Australia’s largest airline, Qantas Group, is expected to fly more than four million passengers during the upcoming school holiday, indicating a booming travel demand. The group, which includes budget airline Jetstar, is slated to host travellers on new and reestablished domestic and international routes while continuously expanding its fleet with energy-efficient models.

As families prepare for the end-of-year school break, Qantas Group has worked tirelessly to provide additional seating capacity across its network. Top domestic leisure destinations such as Gold Coast and Cairns are set to welcome a flood of vacationers. New international routes like Sydney-Auckland-New York and Perth-Rome are experiencing high booking rates.

The Qantas Group has announced or resumed eleven international routes since mid-May, contributing to a resurgent demand for travel. Here you can find a complete list of updated routes. Amid the ongoing pandemic recovery phase, customers choose to travel over other spending categories, bolstering Qantas’s financial performance projections for FY23.

New Additions to the Fleet

In a conscious move towards eco-friendly practices, Qantas Group has introduced six new aircraft to its lineup since the start of 2023. Jetstar recently received its eighth Airbus A321neo LR, with a ninth set to arrive in July. These planes are up to 50% quieter and burn 20% less fuel than previous generations.

Two Boeing 787 Dreamliners have been added to Qantas’s fleet since late April, and a third one is expected to join in mid-July, despite some delivery delays at Boeing. Moreover, an eighth A380 is scheduled to re-enter service in early July after undergoing engineering checks and cabin refurbishment. The Group also retired three QantasLink 717s, 15% of this fleet type, as it prepares for the arrival of new Airbus A220s later this year.

International and Domestic Capacity

Qantas Group’s international capacity continues to bounce back, steadily approaching pre-COVID levels. Jetstar has announced plans to increase its Adelaide-Denpasar route capacity, deploying two of its new A321neo LRs based in Adelaide. It will also ramp up frequency on several other routes, including Brisbane-Auckland and Brisbane-Denpasar.

Qantas Group’s domestic capacity has already reverted to pre-COVID levels, with Adelaide-Kangaroo Island and Adelaide-Whyalla routes set for a service increase. The complete list of Jetstar’s updated routes and frequencies is here.

Enhancing the Customer Experience

Qantas Group continues to invest in improving the customer journey as part of its strategy to pivot from recovery to growth. Several new initiatives and offers have been launched to enhance the passenger experience, including Qantas’s renewed calls for customers to use their COVID-era travel credits. They have launched a ‘Find My Credit’ tool to facilitate this and simplify the refund request process.

Moreover, Qantas has recently introduced a sale on its domestic and North American networks, attracting customers with more than 30,000 discounted fares. The domestic sale, ending soon, can be accessed here.

On another note, Jetstar has reported a significant improvement in its operational performance during June after adjusting its check-in, bag-drop, and boarding gate closure times. Also, resolving supply chain issues for essential aircraft parts has decreased Jetstar’s cancellation rate, which currently sits at around 2.9%, and improved its on-time performance to approximately 70%.

Overall, the booming travel demand, the expansion of fleet and routes, and the ongoing commitment to customer experience improvements signify Qantas Group’s optimistic outlook for FY23. As the world continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Qantas Group is set to play a leading role in the resurgence of the global travel industry.

Written by: Christine Nguyen

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