Qantas has announced a big increase in flights to Europe, adding more services to Rome and Paris as Australian travellers rush to find seats on routes that avoid the war torn Middle East.
The airline said on Thursday it would fly from Perth to Rome every day, up from four return flights a week. Flights to Paris will go from three to five return services a week.
This route will now start in Sydney and go through Singapore instead of Perth which making room for an extra 60 passengers on each flight. Perth to Singapore flights will also go up from one a day to 10 a week.
The changes come after the closure of major Gulf airports including Dubai and Doha threw global air travel into chaos.
Airspace closures caused by the conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran have forced airlines across Asia and the Pacific to reroute or cancel hundreds of flights since late February.
To get enough planes for the extra European flights, Qantas is moving Boeing 787 jets off its American routes and putting some Airbus A330s that normally fly within Australia onto international services.
Hong Kong based Cathay Pacific is among a growing number of carriers adding more flights to Europe to keep up with demand.
Qantas flights to Europe including Perth to London, Perth to Paris and services through Singapore are more than 90% full this month that is roughly 15 percentage points higher than normal for this time of year.
Bookings for travel between April and June have also gone up sharply and the Perth to Rome seasonal service starting again in May is already getting strong interest.
Qantas said it had raised international fares to cover fuel costs that have gone up by as much as 150% in the past two weeks.
Flight Centre Travel Group said calls to its stores and emergency help lines had jumped 75% since the crisis started with staff working non stop to help affected customers.
The airline said the schedule changes would affect some existing bookings. Customers whose flights are changed will be contacted and offered a new flight within 24 hours of their original departure or a full refund.
For now, Qantas says it will keep adjusting its flights as the situation develops. In a statement on Thursday, the airline said it was watching the ongoing effects of the conflict on fuel supply, fuel prices and travel demand and would make more changes if needed.
