Qantas boosts Hong Kong with more flights, Business Suites
By Chris C., September 9 2015
Qantas is ramping up its flights from Sydney to both Hong Kong and Manila, with Sydney-Hong Kong increasing by four flights per week on an ongoing basis – all of which will feature Qantas’ Business Suites aboard its Airbus A330 aircraft.
It’s also the first time that Qantas will offer the A330 Business Suite (below) between Sydney and Hong Kong: a route traditionally served by its Boeing 747 aircraft throughout the year and the larger Airbus A380 during peak periods.
Taking flight from October 26 2015, QF117 is wheels-up in Sydney at 1:15pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays for a 7:40pm arrival in Hong Kong, and departs at 1:40pm on Tuesdays ahead of an 8:05pm touchdown.
On the return, QF118 pushes back at 9:35pm on Monday through Thursday, arriving at the gate in Sydney at 10am the following morning.
That extra overnight leg from Hong Kong to Sydney will provide an alternative to the earlier flight of Qantas' daily Boeing 747 service, which remains on the roster as QF127/128.
Qantas International CEO Gareth Evans says the new flights are geared towards providing a double-daily service "on peak days of the week for business travel and we’ll look at expanding beyond that if the opportunity is available."
More for Manila, too
The Red Roo’s Sydney-Manila flights (QF19/20) will also increase from four- to five-times-weekly between early December 2015 and late March 2016.
“We’re pleased to add to the seasonal services we’re set to operate to Asia later this year, with the fifth weekly Manila flight again representing the dynamic nature of our network, which has the flexibility to offer our customers more flights during peak seasons,” Evans said.
Qantas’ new Hong Kong flights go on sale today with promotional launch fares for $688 in economy available until 11:59pm on Friday 11 September, while the extra Manila services can be booked from next week.
Also read: Qantas A330 Business Suite business class review
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Chris is a a former contributor to Executive Traveller.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
15 Dec 2014
Total posts 284
I think the 789's will replace the old 747 on this route, unless Qantas miracously decides to take those other A380's they have on order and put them on the HKG when the 747's are retired.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Apr 2013
Total posts 387
I thourght it would be double daily with an A380 replacing an A330 during peak services, although they may announce that at another time when more A330s are reconfigured since 1 B747 is due to be retired this FY.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Apr 2013
Total posts 387
*double daily A330. Also im guessing the a330 service will be operated by an A332 with the trim back on transcontintal A330 flights
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
10 Apr 2013
Total posts 387
I think 787-10s will be best to replace A333. 787-9 better to replace B747s flights that need longer range
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Feb 2011
Total posts 3
why doesn't Qantas rename itsel as Air Sydney ?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
30 Mar 2015
Total posts 54
Whilst I do admit Qantas is Sydney centric, Sydney just seems to have the most demand, I mean Sydney is Australia's largest and most well known city. Although IMO Qantas should be focusing on Melbourne alot more, Melbourne has over 4 million residents and half the flights of Sydney.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
19 Mar 2014
Total posts 567
The market doesn't lie.
More business is done in Sydney, especially international business. As much as I love Melbourne, it's the sporting capital and in business terms, a secondary city.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
Why doesn't Air New Zealand rename themselves Air Auckland? Why doesn't British Airways rename themselves Air London? What a stupid question. How dare airlines fly from cities with the most demand!?
31 Mar 2014
Total posts 397
Agreed. So sick of seeing people whinge about this everytime there is an article about Qantas and Sydney
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
08 Dec 2011
Total posts 29
TBH connecting from anywhere in the UK to LHR or anywhere in NZ to AKL doesn't take 4+ hours. Bad examples.
People whinge because they don't like to play rugby with their itineraries (ie go backwards to go forwards).
If you're a PER/ADL Qantas customer wishing to fly QF to HKG on qantas.com it will route you PER>SYD/MEL>HKG in possibly the most indirect manner of getting to Asia. Until recently this was the only way to get to SIN as well.
It's understandable if there's no business case for certain QF intl routes but I really don't understand why QF can't attempt a codeshare with CX on Australian routes to HKG that QF chooses not to fly such as ex PER, ADL, CNS (you know, the rest of Australia that shouldn't have to connect via Sydney).
Currently CX flies to PER 10 times a week which shows there's this so called 'demand' or 'market' you guys speak of so frequently.
If QF doesn't want to fly the route because it can't build a business case for it that's fine, but at least attempt to facilitate a way that your loyal QF PER/ADL based customers (there's plenty of them) so they can fly directly on 'oneworld partner' CX to one of asia's most important business hubs.
Rather QF chooses to shortchange QF loyalty based in PER/ADL with their 'simpler, fairer' system of reduced points & status credits for choosing to fly in the most direct manner to & from HKG rather than play rugby with Qantas.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
Because starting a codeshare with CX on direct routes from PER/ADL takes away those customers who would happliy fly first to MEL/SYD to connect.
