Qatar Airways flies 222 Australians home from Israel via Dubai

Qatar Airways has pitched in to help evacuate Australians stranded in Israel with a plane carrying 222 passengers arriving safely in Sydney on Tuesday night.

Qatar Airways has flown 222 Australians who have been stranded in Israel home via Dubai – a first for the airline which does not normally fly out of the United Arab Emirates.

This is also the first flight to make it back to Australia that has been organised with the help of the Australian government.

The airline has been at the centre of media attention after the Australian government blocked Qatar from increasing its flights into Australia despite recommendations that it should allow more services to try tackle record high airfares and a lack of competition.

Qatar Airways could not comment on its plans. It is believed that Qatar carried the Australians free of charge to Australia and then Virgin will on-fly them to their domestic ports in this country.

Flight QR 7474 landed in Sydney on Tuesday evening.

The quiet moves by Qatar Airways come as Qantas and Emirates have released media statements on their plans to help Australians.

Qantas has so far managed one of two planned evacuations, with about 240 Australians having been flown to London from Tel Aviv on Friday. They are expected to board a Qantas flight back to Australia this evening and will also be flown free of charge. The other planned flight was scrapped due to security concerns. Emirates is offering a special flight from Dubai this Thursday.

Senator Bridget McKenzie welcomed Qatar Airway’s help and pointed to its assistance evacuating Australians from Kabul and also bringing people home during Covid.

“The government’s No. 1 job is to protect its citizens... all options to get Australians safely and quickly out of the Middle East should be on the table,” said Ms McKenzie. “If you listen to the government. It’s all about Qantas.”

On Tuesday afternoon, minister for Transport Catherine King released a statement confirming Qatar Airways was helping to evacuate passengers.

“We thank all partner airlines and operators who have stepped up to help Australians and their families wanting to come home,” said a spokesperson for Ms King in a statement.

For Qatar Airways to fly via Dubai is extremely unusual as until just months ago there was a no fly-zone in operation between Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Saudi Arabia over a diplomatic spat and there was no direct services in operation.

Qantas has a joint services agreement with Emirates on flights between Dubai and Australia, which allows them to share profits.

Qatar has a codeshare agreement with Virgin Australia.

Last month, Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar al-Baker told CNN in an interview that it was “very unfair” that the Australian government had blocked in from increasing services to Australia.

“We found it to be very unfair [for] our legitimate request to be not granted, especially at a time when we were so supportive of Australia,” al-Baker said on Sunday, adding that he was “very surprised” at the decision.

Qatar found out it had been blocked by reading about it in the Australian media.

A senate inquiry chaired by Ms McKenzie has made recommendations that the decision should be reconsidered and that the competition watchdog should have an expanded role in the aviation sector.

“We made very serious and substantial recommendations based on very comprehensive evidence whether it was in relation to competition within the aviation sector more broadly, but on their Qatar Airways blocking - we found out some really quite shocking evidence even though the minister had sought to gag her department and refuse to release documents to the Senate,” said Ms McKenzie.

The Senate select committee on bilateral air service agreements will press for expanded hearings on Tuesday afternoon as it wants to hear from former Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce - who was out of the country during the recent hearings - and once more from Ms King.