Qantas said on Friday that flights between Sydney and Bengaluru would begin in September, while flights between Sydney and Seoul will begin in December, marking a return after a 14-year hiatus. Since resuming international flights, Qantas has added six additional international routes or is planning to do so.
Qantas stated on Friday morning Sydney time that it will begin flying its A330s to Seoul on December 10. A search of the Qantas booking system indicates A330-300 flights departing Sydney (SYD) on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. That aircraft, QF87, will depart at 09:35 for a journey of 10 hours and 45 minutes to Seoul (ICN), arriving at 18:20. The A330 returns to Sydney after 90 minutes on the ground to execute QF88. The Airbus departs ICN at 19:50 for an overnight journey to Sydney, arriving at 08:15 the next morning. Jetstar’s low-cost affiliate has added additional Seoul flights to complement Qantas’ offerings. Jetstar’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner will fly three times a week between Sydney and Seoul starting November 2. Qantas last flew to Seoul on a regular basis in 2008, but CEO Alan Joyce claims that South Korea is Australia’s fourth-largest business partner and that Koreans consider Sydney to be one of the best tourist destinations in the world.
“With expected strong business, premium leisure, and low-cost travel demand on the route, we see an opportunity for both Qantas and Jetstar to fly on the route,”, the Qantas CEO, Alan Joyce, commented.
Meanwhile, after the debut of flights to Delhi (DEL) late last year, Qantas is establishing another another route to India. This time, Qantas is partnering with IndiGo, and flights between Sydney and Bengaluru (BLR) will begin on September 14. QF67, which will be operated by an Airbus A330-200, will leave Sydney four times a week at 09:30 on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. At 16:55, the Airbus will arrive at BLR after 11 hours and 55 minutes in the air.
The return flight, QF68, leaves Bengaluru on the same days. The plane will depart at 18:35 and travel southeast through the night, arriving in Sydney at 10:30 the next day. Bengaluru is home to 13 million people, according to Qantas, and the burgeoning technology and financial services centre has significant ties to Australia, but no direct flights.
“As economic and investment linkages between Australia and India’s population of over one billion people increase, the signing of the Australia-India free trade agreement is a driver of travel demand,” says Alan Joyce.
“Our new direct flights to Bengaluru, together with our planned codeshare with IndiGo, have the potential to completely transform how many people travel between Australia and India.”
All three new routes are supported by the NSW Aviation Attraction Fund, which is co-funded by the State Government and Sydney Airport. Qantas’ Sydney-Bengaluru flights have also been backed by Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport.
Qantas is taking advantage of the relaunch of its international flights to reorganize its network. Since resuming international service late last year, the airline has launched or plans to launch six new international routes, including Darwin-Dili, Melbourne-Dallas-Fort Worth, Sydney-Bengaluru, Perth-Rome, Sydney-Seoul, and Melbourne-Delhi.
Meanwhile, Qantas said on Friday that in April, its international capacity (including Jetstar) would exceed 40% of its pre-COVID capacity. Since Australia’s borders reopened last November, headed by New South Wales, the Qantas Group has transported almost 500,000 passengers on 27 foreign itineraries, with another six routes resuming next week, according to the airline.
Mr. Joyce said, “It’s apparent that Australia is back on the map for foreign tourists.” “Since the borders reopened, demand for our foreign flights has recovered, giving us the confidence to establish these additional routes.”