Emirates to suspend Australia-Auckland services.
Qantas and Emirates have just announced further changes to their joint partnership, including adjustments to trans-Tasman operations.
From March 2018 Emirates will stop flying from Melbourne and Brisbane to Auckland, with the move following the carrier’s previously announced suspension of Sydney-Auckland services. Instead EK will focus on its non-stop Auckland-Dubai service.
Emirates will retain its existing daily A380 flights from Dubai to Christchurch via Sydney, and is “evaluating potential new direct services between New Zealand and Dubai”.
At the same time Qantas will increase the frequency of its trans-Tasman flights, adding seven new return flights per week between Melbourne and Auckland and an additional two weekly return services between Brisbane and Auckland. Some of these services will also be upgauged from a Boeing 737 to an Airbus A330.
The new QF trans-Tasman flights will carry the EK code and will connect with QF services to London via Perth or Singapore, as well as Emirates flights between Australia and Europe via Dubai.
These changes are included in the carriers’ joint application to regulators in Australia and New Zealand seeking extension of the authorisation for their alliance through until 2023.
More details in today’s issue of Travel Daily.