Jetstar Airways celebrates resurrected Japan rout
CORPORATE TRAVEL
BOARDING PASS All the latest news for the busy EA organising corporate travel
Airfares to drop in late 2024
EAs organising a lot of travel will be delighted to hear that data from Flight Centre shows global and domestic air capacity has reached pre-pandemic levels – and that means international airfares out of Australia are becoming cheaper .
Australia ’ s international capacity sits at 95 % at the time of writing , according to Flight Centre ’ s corporate global COO , Melissa Elf . She adds : “ We are anticipating that to tick up to 98 % next month and hover around that mark for the next six months . As of April 2024 , and for the first time since the pandemic , we have reached aircraft passenger seat capacity that is above or beyond pre-pandemic levels globally . This means that across the world we have as many seats available to passengers as we did before 2019 .”
It ’ s worth noting that US carriers , such as American Airlines , United Airlines and Delta Airlines , are all adding capacity beyond their pre-2019 levels . And this means airfares for corporate travellers are decreasing .
According to the data , international seat capacity out of Perth is at 111 % with Sydney nearing full capacity at 97 %. Melissa continues : “ An analysis of key international routes for Australian travellers has found fares on some routes dropped by up to 25 %, and with more and more capacity and competition being introduced to the market it ’ s a trend we ’ ll continue to see throughout the rest of the year .”
“ We ’ re seeing promising signs that this will be a long-lasting trend , thanks to new international capacity announcements , like recent ones from Delta Airlines , Singapore Airlines , China Southern and Jetstar .” S
Jetstar Airways celebrates resurrected Japan rout
Jetstar has relaunched Australia ’ s only direct service between Sydney and Osaka ( Kansai ). The initial flight marked the first time in 15 years that the low-cost carrier operated this route , reintroducing convenient , low-cost travel to Japan ’ s second biggest city after Tokyo . Using its Boeing 787 Dreamliners , Jetstar will operate three return services per week , offering more than 100,000 low fares seats between Sydney and Osaka every year .
“ Australians ’ love for Japan continues to grow and the strength of the Australian dollar against the Yen means it ’ s incredibly affordable right now ,” explains Jetstar ’ s head of customer Jenny Armor . “ This is the third direct service we ’ ve launched from Australia to Japan in the last six months and the second to Osaka , with strong demand for our existing flights .” S
MY TRAVEL ESSENTIAL
Noise cancelling headphones
If the worst thing about travelling for work – aside from the queues to finally get on the plane – is the baby crying in the seat near you or the neighbouring passenger who feels like a chat , you need noise cancelling headphones , says Brad Foster .
Babies and kids are wonderful and we wouldn ’ t want them to simply disappear . But most people would admit that there are certain times , like when you ’ re on an aircraft , when you ’ d rather they were seen and not heard .
The number of flights I ’ ve done this year ( and the number of tots on them ) makes me thank my lucky stars that the Christmas gift I asked my wife for was adhered to . She listened so I don ’ t have to – at least not to anything but what I want to .
With a budget that didn ’ t stretch to the best money can buy , she purchased me a set of JBL Live 770NC headphones , which were under $ 200 . For info , JBL has a huge range with the top priced model over the $ 350 price mark . They have a long battery life and their noise cancelling qualities are first rate . It hasn ’ t happened yet but I ’ m pretty sure I could have a bub on my lap who was hungry for its bottle and I wouldn ’ t hear a thing .
The assistant at JB Hi Fi told my wife and I that Bose were the bee ’ s knees when it came to headphones and the price appeared to tell the same story ... I spied one set that was over the $ 600 mark . There are also plenty of ear bud-style options that reportedly produce the same result . But just because they ’ re smaller doesn ’ t mean they ’ re any cheaper – I was shown the Sennheiser Momentum Sport ANC In-Ear Headphones that were on special for a tad over $ 520 .
The problem with ear buds for me is the fear of losing them or forgetting where you put them for safe keeping ( I found my passport in the box that keeps all the Christmas cards a year after it went missing which was thankfully during the pandemic – how I would be able to keep track of a tiny pair of ear buds is anybody ’ s guess ).
What I will say is that whichever way you go it will be the best money you ’ ve ever spent . And once you have travelled with them , you ’ ll never be without them again . S
Winter Issue 2024 | Executive PA 49