Qantas has announced today that it is suspending its Sydney-Shanghai service from July 28 due to low demand.
It resumed the route less than a year ago, in October 2023, after the pandemic travel pause.
The airline says it will restart the route when travel demand recovers.
In other parts of Asia, Qantas is adding services and will introduce a new route, which remains subject to regulatory approval.
From October 28, 2024, Qantas will begin a new service between Brisbane and Manilla, the capital of the Philippines. The service will run four days a week, introducing 100,000 seats between Australia and the Philippines each year.
The start of the Brisbane-Manilla service will be the first time in more than a decade that these two destinations have been directly connected by air.
Qantas is also increasing its services between Australia and Singapore by about 10 per cent, or around 2,500 seats each week.
Flights between Sydney and Singapore will increase from 14 to 17 return services per week on December 11, 2024, while the Brisbane-Singapore route will bump up to nine return services a week from seven in late October.
“We’re always looking to ensure that we have the right aircraft, on the right routes and at the right time of year to best meet the needs of our customers,” said Qantas International CEO, Cam Wallace.
“Since COVID, the demand for travel between Australia and China has not recovered as strongly as expected. In some months, our flights to and from Shanghai have been operating around half full.
“That’s why we’ve decided to suspend this route and boost flying to other popular destinations with a new route from Brisbane to Manila and additional flights to Singapore.”
Changes to availability and frequency of routes may impact destination choice for inbound or outbound business events.
