Qantas will reduce the number of passengers on its landmark service between Perth and London, its only flight over the Middle-East, and divert the services in response to the conflict between the US and Iran.
The 17-hour flight – the first step of the airline’s “Project Sunrise” plan for long non-stop commercial flights – will be extended to over 18-hours. Passengers will be cut from the Perth to London service to accommodate the greater fuel load required for new detours over Afghanistan and Europe.
“Flight QF9 (Perth-London) and QF10 (London-Perth) are the only Qantas flights affected by this change,” the airline said. “The altered flight path increases flying time by about 40-50 minutes on QF9. As a result, we will need to reduce the number of passengers on board in order to carry more fuel.”
“Despite the altered route, QF10 will operate with a full passenger load and the same flight time due to prevailing winds.”
Qantas is also considering its options in Asia to retain a full load of passengers from Perth to London.
“This would mean a fuel stop in a city like Singapore or Hong Kong but it would enable us to still carry a full load of passengers on those heavily-booked flights and minimise disruptions,” a spokesman said.
“We’ll reach out to passsengers directly if there’s any change to their booking.”
Read the article by Lucas Baird in the Australian Financial Review.