QATAR AIRWAYS: takes Qsuites to Auckland, New Zealand, via Melbourne and Brisbane. New way to cross the Tasman

Qatar Airways is preparing to reshuffle its Auckland service through Australia, ending the fifth-freedom flights via Adelaide and creating two new daily trans-Tasman options, but not at the same time.

The via Adelaide flights to Auckland will cease on 16 September 2026. From December 2026, the airline will extend its Doha–Melbourne flight to Auckland. Seven months later, Auckland will switch Australian gateways, with the same daily service operating through Brisbane.

The flights are already appearing in Qatar Airways’ schedules and booking system, although the airline has yet to make a formal announcement.

For Australians, the important bit is that Qatar will sell tickets purely between Australia and New Zealand. These are known as fifth-freedom flights, allowing Qatar Airways to carry local passengers on the Australian–New Zealand sector.

Melbourne gets Auckland first

Qatar Airways will begin flying between Melbourne and Auckland on 10 December 2026.

Technically, the new Doha–Melbourne–Auckland routing starts from Doha on 9 December. However, the aircraft does not depart Melbourne for Auckland until after midnight the following morning.

The daily schedule is:

Flight	Route	Departure	Arrival
QR904	Melbourne–Auckland	01:20	06:50
QR905	Auckland–Melbourne	13:15	15:10

The Melbourne departure is for red-eye flight devotees only. It leaves too late for a sensible evening flight and arrives too early for most Auckland hotels. On the other hand, you could probably make an 8 am breakfast meeting in Auckland.

It could work for passengers connecting to an early domestic flight in New Zealand. Otherwise, you might want to check what arrival lounge you have access to in Auckland, and make sure cafes are open for a caffeine fix.

The afternoon return to Melbourne is much more civilised. It also allows eligible Business Class and oneworld Sapphire and above passengers to use the Qantas International Lounge in Auckland before departure.

The Melbourne legs are scheduled to continue until the aircraft operating from Doha on 24 June 2027. Its final Melbourne–Auckland sector should therefore depart on 25 June local time.

Brisbane takes over in June 2027

From 26 June 2027, Qatar Airways will move its Auckland extension from Melbourne to Brisbane.

The daily schedule becomes:

Flight	Route	Departure	Arrival
QR898	Brisbane–Auckland	00:55	05:55
QR899	Auckland–Brisbane	11:20	13:10

Again, the eastbound departure is at a fairly shitty time in the early morning. The return flight is better, reaching Brisbane early enough for domestic connections or an afternoon in the city.

QR899 will continue from Brisbane to Doha at 3:10 pm, giving Qatar Airways two hours on the ground to unload Auckland passengers, board its long-haul contingent and prepare the aircraft for another 14-hour journey.

Adelaide loses its Auckland link

Qatar Airways currently operates Auckland as an extension of its Doha–Adelaide service. That arrangement ends after 8 December 2026, when Auckland moves to Melbourne.

Adelaide will retain Qatar Airways flights to Doha, initially using an Airbus A350-900. The service is scheduled to operate daily before reducing to five flights per week from February 2027.

This is a commercial tweak since a little over 1 million passengers travelled between Melbourne and Auckland during the year to March 2026. Brisbane–Auckland carried another just shy of a million passengers. That makes both markets considerably larger than Adelaide–Auckland.

A proper widebody across the Tasman

However, you won’t get the shinier newer Airbus A350S that fly to Adelaide anymore. Instead, it’s a Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER.

For cross-Tasman travellers, that means a genuine long-haul aircraft rather than the narrowbody Boeing 737s (Qantas and Virgin Australia and Airbus A320-family jets (Qantas sometimes and Jetstar) commonly used across the Tasman.

Business Class passengers should still get Qsuite, with enclosed suites, direct aisle access and lie-flat beds. However, Qatar cautions that Qsuite is subject to aircraft substitutions, so checking the seat map before booking is wise. You should also receive complimentary Starlink internet. Qatar Airways completed the installation program across its Boeing 777 fleet in 2025, offering free high-speed connectivity to all passengers.

2PAXfly Takeout

The departure times are dreadful. The aircraft are excellent. A flat-bed Qsuite between Australia and New Zealand is a substantial improvement over the recliner-style Business Class found on most competing trans-Tasman flights. Even Economy passengers gain a widebody cabin, long-haul catering, seatback entertainment and free Starlink Wi-Fi.

So, for me, it would be the occassional787-9 Qantas services out of Sydney and Brisbane to get over to Auckland, and then, maybe one of these Qatar flights on the way back.