Qantas has today announced a significant expansion of its existing codeshare agreements with American Airlines, WestJet and Alaska Airlines, delivering greater benefits for customers travelling between North America and Australia.
Effective for travel from 25 October, Qantas will codeshare on American Airlines, Alaska Airlines and WestJet services on an additional 40 routes across the United States, Canada and Mexico.* In total, Qantas will now offer codeshares on over 200 routes, covering more than 100 destinations across the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Qantas International CEO, Gareth Evans, said the expanded coverage is great news for customers travelling both to and from North America, delivering even more seamless travel experiences and benefits for Qantas frequent flyers.
“The new codeshare services will allow our customers to enjoy more connections across North America, Canada and Mexico from our Los Angeles and new San Francisco gateways and have their luggage checked straight through to their final destination,” said Mr Evans.
“With the launch of our nonstop flights to San Francisco later this year, we’ve identified an opportunity to position this port as another key US hub for Qantas customers by extending the codeshares we already have in place.
“Our frequent flyers in particular will benefit from booking on the Qantas code, with increased opportunities to earn points and status credits,” added Mr Evans.
The expanded codeshare network delivers on Qantas’ ongoing commitment to the USA. Qantas operates 37 non-stop flights per week to Los Angeles, Dallas/Fort Worth, and Hawaii, daily one-stop services to New York, seasonal services to Vancouver and from December, five flights per week to San Francisco – ramping up to six flights per week in January 2016. This is in addition to code share on American Airline’s daily non-stop services between Sydney and Los Angeles beginning 19th December 2015, operated by the carrier’s flagship B777-300ER aircraft.
As part of the expanded relationship with American Airlines, Qantas will also offer coordinated schedules with the airline that allows for seamless travel within the United States and Australia. Last week, the carriers launched a new marketing campaign to showcase the customer benefits of this expanded relationship. For a limited time, Qantas Frequent Flyers can earn double Qantas Points on eligible flights with a Qantas (QF) flight number between Australia and the USA or Canada.**
This announcement also builds on Qantas’ broader strategy of partnering with other carriers to increase its presence in growing markets. It follows the announcement on Wednesday 14th October 2015 that Qantas would commence a new codeshare agreement with Solomon Airlines to offer an improved experience for the growing number of customers travelling between Australia and Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands.
The new Qantas codeshare routes will be available for sale at qantas.com and through Travel Agents progressively over the next week, and will extend to the following services.*
USA
- From Los Angeles (LAX) with American Airlines, Qantas will add codeshares to Charlotte (CLT), Columbus (CMH), Philadelphia (PHL), Pittsburgh (PIT) and Raleigh Durham (RDU).
- From San Francisco (SFO) with American Airlines, Qantas will add codeshares to Charlotte (CLT), Philadelphia (PHL) and Phoenix (PHX).
- From San Francisco (SFO) with Alaska Airlines, Qantas will add codeshares to Seattle (SEA), Portland (PDX) and Palm Springs (PSP).
Canada
- From Los Angeles (LAX) with American Airlines, Qantas will add codeshares to Vancouver (YVR).
- With WestJet, Qantas will add codeshares on an additional 25 city pairs to/from/within Canada from Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto.
Mexico
- From Los Angeles (LAX) with American Airlines, Qantas will add codeshares to Mexico City (MEX), Guadalajara (GDL) and San Jose de Cabo (SJD).
* Subject to regulatory approval.
** This double Qantas Points offer is valid for members who register and book eligible International Qantas or American Airlines flights with a QF flight number between Australia and the USA or Canada between 12.01am (ADST) 6 October 2015 and 11.59pm (ADST) 19 October 2015 for travel between 18 December 2015 and 30 September 2016. Full terms and conditions available at qandaa.qantas.com.
PUBLISHED ON 16TH OCTOBER 2015 AT 8:40