Just under a week after hitting the unexpected pause button for sales on its new flight service from Perth to Johannesburg and Perth to Jarkata, Qantas has formally resumed sales for one, though the other route’s fate is not as fortunate. For passengers eagerly to fly on the Perth-Jakarta route in a month’s time, flight services will not happen as the flag carrier pulls the plug.
The initial hype
The announcement of new flight services from Perth Airport to Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport and O.R. Tambo International Airport came earlier this year in June in light of increasing tourism and trade demands between the two countries. The new route launches were also supported by the Australian government’s ‘Reconnect with WA’ package, which aimed to connect the region more with the rest of the world.
In fact, the Chief Executive Officer of Qantas, Alan Joyce, celebrated the launch in a joint press conference with Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan. Joyce said at the time about the launch to Jakarta:
“Indonesia is a rapidly growing economy that’s home to more than 270 million people, and these new flights will support the growing trade and tourism links between Australia and Indonesia. The new route will also provide a new gateway for travelers looking to explore Indonesia as they connect to cities such as Surabaya and Medan.”
The well-anticipated flights were expected to launch next month on November 1st for Johnnesburg, utilizing the flag carrier’s Airbus A330s for thrice-weekly flight services. And towards the end of next month, on November 30th, flights to Jakarta were supposed to commence, utilizing the flag carrier’s Boeing 737-800 fleet of aircraft and on a thrice-weekly flight schedule.
The sudden pause
Unfortunately, all was going well for both Qantas and eager passengers until sales for the Perth-Jakarta route launch were temporarily paused alongside the Perth-Johannesburg route, another exciting new launch on the airline’s international network. The oneworld alliance member airline had cited reasons for operational constraints, primarily at Perth Airport.
The problem came as Qantas had to split its arrivals between Terminal 3 and Terminal 1 at Perth Airport, even though Terminal 3 is where the flag carrier operates all domestic and international flights. In a statement addressing the split, Qantas said:
“Infrastructure constraints at Terminal 3 make it challenging for various agencies to deliver the levels of border security and biosecurity screening required to process passengers from some destinations, including South Africa and Indonesia.”
With these aching security concerns, Qantas has been engaging in detailed discussions on possible operational walkarounds with the Australian Border Force Agency and other government departments. Unfortunately for passengers, the talks have proved fruitful for only one of the two high-profile international routes, albeit only to a certain extent.
The disappointing results
For passengers looking forward to the Perth-Johnnesburg, the good news is flights will take-off as planned on November 1st. The bad news is that the route will only be available until March 2023 before being suspended till further notice. Concerning the airport situation, QF 65 to Johannesburg will always depart from Terminal 3.
However, from November 1st till January 15th, QF 66 from Johannesburg will land at Perth Airport’s Terminal 3. Passengers with connecting Qantas flights will clear customs and immigration at Terminal 3 and move onward to their connections.
Passengers with Perth as their final destination will be bussed from Terminal 3 to Terminal 1 to clear customers. Then from January 16th till March 25th, QF 66 will land at Terminal 1 and be able to clear everything from there, and passengers with Qantas flight connections will be bussed to Terminal 3.
Sadly for passengers looking forward to the Perth-Jakarta launch, take-off will not happen as planned as it seems the operational constraints could not be walked around. Instead, the Australian carrier pulled the plug on the route and is planning to increase its Perth-Singapore flight services from seven to 10 weekly flights, which depart from Terminal 3.
What do you think of the outcome for both routes? Let us know in the comments below.