Qantas has promised to give a final answer on Project Sunrise by the end of the year, but this week the Flying Roo has rejected proposals on ultra-long-haul aircraft from BOTH Airbus AND Boeing.
Airbus put forward its A350-100ULR while Boeing was confident in its 777-8X to fly from Sydney and Melbourne to New York and London.
Both manufacturers framed their proposals as their “best and final offers”.
Qantas has come back to both manufacturers saying they need to see more affordable prices to make the routes viable for them.
Alan Joyce and Captain Passerine arrive in Sydney
“We’ve asked them to go back and re-look at that, to sharpen their pencils, because there still was a gap there.”
Qantas International chief executive Tino La Spina
He said the Australian flag carrier was now “eagerly awaiting to see what we get back from that.”
The news comes after Qantas’ two recent and very successful ultra-long-haul test flights, one from New York to Sydney and the other from London to Sydney.
READ: HISTORY MADE: LHR-SYD In Under 20 Hours Direct On Qantas
It felt as though the ultra-long-haul flights were so close to being a reality for regular passengers, however, we must remember that Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has said on numerous occasions that it simply won’t happen if business case doesn’t stack up.
And it isn’t stacking up just yet.
Alan Joyce is still confident that there is a big demand for these nonstop routes.
A third Project Sunrise research flight, repeating the New York-Sydney route, will take place in December. A final decision on the flights is expected soon after that.