QANTAS: Working on its profits. New routes, revised schedules

You may have noticed that all Qantas fares are greater than before the pandemic. That’s partly due to 2 years of moderate inflation, but also because of pent up demand, allowing Qantas to charge more knowing that eager to travel customers are ‘happy’ to pay more.

Fuel Prices and passenger demand

Expect more of the same. With fuel prices going up at the high street bowser, it is also going up at the aerodrome bowser. According to some, every AU$4 rise in fuel barrel price means a 1% rise in airfares. Passenger demand is also pegging back, from 107% of pre-COVID demand to 103%, so that will mean reductions in the regularity of flights and capacity devoted to routes.

For Qantas this will reduce expenditure, but increase flight yields with more passengers travelling on fewer flights.

International

Qantas has been experiencing about half the demand it did pre-COVID for its international services, rising to 70% by the end of the July quarter – meaning September – the peak of the northern hemisphere summer.

Daily flights to London via Perth on a 787 started on 23 May, and the Sydney-Singapore-London resumes using an A380 from 19 June. Another A380 comes out of mothballs in June to hit the Melbourne -Los Angeles route.

With New Zealand opening up properly, Qantas is increasing frequency to Christchurch, and resuming flights to Queenstown and Wellington. Frequency has also been increased to Auckland from Melbourne and Sydney, as well as capacity by using A330s instead of B737s. Jetstar is mirroring most of these routes.

Jetstar, Japan and Bali

With Japan opening up, Jetstar will be flying Cairns to Tokyo Narita from 20 July, and Cairns-Osaka from 26 July. For Sydney-Tokyo Haneda, you will have to wait until 12 September, and out of Melbourne and Brisbane, until the end of October to catch an A330.

Jetstar will be returning to Bali from all 7 Australian cities at almost pre-COViD capacity by the end of June 2022.

South America, North America and the Phillipines

Expect 6 flights per week from 20 June to Manilla, going daily from mid-September. Boeing 787s will replace thenow retired 747s on the resumed Sydney to Santiago route from 30 October with 4 services per week.

The one sour note is the delay in he resumption fo flights between Sydney and San Francisco, scheduled for 30 July has been pushed back to 30 October. If you were booked on one of those flights you will be offered a via Los Angeles flight.

New Routes – already announced

We have covered most of these before but Qantas and Jetstar will operate some new routes including

• Qantas: Perth-Rome from 22 June
• Qantas: Sydney to Bengaluru (Bangalore) from 14 September
• Jetstar: Sydney to Seoul from 2 November
• Qantas: Sydney to Seoul from 10 December
• Qantas: Melbourne to Dallas Fort Worth from 2 December

2PAXfly Takeout

This is another timely reminder to wear your seatbelt when seated. Holding you close to your seat will protect you from the sort of injuries sustained on this flight, when unsecured passengers flew to the ceiling of the aircraft, and then came crashing down once the ‘drop’ ceased.

The hope will be that this is an anomaly – a ‘freak accident’ in casual parlance. If it is a systemic error either mechanical or electronic, then this is a larger concern for the airlines that fly Boeing Dreamliner 787 aircraft. Let’s hope it isn’t. If it is, it will pile on the woes to Boeing’s existing stack.

I so want to get on a plane and travel out of Australia, but prices are huge, especially on my preferred class of travel – Business. They are especially huge on Qantas. I’m going to have to temper my enthusiasm for travel with some budget reality though, and might wait until prices calm down before I re-commit to extensive travel.

There is a risk – given fuel prices, everything might continue to be extensive in the longer term, and today’s prices might seem like a bargain.

Of course the other option is to use points – but have you found any Classic Rewards points fares in Business Class on Qantas for anywhere in the next 365 days? (I’m putting points planes to one side.) Good luck with that!