Just because CX flies to PER 10 times a week doesn't mean the demand or market is there for direct flights to HKG. CX flies those Perth passengers to Hong Kong and then onwards to their European/South East Asian/Chinese destinations. Qantas doesn't fly further from Hong Kong so sees no sense in operating a terminating PER-HKG flight with no connections. CX, however, can see the benefit of doing so as they can fly those passengers further afield.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
What works for one airline, does not automatically mean it works for another. Just like Air New Zealand doesn't fly to Suva from Auckland, but Fiji Airways does. Air New Zealand doesn't fly year round from Wellington and Christchurch but Fiji Airways does. You don't see Air New Zealand codesharing on those services.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
08 Dec 2011
Total posts 29
Did you seriously just compare Auckland Suva to Perth HKG?
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
It's an example of one airline that obviously sees value in a route when one clearly does not.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
08 Dec 2011
Total posts 29
I'd love for you to find someone in Perth who would 'happily' connect to HKG via SYD/MEL.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
09 May 2011
Total posts 362
That was more aimed to your ADL argument. ADL/MEL is one hour. Not 4 hours+ as you suggested
21 Apr 2012
Total posts 3006
Such a simplistic assessment belies the facts of Australia's history and the tensions between a centralised vs. decentralised model, which is reflective of the arguments for Qantas establishing other ports as international gateway.
In the case of the UK, Australia did not have a post-war Labour government that focused powers centrally in Whitehall that left a vacuum in the once great Victorian cities of England and Scotland, which has resulted in the London centric perspective of the United Kingdom.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
22 Jul 2015
Total posts 219
Excellent idea. And anyway Melbourne has its own bank - Bank of Melbourne - so we should have our own airline being the Premier State
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
05 Dec 2012
Total posts 25
There is no use worrying about Qantas or Air Sydney or Air East Coast Australia, whatever you want to call them, just swing to EK, CX or SQ, simple.
23 Mar 2012
Total posts 98
Such great news . The increased capacity to HKG with QF has been long in coming .I hope it will go twice daily as soon as is possible .CX fills the four daily flights with code shares and traffic from China and seats are becoming more and more difficult to secure especially at short notice .Thought this route may have been taken up by Virgin Australia but seems not to be !
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
12 Jul 2014
Total posts 115
Increased capacity........ On what spare planes? Qantas is really stretched now. AJ needs to get those additional A380's ordered. Unless he is doing an EK and waiting for the NEO.
Cathay Pacific - Asia Miles
01 Feb 2015
Total posts 111
This post makes me so happy! Glad to see QF returning to 2 flights daily :-)
Cathay Pacific - Asia Miles
01 Feb 2015
Total posts 111
****Not daily but atleast a few times a week!
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
04 Feb 2013
Total posts 44
And yet SYD- SIN still does not have a full weekly schedule of A330 flights with the new interior...
I've obviously missed something, as also mentioned in the response posts...as QF has not purchased any planes, where did the capacity suddenly come from (what's being cut)?
12 Feb 2014
Total posts 228
The extra plane comes off the Perth-East Coast route. An A330 has been replaced by 737.
Thai Airways International - Royal Orchid Plus
15 Jan 2013
Total posts 458
Just be thankful It's all nonstops these days SYD-SIN.I felt for some of you who could not get on the BA service or the QF5 having to end up on the services that went either via Adelaide or Jakarta back in the day.
QF Platinum
24 Jan 2013
Total posts 138
Tried to change my flight to HKG from the 747 to the new A330 - $480 change fee plus a fare adjustment on my original business class sale fare :( Next time....
Delta Air Lines - SkyMiles
14 Apr 2013
Total posts 325
So this means that QF really wants to take a bigger market share off the J pax traveling to HKG now that Jetstar Hong Kong is no longer in the pipe line. Wonder how CX will respond? Will they change all A330 to the B777 or will they use the HKG - SYD as the launch route for the A350. What ever the case, it will be intresting to see how this plays out.
Cathay Pacific - Asia Miles
01 Feb 2015
Total posts 111
Launch route for the A350 would be pretty cool! Although Auckland is in dire need of a new aircraft! As much as I love the A340's the hard product is definetly dated and out of sync with Cathay's new brand ethos...
Qantas
02 Sep 2015
Total posts 37
What extra day is on the manila flight. Now its mon. Wed. Fri. Sat
Cathay Pacific - The Marco Polo Club
28 Oct 2015
Total posts 10
Will the following dining options in The Qantas Hong Kong Lounge extend their operating hours due to the addition of QF117/118?
1. Plate of the Day
2. Spice Temple BBQ Bar
3. DIm Sum Trolley
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