Qantas Airways yesterday said that a seven-hour scenic flight over Australia’s Outback and Great Barrier Reef had sold out in 10 minutes, as it joined a growing trend in Asia offering “flights to nowhere” that take off and land at the same airport.
Tough border restrictions to keep the COVID-19 pandemic under control have led to a 97.5 percent plunge in international travel in the region, according to the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.
Many frequent flyers miss getting on planes and airlines, including Taiwan’s EVA Airways and Japan’s ANA Holdings, desperate for revenue and to keep their pilots’ licenses current, have offered special sightseeing flights.
The Qantas flight, in a Boeing 787 typically used on long-haul international routes, is to fly low over Uluru, the Great Barrier Reef and Sydney Harbour, before landing back in Sydney.
Tickets cost between A$787 and A$3,787 (US$574 and US$2,762) depending on the seating class, and the 134 available seats were quickly snapped up, a Qantas spokeswoman said.
“It’s probably the fastest-selling flight in Qantas history,” she said. “People clearly miss travel and the experience of flying. If the demand is there, we’ll definitely look at doing more of these scenic flights while we all wait for borders to open.”
EVA used one of its iconic Hello Kitty livery planes for a special father’s day flight on Aug. 8, while ANA used an Airbus SE A380 that usually flies to Honolulu for a 90-minute flight with a Hawaiian experience on board.
Tickets costing NT$6,888 (US$235) for a Tigerair Taiwan flight from Taipei that is to circle over South Korea’s Jeju Island reportedly sold out in four minutes.
The price includes a one-year voucher for round-trip tickets from Taiwan to South Korea, which can be used after COVID-19 travel bans are lifted.
Chen Shu-tze, 44, an engineer from Taipei, said that she signed up for the flight because the voucher made it a good deal and she missed being able to travel — especially to South Korea, a favorite destination.
“The pandemic has a devastating impact on the tourism and airline industry, so I want to help boost the economy, and I miss flying,” she said.
All of the nations where the flights are on offer have relatively low numbers of COVID-19 cases by global standards.
Among other airline stunts, Thai Airways this month opened a pop-up restaurant on the ground, offering in-flight meals served from airline seats to would-be travelers.
Singapore Airlines is also eyeing scenic flights from next month, the Straits Times reported on Sunday, an idea that received widespread criticism from environmentalists.
“First, it encourages carbon-intensive travel for no good reason, and second it is merely a stop-gap measure that distracts from the policy and value shifts necessary to mitigate the climate crisis,” the SG Climate Rally awareness group said.
Singapore Airlines said that it is considering several initiatives, but no final decision has been made on whether to offer sightseeing flights.
Qantas said that it would pay to offset the carbon emissions on its scenic flight from Sydney, though online critics noted that would not actually reduce emissions.
The concept of scenic flights is not new.
Antarctica Flights has chartered Qantas jets for scenic flights over Antarctica for 26 years.
An Air New Zealand sightseeing flight over Antarctica in 1979 crashed into Mount Erebus, killing all 257 people on board.
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