QANTAS yesterday announced it had signed a codeshare agreement with China Southern Airlines and is exploring other possible areas of cooperation with the China-based carrier.
The terms of the deal will allow Qantas customers to book China Southern services from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth to Guangzhou and four more onward destinations in China namely Xiamen, Kunming, Fuzhou and Urumqi. China Southern commenced a daily Airbus A380 service between Sydney and Guangzhou in October.
China Southern passengers can also reserve seats on 10 different Qantas routes in Australia and to New Zealand. The new codeshare services will be available for booking and travel in early 2014.
In addition, both airlines are looking into partnering up in other areas, including pilot training assistance from Qantas.
Qantas already has existing commercial relationships with China Eastern Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways.
Alan Joyce, CEO of Qantas Group, said: “Partnership is key to our strategy in Asia and we’re very pleased to now have China Southern as one of our codeshare partners in the world’s fastest growing aviation market.”
“This is great news for the increasing number of Qantas customers travelling to China for business and leisure because it simplifies their journey and opens up new destinations.”
A sixth of Qantas’ revenue now comes from Asia, he said.
