Qantas has responded to intense criticism about the amount of Covid-related flight credits that were due to expire at the end of the year.

The airline has announced that it will remove the expiry date on the credits, for both Qantas and Jetstar customers.

Following this decision, Qantas customers with COVID credits can request a cash refund, while Jetstar customers can use their COVID vouchers for flights indefinitely (but can’t get a refund).

To encourage more people to use their credits for flights, from 4 September 2023 Qantas is offering double the standard number of Qantas Points for any flights booked with a Qantas COVID credit before 31 December 2023.

The airline says that, due to system limitations, Qantas COVID credits can’t be converted into a travel booking after this date, but can be taken as a refund at any time.

ADVICE FOR CUSTOMERS

Qantas

Find your travel credit – Use the ‘Find My Credit’ tool on qantas.com
Request a refund – Call 1300 668 885
Use your travel credit – Visit qantas.com/travelcredit for specific advice based on your type of travel credit (most credits can be used online at qantas.com)
For more help – Speak to the Travel Credit Concierge team on 1300 171 505. If your original booking was made through a travel agent or third party website, contact them directly.

Jetstar 

Find your voucher – Contact via Live Chat
Use your voucher – Visit Jetstar.com to book using your voucher (vouchers can be redeemed on all Jetstar fares, including sale and Club Jetstar fares, and on domestic or international trips)
Check your available balance – Use the Voucher Balance Checker on Jetstar.com
Extend your voucher – Jetstar customers can extend their vouchers indefinitely by contacting LiveChat or the contact centre after the voucher has expired.

If you’ve already booked travel with a Qantas COVID credit or Jetstar COVID voucher, you don’t need to do anything and there’s no change to your trip.

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Qantas has today announced another huge profit result, as well as a nice little bonus for customers.

The airline is giving Frequent Flyers who have flown at least one Qantas flight in the past 12 months their choice of Qantas points or status credits.

Eligible customers will receive an email inviting them to choose between 1,000 points or 30 status credits. 

Those who flew 10 or more times will be gifted 5,000 points or 75 status credits.

Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said: “Our customers have shown a lot of patience and understanding as the industry has recovered. We’ve announced a points or status credits gift today but we know the best way we can thank them is to consistently deliver the standards they rightly expect, and reinvest our profits to keep improving their experience.”

Qantas has announced a further investment into new aircraft, including a mix of A350s and 787s to replace the current A330 and A380 fleet.

The airline is also launching a huge fare sale today. Qantas fares will be up to 40 per cent off, including return flights from Sydney to London for $1799 and Melbourne to Los Angeles for $1199.

Jetstar fares are up to half price, with domestic Jetstar flights starting from as low as $29 one-way and Jetstar international flights from $145 one-way.

Customers who still have Covid credits can use them on these fares.

Love Qantas Points? Don’t miss the big offer of 75,000 bonus Qantas Points and a $450 travel credit every year, plus lounge passes and more, with our favourite card: the Qantas Amex Ultimate Card!

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Virgin Australia’s Velocity Frequent Flyer program has announced a brand-new partnership with Luxury Escapes, following the conclusion of the travel company’s previous tie-up with Qantas.

This collaboration is primed to provide enhanced benefits to their shared customer base, which encompasses millions of Australians.

From today, they will be able to earn and redeem Velocity Points when they book luxury holiday packages, stay in high-end hotels, embark on cruises, join tours, and access several other premium offers on luxuryescapes.com.

For every dollar spent on eligible bookings with Luxury Escapes, Velocity members will earn 1 Velocity Point.

Furthermore, members can use their accumulated points to either partially or completely offset the cost of their Luxury Escapes holiday bookings. As regular readers will know, you’ll get less value from your points this way than using them for flights or upgrades – so consider this before redeeming your points.

In line with this partnership announcement, Luxury Escapes is also unveiling its new flagship store at Melbourne’s Chadstone Shopping Centre. The store promises an immersive retail experience with travel deals, interactive displays, barista-made coffee and even French champagne.

