The best airline in the world, Qatar Airways, could be flying to Australia more frequently (even on new routes) after receiving permission to increase flight capacity to the country.
Last week, the Australian government renegotiated the air service agreement with the Doha-based carrier, offering a 50 percent increase in flight capacity between Qatar and Australia.
The change is likely to see the airline increase services from Melbourne and Perth as well as potentially commence flights between Sydney and Doha.
Currently, the airline doesn’t fly to the Harbour City, but has a codeshare in place with Cathay Pacific that takes guests to Hong Kong and then onward to Qatar’s capital.
But it doesn’t stop there. As part of the agreement the carrier could also introduce services to regional locations, although it hasn’t revealed where they might be.
According to recent figures, there’s been a 15.7 percent increase in the number of travellers from the UAE to Australia and a 16.2 percent jump in Aussies heading to the Gulf.
Currently, UAE-based airline Etihad and Emirates dominate flights to the Middle East.
Added capacity from Qatar would give Aussies more choice as well as potentially help reduce fares by adding new competition.
Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister, Warren Truss, said the Qatar deal would also boost tourism between Australia and Qatar as well as Australia and Europe.
“Under our air services arrangements with Qatar, airlines can also operate unlimited services between Qatar and regional locations such as Darwin, Adelaide, Gold Coast and Cairns.”
Warren Truss, Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister
Earlier this year, Qatar was named the ‘Best Airline in the World’ by Skytrax for having the best inflight meals, comfort, aircraft, crew and more. Read on