Qantas to base Dreamliners in Brisbane

Qantas says it will base four of its new Dreamliners in Brisbane, opening up “exciting options” for new direct routes.

A Dreamliner with the new Qantas logo. (Renee Nowytarger/The Australian)

Qantas has announced it will base four of its new 787-9 Dreamliners in Brisbane, potentially opening up new direct flight routes into Queensland. The four aircraft, collectively worth a billion dollars, will begin operations from mid-2018, with the first to be called the “Great Barrier Reef” following a public naming competition.

Qantas (QAN) chief executive Alan Joyce said as Queensland was the birthplace of Qantas, it was only fitting the company base its newest planes in the state capital. “We’ve said initially the planes will take over from the routes our older 747s fly, but there are also new destinations we are looking at given the capability of our aircraft,” Mr Joyce said in Brisbane on Tuesday.

“A range of exciting options is on the table.” Specifically, the increased flying range of the Dreamliners means direct flights to North American centres including Chicago, Seattle and Vancouver are now possible.

The Queensland government has welcomed the move, after securing the new Dreamliner base using its Industry Attraction Fund, with the planes expected to support 470 jobs at Brisbane Airport.

“There will be 120 flight and cabin crew who will fly the Dreamliner based in Brisbane, with the crew base supporting an additional 350 jobs,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.

“Today, there’s no better example of how families and businesses throughout regional Queensland are now connected to the rest of the world.” Brisbane Airport estimates the four new planes will add an extra 70,000 seats per year in passenger capacity through the airport.

AAP