QANTAS HAS made sweeping schedule changes, which will include the carrier resuming services to Bombay via Singapore from next July, ending a six-year absence from India.
A direct Boeing 747-400 flight from Melbourne to Johannesburg will be the first from Australia's East Coast. The three existing flights depart from Perth, Western Australia. Direct Sydney-Los Angeles flights will be increased to daily to match the frequency of United Airlines, and European schedules have been stepped up to fill a capacity gap left by the withdrawal of Air France and Lufthansa from Australian routes.
Sydney-Frankfurt services will increase from five to seven, with some Frankfurt services likely to be extended to provide a resumed Paris service. A third Rome flight will be added.
Qantas has also increased frequency on New Zealand services by substituting more Boeing 767s for 747s on the routes. The strategy is targeting Air New Zealand's Brisbane hub, more than doubling existing frequency from the city to 16 flights weekly, including 11 to Auckland.
Source: Flight International