To mark the occasion, Velocity is offering a chance for its members to win one of five 100,000 Velocity Points bundles. To participate, members need to make a booking in the new store using their Velocity number by 6 pm AEST on 27 August 2023.

Nick Rohrlach, the CEO of Velocity Frequent Flyer, shared his enthusiasm about the collaboration. He stated that this partnership with Luxury Escapes stands as a testament to Velocity’s commitment to offering more choices, value, and rewards to its vast membership base.

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Qantas has announced that it plans to exceed its pre-COVID international flying capacity next year as its final A380s return from storage and new Boing 787 Dreamliners are delivered.

The airline is today adding more than 250,000 seats to and from Australia, with a focus on New York, Los Angeles, Bali and Johannesburg.

The changes include:

• Sydney-Bali – larger Airbus A330 aircraft will replace daily Boeing 737 flights from October this year with more premium seats and fully-flat beds in business class
• Sydney-Auckland-New York – following the successful launch of the new route in June this year, flights will increase from four per week to daily from August 2024
• Sydney-Johannesburg – for the first time Qantas A380s will operate to South Africa from July 2024, nearly doubling capacity during peak periods
• Melbourne-Los Angeles – capacity will increase by around 20 per cent with more A380 flights on the route from July 2024
• Sydney-Los Angeles – flights will increase from eight to nine per week from July 2024, operated with a mix of 787 and A380 aircraft.

The A380s have all been refurbished with the airline’s latest economy, premium economy, business and first class seats.

Qantas appears to be in the process of updating its booking system to reflect the new flights. We don’t see any new reward seats available, but that could change, so keep an eye out!

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Qantas has today confirmed it will support the Yes campaign for the upcoming Voice to Parliament referendum.

The airline has unveiled special livery on three Qantas Group aircraft which feature the Yes23 campaign logo. These are a Qantas Boeing 737, a QantasLink Dash 8 Turboprop and a Jetstar Airbus A320.

In addition, Qantas will help out Yes campaigners with travel so they can engage with regional and remote Australians ahead of the referendum.

Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said support for an Indigenous Voice to Parliament continued the airline’s commitment to reconciliation and, more broadly, the notion of a ‘fair go’.

“Qantas has a long history of supporting reconciliation with First Nations people, from the Aboriginal artwork on our inflight magazine in the 1960s and on our aircraft since the 1990s, to our support for constitutional recognition in 2014, public support of the Uluru Statement of the Heart 2019, and our First Nations employment and supplier commitments.

“We’re supporting the Yes23 campaign because we believe a formal voice to government will help close the gap for First Nations people in important areas like health, education and employment.

“Like our Flying Art livery aircraft showcasing First Nations culture to a global audience, these aircraft will send a message of support for a Yes vote as they travel the country.

“We know there are a range of views on this issue, including amongst our customers and employees, and we respect that. I encourage people to find out more, to listen to First Nations voices, and to make their own decisions,” added Mr Joyce.

More information about the Qantas Group’s commitment to reconciliation is available here.

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The low-cost carrier Bonza has today revealed its third base will be at Gold Coast Airport, complementing its existing bases at Melbourne Tullamarine and Sunshine Coast airports.

Two Boeing 737 aircraft will operate from the iconic holiday spot to 11 existing Bonza destinations: Albury, Bundaberg, Cairns, Gladstone, Mackay, Melbourne Avalon, Melbourne Tullamarine, Mildura, Rockhampton, Townsville and the Whitsunday Coast.

The airline says the new flights will be on sale very soon through the airline’s app, which is the only place to book direct.

Starting fares will range from $49 to $79 per person one way. 

This news follows the move last month to cut routes and reduce frequencies due to customer demand and resource shortages.

The airline says it will lease two aircraft to enable its Gold Coast expansion.

This next phase of Bonza’s growth will see 70 new flights per week and almost 700,000 additional passenger seats a year into and out of Gold Coast Airport.

The airline says there will be additional and new destinations that will connect with the Gold Coast and those will be revealed “when the time is right”.

Recruitment for Gold Coast based pilots and crew is expected to begin shortly.

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