How Do Low-Cost Airlines Make Tickets So Cheap?
The likes of Ryanair, easyJet, and Southwest are some of the most successful airlines in history, with the former consistently…
On Tuesday, June 9th, Qantas and American Airlines held a press conference at the IATA Annual General Meeting. In this conference, Doug Parker, American’s CEO, and Alan Joyce, Qantas’ CEO, sat down to make numerous important announcements having to do with their route networks.
Speaking first, Doug Parker addressed members of the media. He continued by giving some background on the Qantas and American partnership. Later, he announced that American will begin service, commencing December 17th, from LAX to Sydney. This new route will be operated by American’s fairly new 777-300ER.
Now, this is not the first time that American has flown to Australia. In the 1970s, American flew to Sydney with a Boeing 707. Later, American flew a Dallas-Sydney route on a DC-10. The aircraft operating these flights would make stops, sometimes multiple, along the way. With the 777-300ER, customers can expect a nonstop service across the pacific.
American Airlines last operated service to Sydney in Feb 1992, at the time it was operating 4 weekly DC10 Dallas – Honolulu – Sydney route
— airlineroute (@airlineroute) June 9, 2015
Later in the press conference, Alan Joyce spoke. Similar to Parker, Joyce gave some background on Qantas itself and its partnership with American.
FACT: Did you know @Qantas is the oldest continuing operating airline? #TheMoreYouKnow
— AirlineGeeks.com (@AirlineGeeks) June 9, 2015
Effective December 20th, Qantas says that it will begin service from SFO-SYD on peak days. Later, the service will ramp-up to 6 days per week. The flight will be operated by a 747-400 with an A380-style cabin configuration.
Qantas has operated an SFO route in the past. In fact, Sydney to San Francisco has been a very popular route. According to the airline,
“Qantas’ flights to San Francisco are made possible by American Airlines starting a direct daily Sydney to Los Angeles service from 19 December 2015. This will replace four Qantas’ B747 Sydney to Los Angeles services per week and one Qantas B747 Melbourne to Los Angeles service per week.”
In a press release, Qantas stated that customers can expect the following with the new routes:
Before either airline can operate the stated routes, they must receive regulatory approval.
With these new routes, both Qantas and American will have an increased partnership and will grow the oneworld alliance. These routes should make traveling easier for customers wanting to travel between Australia and the U.S.
Watch the full press conference here:
Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com back in February 2013 and has amassed considerable experience in the aviation sector. His work has been featured in several publications and news outlets, including CNN, WJLA, CNET, and Business Insider. During his time in the industry, he's worked in roles pertaining to airport/airline operations while holding a B.S. in Air Transportation Management from Arizona State University along with an MBA. Ryan has experience in several facets of the industry from behind the yoke of a Cessna 172 to interviewing airline industry executives. Ryan works for AirlineGeeks' owner FLYING Media, spearheading coverage in the commercial aviation space.
Receive a daily dose of the airline industry's top stories along with market insights right in your inbox.
The likes of Ryanair, easyJet, and Southwest are some of the most successful airlines in history, with the former consistently…
Given that the majority of passengers traveling on the big Middle Eastern airlines are connecting, these airlines offer stopover packages…
The concept of an “airline” is a familiar one: a single company operates specific aircraft to specific places, either regularly…