Qantas: No need to fly via Dubai
IN the wake of continuing communal concern following its deal with Emirates, Qantas has sought to reassure travellers that they can still book a ticket with the airline that will enable them to fly to Europe and the UK, without transiting through Dubai or boarding the United Arab Emirates carrier.
IN the wake of continuing communal concern following its deal with Emirates, Qantas has sought to reassure travellers that they can still book a ticket with the airline that will enable them to fly to Europe and the UK, without transiting through Dubai or boarding the United Arab Emirates carrier.
A spokesperson for the Australian airline explained that after the deal comes into effect in April 2013, passengers will still have the option to fly with Qantas between Australia and major cities in Asia, and then on a partner airline such as British Airways or other members of the Oneworld Alliance to Europe and the UK.
In addition, he confirmed, passengers will still be able to earn or redeem Frequent Flyer points for these journeys.
“We’re sensitive to the fact that for political or religious reasons, some Israeli or Jewish Qantas customers may prefer not to travel through Dubai,” the spokesperson told The AJN. “We’ll continue to offer Qantas services to several major cities in Asia and from there we can arrange onward travel on one of our partner airlines.”
Qantas also clarified that although it is set to cease its 17-year joint services arrangement with British Airways next March, the two airlines expect to continue working together as alliance members, which includes codeshare arrangements common among the world’s airlines.
For full details of available Qantas flight options to Europe, the spokesperson advised passengers to visit www.qantas.com or speak to their travel agent.
When The AJN visited the website on Wednesday to look at flights to the UK between March and September next year, the available options listed Singapore and Hong Kong as the transit hubs.
A Qantas spokesperson told The AJN the schedule would be published shortly to show Dubai as the transit hub.
Asked whether people who booked according to the current schedule would have their flights honoured, she said: “If you book a flight to London or Europe today via Hong Kong and Singapore, your flight may change given we will be winding down our Joint Services Agreement with British Airways in coming months (subject to regulatory approval). This means a number of codeshare flights will close and new interline services will open.
“Should your flight change as a result, you will be contacted by a Qantas customer representative to discuss alternative flight options. During this process, alternative options via Hong Kong or Singapore will be available to passengers.”
AJN STAFF
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