Qantas to unveil new domestic fare structure and Frequent Flyer benefits

Update

Qantas has now announced its streamlined fare options and increased benefits for frequent flyers, including higher point earning and upgrade ability – see our report for full details.

Qantas will today unveil new domestic fares and frequent flyer point-earning rates, with Qantas CEO Alan Joyce promising "more flexible fares" which will be "more rewarding for frequent flyers".

The airline has come under increased pressure since the relaunch of Virgin Blue as Virgin Australia, which seeks to capture 20% of Australia's business travel market.

Last month Virgin Australia revamped its fare structure to introduce a new affordable 'flexible' fare which dramatically cut the cost of tickets that allow passengers to change their flight.

For example, Virgin will charge $109 for a basic Sydney to Melbourne flight or $199 for a flexible ticket with food and baggage included, while Qantas asks $369 for a flexible ticket on the same route.

The difference becomes even more marked on longer routes: on Sydney to Perth, for example, Virgin will charge $359 for a flexible ticket, but Qantas wants $891.

Virgin's Velocity frequent flyer scheme has also proved to offer substantially better point-earning value than Qantas Frequent Flyer for domestic business-class flights.

For example, a Velocity Gold member flying Virgin Australia business class between Sydney and Perth would get every fourth trip free, while even the loftiest Qantas Platinum member would only get every ninth trip free.

Read our detailed series comparing Qantas Frequent Flyer and Virgin Australia Velocity for value, point-earning and burning, status and more