Qantas is restoring flights faster than planned to meet demand

Qantas Airways is restoring international flights faster than planned to handle the stunning rebound in travel. Seats on international flights are about 90% filled, and daily services between Sydney and London via Singapore on Airbus SE’s A380 superjumbo are fully booked across all classes for the next few weeks, Stephanie Tully, Qantas’s chief customer officer, said in an interview Monday. Tully was in Singapore for the reopening of the airline’s first-class lounge at Changi Airport’s Terminal 1, which was closed in March 2020 as the pandemic crippled global aviation. “Demand is incredibly strong,” Tully said. “We’ve had to bring back aircraft faster than we planned to meet that demand. And there’s a lot of pent-up demand not just for holidays, but also pent-up business demand. We’re confident that demand is just going to keep growing.” Airlines are restoring flights that were suspended during the pandemic to meet surging demand as travel restrictions are dismantled. While the jump in demand, higher oil prices and worker shortages have caused fares to rise recently, that hasn’t deterred people from flying. Qantas expects to increase capacity to 70% of pre-pandemic levels by end-September and be back at 100% of by the end of the year, Tully said. Separately, Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said the recovery in air travel is sustainable. “There’s still a lack of capacity compared to demand, particularly internationally,” Joyce said. “There’s massive demand. If I could get more aircraft into the air, I’d be doing it tomorrow.”<br/>