Qantas Group will place at least four Embraer 190s based in Darwin. The aircraft will cover QantasLink’s domestic routes in Australia and will fly to Dili, East Timor, as the company’s first international destination.
Aircraft interiors feature Qantas colors and seat 97 passengers in two classes.
The first aircraft of this model for Qantas, registration VH-UZD, flew from Brisbane to Darwin on February 14, arriving in time for a press conference with the local media the following day.
Check out our first ever Embraer E190 in QantasLink livery!
VH-UZD touched down in the Northern Territory this week as we announced plans to set up a new Embraer E190 jet base at Darwin Airport.
— Qantas (@Qantas) February 16, 2022
The units are operated by Alliance Airlines, which has a 3-year agreement to use the Qantas Group’s 10 Embraer 190s. This is part of an initiative to increase connections and schedules between smaller cities and regional hubs.
The Embraer 190’s 5-hour range allows the airline to add more frequencies to the existing routes and add new non-stop operations in markets that are not profitable with larger aircraft.
Among the new Embraer 190 services will be direct flights between Darwin and Canberra, Cairns and Townsville. In addition, the new units will be used to provide year-round scheduled flights to Dili, an important route for passengers and cargo.
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said, “The E190 is a fantastic aircraft. And the new routes and frequencies they have supported mean that Darwin is better positioned to take advantage of the return of domestic tourism and business travel. The E190s will facilitate direct flights between Darwin and other popular tourist destinations, such as Alice Springs.”
Soon, the 10 Alliance Airlines Embraer 190s that are part of the agreement with the Qantas Group, will be sporting the QantasLink livery.
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