longest route on the Qantas network is Sydney-Dallas.

Qantas has no plans to take eight additional Airbus A380 jets it has on order as it intends to keep the 12 it already has in its fleet for longer, Mr Joyce said.

Last week, Singapore Airlines said it won’t renew the lease on its first A380 after it completes its ten-year term with the Singapore flag carrier next October. Singapore Airlines is the second-biggest operator of the A380 jets with 19 on its fleet. Singapore Airlines may replace its early A380 jets with the five more of the planes that it has on order.

“We tend to keep our planes for much longer,” Mr Joyce said.

As part of its cost-cutting efforts, Qantas in 2014 deferred the delivery of eight A380 superjumbos it has on order. Several global airlines who purchased the biggest passenger jets that can seat more than 525 passengers, have faced trouble filling them.

Qantas flies its A380s on routes from Sydney or Melbourne to London via Dubai and to Hong Kong, Dallas and Los Angeles.

Dow Jones