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Qantas says it must prove the financial viability of its historic non-stop Perth to London service before the airline adds new destinations to its fledgling ultra-long haul network. The first ever commercial service directly linking Australia and Europe touched down in London after a 17 hour and 5 minute journey. Aboard the flight, Qantas CE Alan Joyce said the carrier was interested in making Paris the next destination it services non-stop, having been granted regulatory approval to fly to the French capital daily from Perth. “When we last did Paris it was from Singapore to Paris and it was 3 a week and it was hard to make it economically work,” Joyce said. “So we are keen on it, we are interested in it, but need to bed this one down [first].” <br/>

Qatar Airways has bought a 25% stake in one of Moscow’s largest airports for an undisclosed sum as the company attempts to overcome the Gulf blockade of the emirate. Akbar Al Baker, CE of Qatar Airways, said Monday that the airline expected the deal on Vnukovo to be concluded within the next 8 weeks. The airport, Russia’s third-largest, served 18m passengers last year and is used by the govt for official travel. Businessman Vitaly Vantsev and partners own a 74.9% stake of Vnukovo. Al Baker did not say whether he was buying from Vantsev, but Russia’s state property management service said it had no plans to privatise its 25% stake. Qatar has invested significantly in Russia in recent years. Qatar Investment Authority bought a 25% stake in St Petersburg’s airport in 2016. <br/>