Qantas as well as Jetstar are going to increase the number of domestic routes from the month of July. Both airlines will be witnessing an increase in capacity from about 5% from pre-coronavirus levels to around 15% towards the end of June. This essentially equals to over 300 return flights every week.
The coronavirus pandemic has battered the airline industry as these airlines have been coerced to stand down about 20,000 employee and workers on account of persistent travel bans and even border closures. It was announced that both Jetstar and Qantas shall be witnessing a new way to fly starting from June 12 as both of these carriers have implemented a series of changes in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Fly Well program shall ensure that passengers shall witness various temporary changes that have been rolled out to be able to keep both the crew and passengers safe when in the air. These changes primarily involve optional masks on board for all the passengers, improved aircraft cleaning in between flights and hand sanitizing stations that have been deployed at the departure gates.
The airlines will ensure proper safety measures as there will change in the way passengers shall be checked in for their flights, as the people have been urged to continue with contactless check-ins i.e via an app or online and even a self-serve bag drop before they board.
The airline has also introduced a new change in April to keep the middle seats free, but it shall not be taken in stride under the new health and safety measures on account of it being claimed as impractical. The announcement for the middle seats to be used and open for booking was heavily criticized by the customers as they questioned the airline overlooking the social distancing mandates.
The CEO of Qantas Group stated that it shall be uneconomical for the airline to keep the middle seat vacant. The decision to leave it so shall skyrocket the airfares.