Domestic airlines gained slots at expense of internationals
Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin took advantage of smaller rivals and overseas carriers relinquishing their landing slots at Australia’s largest airport during the pandemic, soaking up more than 500 new slots at Sydney Airport compared to 2019, according to previously unreported data.
The revelation comes as Qantas claims that Qatar Airways being granted an additional seven flights a week to Australia, which would mean it needed 14 more slots at Sydney Airport, would unfairly “distort” the aviation market.
Qantas says it is not hoarding slots at Sydney. Alamy
Qatar is operating at 100 per cent of its capacity at Sydney Airport, while Emirates, Qantas’ partner and Etihad are operating at 42 per cent of their capacity under the bilateral air treaty with the United Arab Emirates. Qantas no longer flies through the Middle East and its routes to Europe via Singapore. Singapore Airlines flies four flights a day to Sydney.
Qantas has previously accused Sydney Airport of demonising its biggest customer, and said it is trying to get more international carriers onto its runways, given bigger planes and more seats mean more revenue.
The domestic airlines, including Qantas, Virgin Australia and Jetstar, account for about 60 per cent of all slots at Sydney Airport. The increased slots alone equate to more than 5 million seats, equivalent to 35 per cent of Sydney Airport’s entire weekly international slots.
The data shows Jetstar was the biggest beneficiary of successive governments’ failure to act on the advice of former productivity commissioner Peter Harris, who recommended that regulators allow the pandemic to create a natural opportunity to reset the slots system.
Jetstar’s domestic operation increased its slots by 11 per cent. Virgin
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