Qantas SYD - LAX - JFK

[strangr]

G'day all,

Just wanted to know a few things about the Qantas Flight from SYD - LAX - JFK.

Why does Qantas not continue this flight on from JFK to LHR then on to SIN then SYD. And in the other direction LHR - JFK - LAX - SYD.

To me as a bit of a newb to this stuff it seems like they could get a higher amount of people flying QF from JFK to LHR then from JFK to LAX when the passengers can not depart the flight and must fly on to SYD.

look forward to your input.

[Mr @ Spotty M]

The problem will be that QF does not have the rights to fly pax from LAX to JFK or from JFK to LHR, in other words they can only carry pax from LAX to JFK that were on the sector SYD to LAX.
This is the problem in the EU at the moment with the open skies that has come in to place. We in the EU can not pick pax up in JFK and fly them on to wherever in the USA, this is what is still to be negotiated over the next few years.
With all the US airlines spending millions of dollars on slots at LHR for the new routes that started last month, will have egg on their face in about two years time when the agreement gets torn up. Part of the agreement is that we will have 5th freedom rights in the USA within a couple of years, if not back to how it was before. :{

[strangr]

in a few years time this may become an actual route for QF.

SYD - LAX - JFK - LHR - SIN - SYD and then in the other direction SYD - SIN - LHR - JFK - LAX - SYD.

This could mean a reduction in the number of planes to fly these two combined routes if i am not mistaken 4 fly the SYD - SIN - LHR route and Two or three do the SYD - LAX - JFK route.

This could combine two of QF's most popular and money making routes into one super route, specially once the A380 starts running with QF. However as we all know the USA - LHR routes are very hot in the number of seats they offer.

Would doing this super route open up an extra slot at LHR for QF to combat what Emirates do with SYD - DXB - LHR.

[DC10RealMan]

I believe BOAC did something similar with their VC10s and B707s in the 60s and 70s. Speedbird One went around the world westbound and Speedbird Two went eastbound. The callsigns were subsequently used for the BA Concorde services to JFK.

[WHBM]

Qantas were one of a number of round-the-world operators in the 1960s-70s, along with BOAC, Pan Am, and others, and they did indeed operate from London to New York, San Francisco (not LA), Honolulu, Fiji and Sydney. There was also an extraordnary once-a-week Qantas 707 route from London through Nassau, Mexico, Acapulco and Tahiti. Apparently this did little commercial business but would be padded up westbound with the government-subsidised emigrant traffic to Australia.

The thing about such multi-stop routes is they come nowhere near covering their very expensive operating costs at regular fares, which is why they have gone. Even one-stops, like BA's London-Singapore-Sydney route, are marginal nowadays.

I can't understand how Qantas find Sydney-LA-New York to be worthwhile. Better to connect passengers at LA onto OneWorld partner American to JFK, Newark, Washington, etc, which may well bring pax nearer to where they are headed for.