Airlines go full throttle to open
QANTAS and Jetstar have flicked the switch to full throttle on their international flight schedule with the possibility services to Bali could be back in operation by Christmas.
Flanked by Prime Minister Scott Morrison and NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet in Sydney, Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce on Friday announced all Australia-based staff would return to work this year as flying ramped up.
The massive step was in response to the November 1 reopening of NSW to overseas Australian citizens and permanent residents without the need to quarantine.
Mr Joyce said the airline had recorded more international flight sales than domestic since the NSW announcement, and services would be brought forward in response.
Sydney to London and Los Angeles would be the first services out of the blocks from November 1, using Boeing 787s, with Sydney to Singapore to follow on November 23, operated by A330s.
On December 6 a new route for Qantas would commence, Sydney-Delhi, with three flights a week to start with using A330s, building to daily services by the end of the year.
The flights were planned to continue until March 2022 but could go beyond that in response to demand. Outbound flights would operate via Darwin, while inbound services would fly non-stop.
December 7 will see the return of Sydney-Nadi (Fiji) flights, brought forward from December 19.
Four return flights a week will operate initially using 737s, with Jetstar flights recommencing on December 17.
From December 18, Qantas flights to Vancouver, Tokyo, Honolulu and New Zealand are scheduled to restart as planned but other destinations would return sooner.
These include Sydney-Johannesburg from January 5, using 787s three times a week; Sydney-Phuket from January 12 on 787s three times a week; and Sydney-Bangkok from January 14 with five flights a week operated by A330s.
Discussions were under way with the Indonesian government about welcoming fully vaccinated Australians back to Bali with reduced or no quarantine requirements.
Those services were expected to return in April but could now start months earlier.
The massive ramp-up would see two A380s back in the skies by April 2022 flying Sydney to Los Angeles, with another three superjumbos to be reactivated by July.
One A380 could be back in Australia from the California desert by the end of the year, to help with crew training.
Three brand new 787-9, in storage with Boeing since the pandemic struck, would also be joining the Qantas fleet sooner than expected, and Jetstar will bring its five remaining 787-8s out of storage in Alice Springs over coming months.
Capacity on domestic routes was also scheduled to be accelerated as borders reopened.