QANTAS Airways has confirmed it will operate its flagship direct route from Australia to London via Darwin when international flights resume next month with the reopening of Australia’s border.

The national carrier has reached an agreement with the Northern Territory Government and Darwin Airport to temporarily reroute its flights from Melbourne and Sydney through Darwin.

The Darwin hub arrangement will be in place in time for borders reopening from November 14, 2021 until at least April 2022 when London flights are scheduled to operate via Perth again. While this is a temporary change to the route, QANTAS will watch how it performs and is open-minded about what it could lead to down the track.

The Sydney-Darwin-London route will begin on November 14 while the Melbourne-Darwin-London route is currently scheduled to begin on December 18, 2021 but could start earlier depending on discussions with the Victorian Government on shorter quarantine arrangements for returning travelers.

Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said the new route via Darwin will be made possible due to the support from the Northern Territory Government who have been instrumental in helping QANTAS facilitate the new route in a post COVID-19 operating environment.

The passenger transit arrangements will be split into two stages to reflect COVID-safe arrangements in the Territory itself. In stage one, transiting passengers from all Australian states, or returning from London, will be able to visit the international lounge and shops at Darwin Airport.

Passengers traveling from London to Sydney and Melbourne via Darwin and wanting to travel onwards to other Australian cities may also be subject to state and territory quarantine requirements.

In stage two, transiting passengers will have the option to leave the terminal and visit Darwin, providing a tangible tourism boost for the city.

Darwin based customers will also be able to book the direct flight meaning a convenient non-stop connection to London.

QANTAS has a long and proud history in Darwin. The city was the jump off point from Australia for the launch of the national carrier’s first international flight in 1935 from Brisbane to Singapore via Darwin.

Darwin was also part of the original 1947 Kangaroo Route between London and Sydney which took four days and flew from Sydney to Darwin and then onwards to Singapore, Calcutta, Karachi, Bahrain, Cairo and Castel Benito before landing in London.

As a result of repatriation flights, this year marks the first time QANTAS has operated flights into Darwin Airport from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, making it the first airport in Australia to have received nonstop flights from all inhabited continents of the world.

QF1 will take off from November 14, 2021, departing Sydney five times a week at 6.30 pm, land in Darwin at 9.25 pm for a brief refueling stop ahead of the 13,800 km, 17-hour, 20 minute direct journey to London’s Heathrow Airport.

All passengers on QANTAS’ international flights will be required to be fully vaccinated with a TGA-approved or recognized vaccine (some exemptions for medical reasons and children). They will also be required to return a negative PCR COVID test at least 48 hours prior to departure and home quarantine for seven days on arrival into New South Wales.

Along with the Sydney to London via Darwin service, QANTAS will restart its flights from Sydney to Los Angeles in November.

https://twitter.com/Qantas/status/1443832375708815362?s=20

All other international routes that were scheduled to resume from December 18, 2021 will continue as planned, although the Group has the flexibility to add additional routes if other states and territories decide to open their borders earlier and reduce quarantine requirements to seven days at home, or less.

Top Copyright Photo: QANTAS Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner VH-ZNB (msn 39039) LAX (Michael B. Ing). Image: 955448.

QANTAS aircraft slide show: