Qantas to cut Q3 capacity by about a third as COVID-19 cases rise

Qantas has pared about a third of planned domestic and international capacity in the March quarter to better match travel demand after a rise in COVID-19 infections, it said on Thursday. The airline, which ends its financial year in June, said it would provide more details on the impact of the changes when it issues half-year results in late February. Qantas has not made material capacity adjustments for Q4, it added. The Australian carrier is the latest airline globally to make major March quarter capacity cuts as the highly infectious Omicron variant of the coronavirus spreads globally, dampening travel demand and leading to rising sick calls among staff. Qantas said it would run 70% of its pre-COVID-19 domestic capacity in the third quarter, down from a prior forecast of 102%, at a time when Australia is reporting record numbers of COVID-19 cases due to a runaway Omicron outbreak. International capacity will fall to 20% of pre-COVID-19 levels from 30% due to tighter travel restrictions in countries including Japan, Indonesia and Thailand, Qantas added.<br/>