Planemakers gave a glimpse of the ultra-long-distance jets of the future Sunday as they work to meet a demanding goal from Qantas to connect Sydney and London in a non-stop 20-hour flight. As global airline leaders gather for an annual conference in Sydney with jet lag and in some cases with lost suitcases after connecting at foreign hubs, Qantas is looking to close the traditional "tyranny of distance" between Australia and global financial centres like London and New York by 2022. This year, Qantas began non-stop flights between Australia and Europe by linking Perth and London. It is now considering an order for ultra-long jets with the Airbus A350 and Boeing 777X in contention. "I think we'll get to the stage where, technically, we will know where the aircraft are going to be, in the next few months," Qantas CE Alan Joyce said. <br/>
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American Airlines warned airline passengers may eventually face higher ticket prices if oil prices remain high, prompting carriers to remove seats from the market. Oil prices have risen around 50% compared to the levels seen last year and that is putting pressure on airline profits. "If it becomes clear this is the new normal you would see over time less capacity and growth in the industry and therefore higher prices, but I don't think that's going to happen in the near term," CE Doug Parker said. IATA has said that Monday it will revise down its forecast for industry profitability this year due to higher oil, infrastructure and labour costs. <br/>
The oneworld alliance has introduced a new tier of membership, with Fiji Airways becoming the first oneworld connect partner. Oneworld CE Rob said the oneworld connect model will enable the 20-year-old alliance to fill white spaces around the globe with airlines that may not necessarily have the size, capabilities or desire to become full members. “The program has been designed to be as flexible as possible,” Gurney explained. “We think it’s a very scalable model and it’s designed to be that. Finnair CE Pekka Vauramo, oneworld’s governing board chairman, added: “In the future, we expect most of the member airlines to come into the alliance as ‘oneworld connect’ … We are progressing in talks with other airlines from various parts of the world that are interested in the program, including in the Americas and Asia.” <br/>