Qantas to double down on Kangaroo Island route

Qantas to double down on Kangaroo Island route

Qantas will more than double its flights between Adelaide and Kangaroo Island, following Regional Express’ decision to axe the service.

Last week, The Nibbler reported the news that Australian regional carrier Regional Express (Rex) plans to exit the Adelaide-to-Kangaroo Island route on account of allegations national carrier Qantas is “dumping” excessive capacity on an already marginal route.

These were allegations the national carrier has consistently denied, maintaining Rex’s departure from the route in the wake of devastating bushfires was a “sad state of affairs”.

Following this, Qantas has announced it plans to more than double its flights between Adelaide and Kangaroo Island.

From July, QantasLink will operate 12 return services per week throughout the year – an increase from the existing schedule of five return flights per week, and three return services during off-peak.

QantasLink CEO John Gissing, who made the announcement at Adelaide Airport with South Australian Premier Steven Marshall and Federal Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham, said the national carrier wanted to support Kangaroo Island’s recovery from the devastating bush fires.

“Now is the time to be supporting Kangaroo Island, not deserting it,” Gissing said.

“What Kangaroo Island needs over the months and years ahead is for tourists to come back, and a reliable air service is vital for that to occur.

“Everyone at Qantas is proud that we are adding more flights and helping Kangaroo Island get back on its feet.”

Flights will be re-timed to enable easy connections through Adelaide for domestic and international tourists visiting the island with Qantas and its partner airlines, including Emirates and American Airlines.

Gissing said Qantas was working closely with the South Australian Tourism Commission to support its #BookThemOut campaign, in a bid to boost tourism to Kangaroo Island.

The additional flights will go on sale later this month and will be operated by QantasLink’s 50 seat Q-300 aircraft. Sale fares will start as low as $99 one-way.

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