FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Qantas will suspend overseas travel until [December] 2021

Oct 30, 2021, 1:20 pm

#395

Mwenenzi

FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Apr 2001

Location: MEL CHC

Posts: 21,024

29 Oct (ExecTrav)-->Qantas pushes back Melbourne-London, Brisbane-USA flights

Quote:

Soft demand and ongoing border closures puts a spoke in the wheel of Qantas' international reboot.

Melbourne-London flights delayed to November 27
Brisbane flights to LA and Singapore pushed back to February 2022
Australia-New Zealand to remain closed until January 2022

Proving that the runway to post-pandemic skies is anything but smooth, Qantas has been forced to delay flights from Melbourne and Brisbane, as well as to New Zealand and New Caledonia.
<snip>
Melbourne-London
While Qantas was quick to bring forward its Melbourne-London flights to November 6, following Victoria's move to abandon hotel and home quarantine for fully-vaccinated travellers, the airline says "demand for these earlier flights has been subdued."

"This situation is short-lived, as demand on this route from late November onwards is much stronger," Qantas claims, "leading to the decision for the restart date to be delayed from 6 November to 27 November 2021."
<snip>
Brisbane restart bumped to 2022
As previously reported, Queensland won't allow quarantine-free international travel until early 2022, when it reaches a statewide 90% vaccination rate – as opposed to the original 80% benchmark, which New South Wales and Victoria held to. This has left Qantas with no choice but to hit the pause button on overseas flights from Brisbane.Flights to other international destinations from Queensland will resume progressively in the months following, the airline says.

New Zealand closed until at least January 2022
Hopes of trans-Tasman travel returning in December were also dashed earlier today when NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that hotel quarantine and limits on the number of arrivals will continue for people travelling from Australia. This will see Qantas and Jetstar push back flights from Sydney and Melbourne to at least January 3, 2022. "These dates could be pushed later should these restrictions remain," the airline adds. "Qantas and Jetstar are ready to ramp up flights when people can travel freely between Australia and New Zealand again."
<snip>

Western Australia not mentioned.
The ongoing pandemaic around the world will put some people off travelling and "wait and see" for others.
Would assume most is VFR (visiting friends & relations). For Christmas-New Year (late Dec - early Jan) will be more traffic
The chances of the QLD 16+ eligible population reaching 90% vaccination is low to nil. Late Jan, when nil international and few interstate visitors, expect they will back peddle on the 90%.

Last edited by Mwenenzi; Oct 30, 2021 at 2:18 pm

Reply