Qantas says claims Qatar flights would boost tourism are overblown

afr.com:

Qantas says Qatar Airways carries more Australians out of the country than tourists in, dismissing claims from the travel sector that denying the Middle Eastern carrier’s bid to add flights has damaged the economy as “overstated”.

Emphasising its role in promoting Australia as a tourism destination and in an attempt to justify the Labor government’s decision to block Qatar from 28 extra weekly flights, Qantas said it remains “the largest private investor in marketing Australia to the world”.

Qantas says claims about Qatar Airways benefits are overstated.  Wolter Peeters

“What separates us from other international carriers serving this market is our singular focus on promoting Australian tourism in the key destinations to which we fly,” Qantas said in a submission to a Senate inquiry.

Virgin Australia said the decision to block its strategic partner Qatar “would have negative consequences for its international and domestic competitiveness in relation to [its] largest competitor, the Qantas Group”, as well as unfairly strengthen Qantas’ alliance with Qatar’s Middle Eastern rival Emirates.

Former Qantas chief economist Tony Webber said additional visitors from Europe could have spent $500 million here, generating thousands of jobs. Sydney University’s Professor Rico Merkert told the inquiry the decision would cost upwards of $1 billion per year in income.

But Qantas said: “Suggestions that granting the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority application would have materially advanced the Australian tourism industry’s recovery are overstated.”

Qantas provided the document to the Senate following last Wednesday’s appearance of chief executive Vanessa Hudson and chairman Richard Goyder at an inquiry into the decision to block the Qatar