Qantas ticket prices to rise due to increased fuel surcharges
By David Flynn, July 31 2013
Qantas will increase the cost of domestic and international tickets next month, driven by a rise in the airline's fuel surcharges.
Citing "recent increases in fuel costs and the depreciation of the Australian dollar", the base airfare on domestic routes flown by Qantas and its regional QantasLink arm will increase by between 2 and 3 per cent from August 15, although the exact amount of the fare increases "will vary by route and fare class."
Overseas travellers will pay an extra $20 to $150 for return tickets issued on or after August 14, depending on their destination and also what type of seat they're booked into.
For example, a return ticket between Australia and the USA will increase by $50 in economy, $70 in premium economy and $100 in business or first class.
On flights to Hong Kong, the USA and South Africa the base fare will rise rather than the fuel surcharge, Qantas says, because "regulatory and market conditions make it more appropriate to incorporate the increase into the base fare, rather than the fuel surcharge, as means to recover fuel costs."
Here's the full breakdown as shared by Qantas on its Industry Sales website for travel agents.
Qantas argues that this is the first time its fuel surcharges have increased "across the international network since April 2012. Since that time, the real cost of Singapore Jet Fuel in Australian dollars has increased significantly."
"While we use a range of tools to mitigate the impact of fuel costs – including fuel surcharges, price increases and hedging – the Qantas Group is still under-recovering the cost of past fuel price increases."
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David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
QFF
12 Apr 2013
Total posts 1518
And we been told that marriage with Emirates will somewhat protect Qantas from rocketing fuel surcharge....
24 Oct 2011
Total posts 160
Its funny how when fuel prices fell for that extended period of time, but Qantas didn't reduce the surcharge...
I guess the fuel surcharge only goes one way. Up.
Air New Zealand - Airpoints
03 Apr 2013
Total posts 37
Goodbye Qantas FF. It's about time to invest into programs that are honest and more rewarding, e.g. Velocity charges tax/surcharge of only $100 for flights to North America.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
07 Apr 2013
Total posts 146
I wondered how long before this would happen, a friend of mine who is a CSM on Qantas longhaul told me that ALL the money raised from airfares for international flights goes on the fuel, if there is any left it goes to the captains wages. Would that be correct? If so how do they remain in business?
I am aware that it's the domestic sector that is profitable, but still. Considering the costs of international airfares from 20 or 30 years ago they are relatively quite cheap.
19 Jan 2012
Total posts 427
David, QF seem to have a typo under S America business current charge!
19 Jan 2012
Total posts 427
...yet another significant devaluation of the QF frequent flyer scheme...thank goodness EK is currently charging signficantly less for redemption seat extras...and as Enjet notes, the competition in VA Velocity also is levying very little on redemption award seats...
19 Jan 2012
Total posts 427
David, the following link is IATA's jet fuel price watch website where folk can immerse themselves in the price trend data, if so disposed:
https://www.iata.org/publications/economics/fuel-monitor/Pages/index.aspx
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
20 Nov 2012
Total posts 68
One must wonder who is running the Qantas PR.
Amazes me why QF pushes out these announcements when they know no-one believes them and only acts to make the customer angrier.
Perhaps they have too many customers, or they misunderstood that Love and Hate are at the opposite ends of the customer relationship.
19 Jan 2012
Total posts 427
David, I have to call you out on this one - it is only a matter of a few weeks since the last set of changes to the QF surcharges, down at the economy end and up at the busines//first end.
How can you possibly present this article without reference to the changes of a few weeks ago and your own article on such?!
News, sure, BUT, context is everything my friend!!!
And whatever happened to the supposed alignment with EK? Their award surhccagres are still sitting at a fraction of the QF ones.
Sorry, mate, but as ever all reportable news semes to come from a corporate press release with NO CONTEXT!!!
Yep, it's news and all good to know, but no value add (= no journalism)
04 Nov 2010
Total posts 670
PLATY, when you're quite finished trying to tell AusBT how to write their articles (and given that David and this site won an Aviation Press Club award last year I don't think they need your help) maybe you can go and start your own website and write what you want. I for one am happy that AusBT doesn't follow the same self-indulgent and biased path as columns like Plane Talking or so many forums, instead I get the news and I can make my own mind up.
19 Jan 2012
Total posts 427
Al, I agree with you - I'm not interested in bias either and am happy to get the "news" to form an opinion.
In this case, simply go back to the AusBT article of 14 June 2013, which reported QF changes to fuel charges due to take effect from 1 July 2013.
Putting the two "announcements", made only a few weeks apart, side by side highlights inconsistencies in the "news" being peddled by QF.
A simple link back to the earlier article (something that is usually and very helpfully done on AusBT) would have facilitated such comparison - no need for self indulgence or bias, starting a new website, or even umbrage when someone dares to question and proffer an alternate opinion.
Now what are your opinions about the issue at hand - the fuel surcharges, their application to frequent flyer tickets, and the way QF had handled the two annnoucements?
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