Changes to minimum connecting times at some airports
Latest News|Published 17 August 2022
Since Qantas restarted operations in late 2021, we have been open about the challenges facing the aviation industry globally. Increasing COVID-19 case numbers and a tight labour market have affected our ability to deliver the level of service our customers expect, and we acknowledge the impact this is having on you as our valued trade partner.
Please be assured we are doing everything we can to ensure your customers enjoy a seamless experience when flying Qantas. We’re hiring more people, putting more customer service team members at airports, and adjusting our schedule to manage peak periods better.
Following the decision earlier this month to increase the connection time for customers transiting from a domestic flight to an international flight at Melbourne and Sydney airports, we’ve made the decision to increase the minimum connection time for customers changing from one domestic flight to another.
Customers transferring from one domestic flight to another at Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide will now require 40 minutes between their flights, up from 30 minutes. These changes will help make sure your customers and their bags have time to make their flights.
The changes will be effective for new bookings from Thursday 18 August 2022.
If a customer would like to make a voluntary change to an existing booking, the new flights must adhere to the new minimum connecting time.
For customers with existing bookings, no changes need to be made to their bookings, regardless on their connection time.
On 9 August 2022, an update was made to the minimum connecting time in Sydney and Melbourne for most customers transiting from an Australian Qantas domestic flight to a Qantas international flight. This meant any new bookings from the afternoon of 9 August 2022 had the revised minimum connecting time included.
Between 10 August 2022 and 17 August 2022 Qantas rebooked the domestic flights for customers travelling from 21 August 2022 with domestic to international connections to ensure they met the new minimum connecting time in Sydney and Melbourne.
For customers booked to travel between 9 August 2022 and 20 August 2022, Qantas hasn’t proactively rebooked their Qantas Australia domestic flight. These customers will be accepted to travel as per their current booking to limit impact on their travel plans.
If your customer wants to voluntarily change their itinerary during this period or is booked to travel between 9 August 2022 and 20 August 2022 and they do not meet the new minimum connecting time, you are able to rebook their Australian domestic flight.
If your customer has to stay overnight
There may be a small number of customers who will need to overnight in Sydney or Melbourne as a result of changes to their Qantas Australian domestic sector. As per the commercial policy, you can rebook customers on alternative services to avoid the overnight stay or Qantas will cover the cost of the accommodation. Accommodation must be pre-booked via our contact centres team on 1800 753 968 if calling within Australia, or +61 800 753 968 or +61 2 8222 2422 if calling from overseas.
For customers connecting from a Qantas Australian domestic flight to another international airline, we are working with our partner airlines on whether similar changes to their current minimum connecting times in Sydney and Melbourne need to be made.
To assist you with processing these changes in your GDS or technology partner, we have released a commercial policy. The policy outlines the options available to service customers affected by change to the MCT between domestic and international flights.