QANTAS AND JETSTAR ANNOUNCE FLIGHTS TO A NEW INTERNATIONAL ROUTE

• More flights to be flown to the Pacific
• Thousands of low-cost seats up for grabs 
• READ MORE: Qantas makes major change to boarding process 

Qantas and its low-cost stablemate Jetstar have added another route to the Pacific Islands just months after a rival airline collapsed. 

The two airlines announced they will begin flying to Port Vila, the capital city of Vanuatu, this year, taking advantage of Air Vanuatu's collapse in May. 

Qantas will fly three times a week from Brisbane to the island nation from September 10 and there are plans for the service to be ramped up to five flights a week.

The airline will use its Boeing 737 planes to fly passengers to and from both destinations. 

Meanwhile, Jetstar will fly four times a week between Sydney and Port Vila starting on December 12 using their Airbus A321neo LR aircraft. 

Customers will be offered more than 150,000 low-cost seats across both airlines, with tickets now on sale. 

The move comes after Air Vanuatu entered voluntary liquidation on May 9 leaving travellers from both countries stranded. 

Creditors were owed an estimated $99million as a result of the collapse. 

Qantas International CEO Cameron Wallace said the new route will boost travel across the two nations. 

'We're thrilled to offer our customers direct flights between Brisbane and Vanuatu and build on this important route which will maintain essential connectivity for leisure and business travel,' he said. 

'We've long served Vanuatu through our codeshare partnership and this new route ensures our customers have more choice and consistent service to the island destination we know they enjoy.'

Jetstar Group CEO Stephanie Tully said the new route is another step in the budget airline's effort to expand its service. 

'Ahead of the arrival of our 13th A321neo LR next month and more new aircraft on the way, we're continuing to grow our international network with the launch of low fares seats between Sydney and Port Vila,' she said. 

'We're excited to be able to offer more Australians great value holiday options to one of our nearest and most beautiful Pacific island destinations.'

Jetstar also announced on Monday it would introduce two new trans-Tasman services with flights from Queensland to New Zealand. 

Planes will begin flying from Maroochydoore to Auckland in December, while flights from Cairns to Christchurch will start from April next year. 

Virgin Australia is currently the only airline that is offering flights between Australia and Vanuatu. 

The carrier was asked to boost the number of flights between Brisbane and Vanuatu from two flights a week to five. 

The Australian government requested the airline to increase their service until the end of June. 

The airline was granted permission by the International Air Services Commission to operate an extra seven flights a week from Australia to Vanuatu in July. 

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2024-06-27T07:29:02Z dg43tfdfdgfd