Since this article was first written in 2019, the airline landscape in Australia has changed somewhat. As a result, the information is from another time.
At present, only Qantas offer complimentary beverages in the Economy cabin. The relevant times are:
Wine and beer are offered free of charge on select domestic and regional services:
- on flights departing from 12pm everyday, and
- on flights departing from 9am that are more than two and a half hours in duration.
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It’s something that seems to come as a shock to some people. Being asked to pay for drinks on a domestic flight. And by drinks, they mean alcoholic drinks. Like wine or beer.
If you have ever only travelled between capital cities in what you might call “business hours”, you may think free drinks are the norm. But, unfortunately, they are not. Generally, tea, coffee or juice may be complimentary. If you want something with alcohol in it, then you will often need to get your wallet out.
So what you see are passengers wondering why the have to pay. They write to papers, ask questions in forums and so on. In many cases, they word their questions in a way that make it sounds like paying for such a drink is something new.
Domestic Policies on Drinks
So, let’s start with the basic question. And we’ll ask it in the way that many people ask”
When did Qantas start charging for alcoholic drinks on domestic flights?
The simple answer is, well, since always.
While that is the case, there are times and routes where they have added complimentary alcoholic beverages. The trick is to know when they do, and when they do not, serve complimentary alcohol.
Both Qantas and Virgin Australia offer complimentary alcoholic beverages on some flights, but not others. And to confuse things, it varies depending on where you are flying, what time you are flying, and in one case, the type of aircraft you are on.
Let’s have a look at the published policies of Qantas and Virgin Australia
Qantas
Qantas publish a handy chart on their inflight dining page. The details are shown here:
| Qantas flights operating between: | Complimentary wine and beer served on flights departing after: |
|---|---|
| Perth and Adelaide/Brisbane/Canberra/Darwin/Melbourne/Sydney | 12.00pm daily |
| Adelaide/Brisbane/Canberra/Melbourne and Sydney | 4.00pm Monday to Friday |
| Canberra and Adelaide/Brisbane/Melbourne/Sydney | 4.00pm daily |
| QantasLink Turboprop services | 4.00pm daily |
Outside the time mentioned above, you should expect to be opening your wallet if you want beer or wine.
Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia get off a little easier. Most remembers its roots when you paid for everything. However, as with Qantas the product inclusions have changed over time.
Basically, they provide two options for a complimentary beer or wine:
- Flights between Perth to/from Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane
- If you’re scheduled to depart between 5 – 7pm Monday to Friday
While Virgin Australia spreads the love around the network more, they are more restrictive on time of day.
Summing Up
So there you have it. The policies of the two main airlines. So next time you are on a flight and are asked to pay, then you’ll know why.
