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There are believed to be about 18,000 Australians stuck in various places around the world who are still struggling to come home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Mr Williams said when his early August flight was cancelled, an operator at the Australian consulate in London said to contact his airline.

Qatar Airways suggested the “solution” of buying a business class ticket on the next available flight on August 23 for well over $6000, or keep his economy airfare for a month away.
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In a statement on Friday, Qatar Airways said: “With the recent extension of restrictions until late-October, Qatar Airways can only transport a maximum of approximately 4500 passengers during this time.”

The airline said it is allowed to repatriate 30 to 50 passengers to Sydney, 40 to 45 to Perth, 25 to Brisbane and 60 to Adelaide each day.

“As a result, every day hundreds of people are advised that they cannot be accommodated on their booked flight and need to be rebooked for a later date where there may be availability,” the statement reads.

“To further limit the impact of the restrictions, the airline has already stopped accepting any new bookings for flights to Australia until the current passenger cap is relaxed.”
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