After being announced earlier this year, non-stop flights from Perth to Johannesburg and Auckland took off today. These new flights see something of an expansion of its growing international hub in the west.
These flights reinforces the growth of Qantas’ expanding international western hub. The services connect additional cities and add more than 150,000 seats in and out of Perth each year.
Kicking off the day,
Sunday morning kicked off with the arrival of Qantas’ first direct service between Auckland and Perth. The incoming aircraft was then set to head off to Johannesburg, operating as flight QF65, It is an interesting schedule, as it allow New Zealanders an option to fly from Auckland to Johannesburg, with a single stopover in Perth.
CEO Qantas International Cam Wallace said
Today marks a significant milestone for Perth as our direct service to Johannesburg takes off and we welcome the arrival of the first direct flight from Auckland.
The response from customers since we announced these routes in May has been terrific. Today’s inaugural flight to Johannesburg is almost full and we’re seeing positive forward bookings, so we know there is strong appetite for direct travel between the West and South Africa, as well as Auckland.
These routes unlock more options and greater choice for all Australians to connect to the world through our growing network, including to popular cities like Cape Town through our partnership with Airlink in South Africa and for West Australians to New York via Auckland.
We would like to thank Perth Airport, the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry, and Australian Border Force for working together to make these new flights possible.
Route Details
As previously advised, the details of the flights are as follows
Perth-Johannesburg (QF65):
- Three weekly flights operating on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday*
- Aircraft: Qantas A330 with 27 Business Class seats in 1-2-1 configuration (each featuring direct aisle access and converting into a lie-flat bed) and 224 Economy seats
- Flight time: Approximately 11 hours 15 minutes
- Provides connections to Cape Town and other African destinations through Qantas’ partnership with Airlink
Perth-Auckland (QF111):
- Three weekly flights operating on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday
- Same A330 aircraft configuration
- Flight time: Approximately 6 hours 45 minutes
- Offers connections for West Australians to New York via Auckland
