Qantas, Australia’s best airline

TripAdvisor, the travel planning and booking site, has announced the winners of its Travellers’ Choice awards for airlines, identifying travellers’ favourite carriers around the globe. 

Qantas was recognised as the best airline in Australia whilst Air New Zealand emerged as the best airline in the South Pacific. Singapore Airlines was named the number one airline in the world.


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Qantas and Uber make airport trips more rewarding

QANTAS customers will be able to earn points on Uber trips to-and-from eligible airports in Australia by booking on the latest version of the airline’s app. From 3 November, an Uber icon will appear in the booking section of the Qantas app for customers to request their airport ride. The partnership means Qantas Frequent Flyers can manage their whole travel experience through the Qantas app, from booking their flight through to leaving home, boarding their flight and then making their way to their end destination.

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Hop on to Kangaroo Island

QANTASLINK has announced it will launch flights to Kangaroo Island, providing travellers with a new destination on its domestic network. From December, QantasLink will offer flights to #KangarooIsland from both Adelaide and Melbourne with a schedule that sees more flights during peak seasons, providing around 20,000 seats a year using its Dash-8 50 seat Q300 and 74 seat Q400 aircraft.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill said: “I am delighted that Australia’s iconic ‘flying kangaroo’ has announced that it will start flying to its namesake, Kangaroo Island in December.

“Kangaroo Island is already one of our State’s most popular destinations and now thousands more people from South Australia, interstate and overseas will get to experience one of our great natural wonders.

“The Island is world-renowned for its premium food and wine and is the ultimate taste of #Australia for visitors with its abundant wildlife.

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Smoother Connections

QANTAS customers are set to benefit from smoother connections and improved facilities at #Perth #Airport with construction to begin on a new integrated domestic and international passenger hub.

A new international wing, will be located within the existing T3/T4 area. It will feature a large outdoor deck with alfresco seating, a streamlined immigration and customs area to enable a faster transfer experience, additional food and beverage outlets and a new Duty Free store.

Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said all of the airline’s domestic flights, as well as services to Singapore, Auckland and London, would operate from the new facility.

“Perth will become the western hub for our international services to the United Kingdom and potentially other European destinations in the future,” Mr Joyce said.

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Qantas WiFi Upgrade

QANTAS customers on Wi-Fi enabled domestic flights will be able to watch their favourite shows, avoid missing out on live sport and listen to almost any song they like, with Foxtel, Netflix and Spotify coming on board to provide content in 2017.

With speeds up to 10 times faster than conventional inflight Wi-Fi, Qantas will offer customers video and audio streaming when the service is switched on its first domestic aircraft in late February this year. The rest of the airline’s fleet of domestic Boeing 737 and Airbus A330 aircraft will follow from mid-2017 onwards.

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Qantas launches new virtual reality app

QANTAS has launched a new virtual reality app – Qantas VR giving customers an interactive new way to discover and explore destinations before physically travelling there.

Available for iPhone, Android, Samsung Gear VR, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive devices, the app showcases Australia’s distinctive landscape through a series of immersive videos, including never before seen aerial footage of Uluru and Kata Tjuta.

The app offers two modes: split screen for those who have a compatible headset or Google Cardboard and 2D landscape for viewing directly on a smartphone. Users can also book Qantas flights to the featured destinations directly from the app.

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Picture Credit: SilentJay76 flickr.com/photos/27705360@N02/22821231278 Qantas Boeing 747 + 737 via photopin.com

New flights to Alice

VIRGIN AUSTRALIA will operate three direct services a week between Adelaide and Alice Springs, providing an additional connection to central Australia.

The new flights will operate Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and will utilize Virgin Australia’s 176-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

QantasLink will start flying from Adelaide to Whyalla on the Eyre Peninsula, Australia’s “Seafood Frontier”. The new service will operate double daily on a 50-seat Q300 aircraft from April 13.

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Up in the air …

Qantas tops for safety … QANTAS is the world’s safest airline, according to the annual report by AirlineRatings.com.

The website monitors the safety records of almost 450 airlines worldwide, taking into account a variety of factors such as safety records, aircraft type, and government audits.

The Australian airline has remained fatality-free since the dawn of the jet era. Air New Zealand, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Finnair, Lufthansa, and Singapore Airlines also featured in the top 10.

‘Our top 10 safest airlines are always at the forefront of safety innovation,’ said AirlineRatings.com’s editor, Geoffrey Thomas. ‘These airlines are a byword for excellence.’

AirlineRatings.com has also identified the ten safest low-cost carriers. These are (in alphabetical order): Aer Lingus, Alaska Airlines, Icelandair, JetBlue, Jetstar, Kulula.com, Monarch Airlines, Thomas Cook, TUI Fly, and WestJet.

Up in the air … for just 20 minutes … AIR BERLIN subsidiary Niki is to start flights between Vienna, Austria and Bratislava in Slovakia, with Austrian state broadcaster ORF claiming it will be the shortest commercial route in the world.

The flight between the capitals of Austria and Slovakia is reported to cover 31 miles in 20 minutes, leading some observers to question whether it would be faster to drive or take a bus.

Niki says the route is aimed at Slovakians taking connecting flights from Vienna.

Norwegian numbers up … NORWEGIAN AIR has seen a three million increase in passenger numbers in 2014 compared to the previous year. The carrier reached almost 24 million passengers in 2014 as it launched new routes from Britain to the US and Spain.

Aer Lingus v Ryanair …. TOTAL Aer Lingus passenger numbers declined by 3.8% last month in contrast to a 20% rise by its Irish rival Ryanair.

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Qantas, Virgin passengers able to use mobiles on flights

QANTAS and Virgin Australia passengers are now able to use their mobile phones and other devices on flights.

I don't have to leave them!!
By Jeremy Keith via Wikimedia Commons

The new rules apply to international and domestic flights, and will allow passengers to use tablets, e-readers, small games consoles and smartphones during take-off and landing. Neither airline has the technology to allow passengers to make calls or send e-mails without using expensive satellite technology, but they will now be able to draft emails or play games at all times.

The move from Qantas and Virgin Australia follows similar steps from some airlines in the US, Europe and New Zealand, which have already relaxed rules on phones being kept on during flights. Passengers are still asked to put electronic devices in flight mode to block them from sending texts or making calls.

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