Australian national carrier Qantas will launch direct flights been Brisbane and US cities San Francisco and Chicago early next year.
The new routes will be operated by the airline’s Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, offering next-generation seating and built-in jet lag reducing features, and see the national carrier grow its United States network from one to three non-stop destinations from Brisbane.
The announcement follows the US Department of Transportation’s (DOT) final approval of Qantas’ joint business with American Airlines last Friday.
New Direct Services
San Francisco flights will begin on February 9, 2020 and operate three times per week, complementing Qantas’ existing flights from Sydney and Melbourne and offering customers the choice of double daily Dreamliner services from Australia’s east coast to the popular Californian city.
Chicago flights will begin on April 20, 2020, operating four times per week. By flying direct, Qantas customers will save more than six hours on a return trip compared with today. The service also opens up a new Qantas gateway for Australians into North America, with access to onward destinations across American Airlines’ extensive network including to Canada and the North Eastern United States.
The flight number, QF85/86, pays homage to the 1985 Chicago Bears football team, winners of the 1986 Superbowl and widely regarded as one of the best teams in history. It follows the QF49 flight number given to airline’s Melbourne-San Francisco service as a nod to that city’s football team.
The 14,326km flight from Brisbane to Chicago will be the fourth-longest in the world and the second-longest flight on Qantas’ network, and take approximately 16 hours and 20 minutes (depending on winds).
said there had been widespread interest in the new Brisbane flights since they were announced last month.
“This is the first time Australians will have a direct link to Chicago, the third-largest US city,” says Qantas international acting CEO Naren Kumar. “We expect the flights will be popular with corporate travellers looking to do business there, but also with tourists wanting to experience some of the culture and history that Chicago is famous for. The new route from Brisbane will cater for both leisure travellers and the growing number of Australian entrepreneurs wanting to connect with Silicon Valley and San Francisco’s world-leading technology companies.”
More Reward Seats on Offer
The new routes are also good news for Qantas Frequent Flyers, with the loyalty program recently announcing it would be increasing the number of reward seats made available to members. Qantas’ new joint business with American Airlines will also deliver additional frequent flyer benefits by further integrating the carriers’ programs, including higher earn rates for both Points and Status Credits on each other’s networks beyond what is available today through oneworld.
Qantas Lounge, Brisbane
The new routes will see a total of 14 weekly services year-round between Brisbane and the US, including the daily 787 Brisbane to Los Angeles service that continues to New York. In addition to the new routes, Qantas will increase flights between Brisbane and Los Angeles from ten to thirteen per week during the peak season from 2 January to 8 February 2020.
Qantas expanded its International Brisbane Lounge (above) by 25 percent this year in response to the popularity of flights from Brisbane.
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