International airlines may be forced to suspend flights to Australia after arrival cap halved

International airlines claim they could be forced to suspend services to Australia from next week after national cabinet agreed to halve the number of people allowed to enter the country – and they say any suggestion of price gouging is “insulting and bizarre”. From 14 July, overseas arrivals will be slashed from 6,070 to 3,035 a week – crushing the hopes of thousands of Australians stuck overseas and looking to get home. Barry Abrams, the executive director of the Board of Airline Representatives of Australia, said on Sunday he sympathised with those caught overseas. But he said airlines still flying to Australia and struggling to break even would face tough choices. “It is going to be a very difficult situation for many airlines to maintain their frequency of flights to Australia,” Abrams said. “Many will be asking whether or not it makes more sense to suspend their passenger flights or just run cargo flights. I wouldn’t see it as cutting Australia off [but] I would see reduced connectivity and availability of flights to and from Australia.” The price of a flight is based on its length, the number of passengers and the capacity for air freight, with the direct cost of a flight running at $10,000 an hour, Abrams said. Story has more.<br/>