Qantas hits the reset button on Tokyo flights
Qantas no longer plans to shift all its flights to Tokyo’s Narita airport across to Haneda.
By David Flynn, November 12 2025
Qantas is hitting pause on plans to make Tokyo’s Haneda Airport its primary base in the Japanese capital, in preference to the more distant Narita Airport.
While the airline currently flies twice-daily between Sydney and Haneda, its Melbourne and Brisbane flights are bound for Narita.
That was due to change once Qantas claimed the Haneda slots previously assigned to Virgin Australia for the now-scrapped Cairns-Tokyo Haneda service.
In the words of Qantas International CEO Cam Wallace at the time, the new arrangement would have made Qantas “the only airline to connect Australia’s three major east coast cities with Haneda Airport – right in the heart of downtown Tokyo.”
However, the specific timings available at Haneda were far from ideal.
For instance, the QF62 service from Tokyo Haneda to Brisbane would have departed at 6:50am, while the aircraft itself would have spent almost 12 hours on the ground in Tokyo.
Qantas has now asked Australia’s International Air Services Commission to revoke the previously-approved Haneda allocation, with Melbourne-Narita and Brisbane-Narita remaining on the schedule.
Not that the airline is giving up on turning Haneda into its singular Tokyo hub – that’s still on the cards, but will be subject to better slot timings becoming available.
Oneworld partner Japan Airlines (JAL) flies Sydney-Haneda and Melbourne-Narita, while Star Alliance member ANA connects Sydney to Haneda and Perth to Narita.
Also read: Your first look at Qantas’ new Sydney business class lounge
17 Nov 2023
Total posts 70
IMHO a daytime return from Japan is an absolute winner! The overnight flights are no fun at all!
23 Sep 2023
Total posts 16
Sensible. QF62 from NAR departs around 9pm giving you a full day in Tokyo if you want. Getting to Haneda for a 6:50am departure would be unpleasant. I would have chosen to fly via Sydney to Brisbane from Haneda rather than take that early departure.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
28 Sep 2021
Total posts 30
SYD retains HND.
HND is a much a better option for a quick commute to Tokyo hotels. If only QF59 could arrive on time more often than not it would appreciated.
QF26 6:50AM departure is a hassle.
JL52 is also a good option arriving at 16:55 (prefer 78 over 77 though)
29 Jan 2012
Total posts 219
A 7am departure back to Sydney sounds good to me, far more comfortable than the overnight runs. If I remember rightly, Qantas used to have 3 large jets sitting at LAX all day prior to Covid waiting for their 10pm departures back to AU and thought nothing of it. There is no balance in it's operations.
It's all about the $, not the passenger.
01 Jun 2017
Total posts 24
When all the roo tailed planes sitting at LAX from 7am to 10pm was because LAX was the hub for QF during those days. Flights from all Australian cities arrive the same time in the morning in LAX and then passengers connect to other US destinations especially JFK since QF runs that route. Now since QF flies SYD-AKL-JFK dropping LAX as the transit point, can see flights from BNE-LAX leaving BNE at night arriving LAX late evening. The return flight LAX-BNE would be the red eye and in this instance aircraft spends less time in LAX. The A330 aircraft can be used for one domestic route in Australia before starting the BNE-LAX again later at night.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
21 Jul 2014
Total posts 32
I wish all our flights landed in Haneda. Even the Japanese prefer it to Narita.
01 Jun 2017
Total posts 24
The original plan was to reduce SYD-HND from 2 daily to 1 daily and flick the other one back to NRT. In this regard, SYD would have 1 flight to NRT and 1 to HND. With QF gaining access to Virgin's slot in HND, means it was intended to do SYD, MEL and BNE a flight from each of the east coast city to HND per day. The time slots initially given were as follows:
When QF61 arriving 20:00, it will turn into QF26 at 22:00 to go back to SYD. QF25 arrives in HND from SYD at 05:20 will turn into QF62 leaving HND at 06:50 to BNE. The aircraft would not have spent 12 hours in HND. Agree that the 06:50 departure from HND - BNE is not the best where passengers will have to go to the airport by 5am. The timing is to preserve SYD - HND both outbound and inbound be red eye flights likely for the reason of better load which QF has been operating for many years before it ramped up SYD to 2x daily to HND.
01 Jun 2017
Total posts 24
Proposed timings were:
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