On December 3 Qantas inaugurated its operations between Dallas (DFW) and Melbourne (MEL), this is the company’s second service between Australia and the state of Texas. This new route is the fourth longest commercial flight in the world and the second in the Australian flag carrier’s network.
Flight QF21 was operated on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner registered VH-ZNH and christened “Great Barrier Reef,” which took off from Tullamarine International Airport (MEL) at 16:38 local time and landed at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) at 14:56, after 15 hours and 18 minutes.
“Today we got to send the longest regularly scheduled flight ever flown from Melbourne Airport with Qantas initial direct service to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). It’s exciting to see the recovery of Covid-19 gain pace and Victoria’s global footprint expand! A tip of my cowboy hat to everyone involved in making this happen,” said Andrew Lund, Head of Communications and Community Engagement at Melbourne Airport.
According to data obtained by Aviacionline through Cirium, Qantas will offer 4,248 seats per week between Australia and Texas, the leading carrier in this market in terms of seats per seat kilometers (ASK). The new service between Melbourne (MEL) and Dallas (DFW) will complement the operation of six weekly flights between Sydney (SYD) and DFW.
Flight Itinerary
- Melbourne – Dallas Flight QF 21 MEL 14:00 – DFW 12:45 Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dallas – Melbourne Flight QF 22 DFW 19:10 – MEL 05:45+2 Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
The route will be operated on Boeing 787-9 aircraft with a capacity of 236 passengers in three classes (42 Business Class/28 Premium Economy/166 Economy). Dallas (DFW) becomes Qantas‘ second U.S. destination operated from Melbourne, complementing its services to Los Angeles (LAX).
“The addition of the Melbourne service is an important milestone for DFW Airport. It reflects not only the strength of our network as one of the most connected airports in the world, but also highlights the vitality of the Dallas Fort Worth region’s economy as a place to do business and visit,” said Sean Donohue, CEO of DFW.
According to data compiled by Aviacionline through the Department of Infrastructure, Transportation, Cities and Regional Development, 232,570 passengers with an occupancy factor of 81.7% and 1,644.5 tons of cargo were moved in the June 2018-2019 period between Dallas and Australia.
See also: Qantas reconnects Brisbane to Tokyo
