Qantas will for the first time operate its Airbus A380s to Africa, as part of a capacity up-gauge that also sees the airline enter into a codeshare agreement with South African operator Airlink.
Qantas is deploying the A380 between Sydney and Johannesburg six times a week effective immediately. The superjumbo replaces the Boeing 787-9 on the route, which equates to a near-doubling of capacity.
The announcement makes Johannesburg the fourth city in Qantas’ network to see A380 service. The Oneworld carrier flies the type to London, Singapore and Los Angeles.
Qantas operates eight A380s, with two more aircraft on long-term storage set to return to service within the next 18 months. The A380s seat 485 passengers across four classes: first, business, premium economy and economy.
Qantas International chief Cam Wallace says: “We are seeing strong demand for our Johannesburg services and, by upgrading to the [A380s], we will nearly double capacity during peak periods, adding over 130,000 seats per year between the continents.”
The airline will also resume operations between Perth and Johannesburg from mid-2025 subject to approvals. The route is currently operated by South African Airways.
The news comes as Qantas signs Johannesburg-based Airlink as its newest codeshare partner.
Qantas will add its code to Airlink’s domestic network from Johannesburg to nine South African points, including Durban and Cape Town. It is working to expand the codeshare network to other African countries “over the coming months”.
Says Wallace: “This extra capacity, combined with our new codeshare with Airlink, will significantly expand the options for Qantas customers heading to Africa, strengthening the connections between family and friends, business and trade as well as supporting the tourism industry on both sides of the Indian Ocean.”
Separately, Qantas is looking to its Japanese network, after regulators approved the airline’s application for additional flights to Tokyo’s Haneda airport.
Australia’s International Air Services Commission on 30 September allocated the carrier one daily frequency to Haneda, which was previously taken by Virgin Australia. The latter carrier will axe its Cairns-Tokyo Haneda route in late-2025, exiting its short-lived return to the Japanese market.
Qantas’ Wallace says the airline intends to apply for slots at Haneda for flights from Melbourne and Brisbane. It currently operates to Haneda from Sydney, and to Tokyo’s Narita airport from Melbourne and Brisbane.
Qantas plans to swap its operations to Haneda, moving one of two daily flights from Sydney to Narita instead.
However, the airline says it has not secured slots yet and will make a network announcement when details are firmed up.
