In an effort to support the recovery of tourism, Qantas and Japan Airlines (JAL) announced the plans to form a joint venture.
The airlines have submitted an application for authorization to regulators in Australia and New Zealand and the answer is expected within the next six months. The joint venture would kick off operations once the international travel gets back on track, around July 2021.
The five-year agreement is aimed to serve the customers travelling between Australia, New Zealand and Japan. If in action, it would give the possibility to offer flights between Australia and Japan sooner. The launching of the new route between the two countries would be announced once the regulatory approval is received and borders are open.
The agreement would include a codeshare relationship and optimized flight schedule between Australia, New Zealand and Japan. It would give Qantas customers access to 14 new destinations in Japan and 15 new destinations in Australia and New Zealand for JAL customers.
“The joint business means we’ll be able to build on our existing relationship with JAL through oneworld to offer more routes, better flight connections and more benefits to frequent flyers. It also helps us diversify our portfolio of joint businesses amongst Australia’s key trading partners. It will be a win for our customers, a win for trade and a win for the one million people who work in tourism across Australia,” said Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.
“We believe that a joint business with Qantas will make for a quicker recovery between both countries with the ability to expand connectivity within each carrier’s respective domestic network, providing more customer choice and travel growth opportunities,” added Japan Airlines President Yuji Akasaka.