May 7, 2014, DALLAS/FORT WORTH: Qantas customers traveling on the popular Dallas/Fort Worth to Sydney route will be able to enjoy the world’s largest passenger aircraft, with an A380 from September 29, 2014.
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said the Qantas A380 would operate on the Dallas/Fort Worth to Sydney route for the first time.
“The Qantas A380 is perfectly designed for the long haul route, delivering one of the best onboard experiences for our customers,” said Mr. Joyce.
“The A380 offers private First class suites on the route for the first time, lie-flat Skybeds in Business, an exclusive Premium Economy cabin and our most spacious and comfortable international Economy seat yet,” added Mr. Joyce.
“Dallas/Fort Worth has become an important hub for Qantas since we started flying there in 2011. Dallas is home to oneworld partner American Airlines and is conveniently located less than four hours from every major US city including Orlando, Boston, Houston and LaGuardia, making it a perfect hub for our customers to Australia."
“This month marks the 60th anniversary of Qantas services to the US, so it’s an exciting time for us to launch A380 services from Dallas to Australia,” Mr. Joyce added.
Given the additional range of the A380, the return service will now operate direct to Sydney rather than via Brisbane. The new A380 service will operate six return services per week between Dallas/Fort Worth and Sydney (every day except Tuesdays). This represents a net increase of seats on the route by more than 10 per cent per week.
The Qantas A380 is fitted with 484 seats, (14 First, 64 Business, 35 Premium Economy and 371 Economy).
As Australia’s national carrier, Qantas has a key role in encouraging more Americans to visit down under. The airline recently hosted the cast of Modern Family on the A380 to film its Australian holiday episode, which aired last month to an audience of approximately 10 million across the United States. The Qantas website saw a 25 per cent spike in traffic after the episode aired, with people interested in making the trip.
This follows a suite of activities to market Australia and Qantas to the US. In 2012 Qantas hosted Oprah to Australia and The Ellen de Generes Show in 2013, and in March flew the LA Dodgers and the Arizona Diamondbacks for the MLB Opening Series in Sydney.
In 1954, Qantas operated a Super Constellation from Sydney to San Francisco – its first trans-Pacific route to the USA.
About Qantas Airways
Qantas is the only airline offering A380 service from the U.S. on select non-stop flights from Los Angeles to Sydney and to Melbourne. The Qantas A380 features aircraft interiors designed by internationally renowned industrial designer and Qantas Creative Director Marc Newson. Qantas has also introduced refurbished interiors on selected Boeing 747-400 aircraft (B747) offering more customers a premium flying experience, including state-of-the-art Airbus A380-style seats and in-flight entertainment units. Providing 37 flights per week from the U.S., Qantas offers 34 nonstop flights from Los Angeles (to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane), daily flights from Dallas/Fort Worth to Brisbane/Sydney, daily services from JFK via Los Angeles and three services per week from Honolulu to Sydney.
