Qantas upbeat US demand for info will not delay service

Qantas is confident a demand from US authorities will not delay new American Airlines services to Sydney next month.

Qantas is confident a demand for additional information from US authorities will not delay the launch of new American Airlines services to Sydney next month as part of a deepened alliance between the two carriers.

The US Department of Transportation wrote to the airlines this week saying they had not supplied information enough to allow it to evaluate ­issues raised in their application.

While the American carrier and the flying kangaroo have had an extended an alliance since 2011, they did not need anti-trust immunity from the US side at the time. The plan by the broadened alliance to start American Boeing 777 services to Sydney next month, allowing Qantas to move flights to San Francisco, means they now need that immunity.

An American Airlines B777 will visit Sydney next week along with the US carrier’s chief executive, Doug Parker, to promote the new alliance and there are plans for the plane to do a harbour flyover on Friday.

The proposal already has a provisional green light from the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission but the demands from the DoT suggest a similar US approval may take some time away.

The DoT said it required further details of the specific levels of service the joint business would provide, an analysis of the competitive impacts on other carriers as well as quantification and description of the benefits it would provide. It has asked for a five-year outlook for joint business as well as details of flights from Australia and New Zealand, which American has also indicated it may service, aircraft types and seat numbers.

The department directed the carriers to provide the information and reminded them of the importance of discussing the case the merits of the case on the public record “to the maximum extent possible’’.

“Unnecessarily broad redactions are contrary to the public interest and result in (a) delay in reviewing the application,’’ the department said, noting the information would allow it to determine if the record was substantially complete and to establish “a procedural schedule’’.

Qantas is working with regulators in New Zealand and the US but insiders do not expect any issues that would halt the American first flights.

The DoT request comes as Qantas announced it was boosting capacity into Asia with the addition of year — round Tuesday and Thursday Perth-Singapore Boeing 737-800 flights from December 1. The airline will operate a second Sydney-Hong Kong Friday service between December and March to offer double daily Airbus A330 and Boeing 747 flights on week days, with Airbus A380s brought in during peaks.

Qantas International CEO Gareth Evans said the airline was seeing big demand as Australian companies continued to expand their business in Asia and the lower-dollar made the nation more attractive.