EK look towards RTW on an A380 via QF on the pacific

In an interview with Bloomberg, Emirates president Tim Clark has shown his desire for a round the world route operating with A380 aircraft, with Qantas on the LAX-SYD leg.

Avgeeks will know how protective the ACCC and Australian Government are with the Pacific route, with only Australian or American based & owned airlines being allowed rights to the route, with the singular exception of Air New Zealand.  In the past Singapore Airlines have sought approval to operate on the SYD-LAX routing but have been denied.

Mr Clark said he was sure that the upcoming alliance between the airlines could be expanded to the pacific to accommodate this, but Emirates would only push for this expansion if Qantas boss Alan Joyce and his executive team fully backed the idea.

Mr Clark said a tie-up across the Pacific Ocean was left out of the discussions for the current Emirates-Qantas alliance because “the trans-Pacific is Qantas territory.” Still, the regulator’s initial approval doesn’t prevent the carriers from exploring the option, he said.
The companies could also link their routes into Dallas, the hub for American Airlines, Mr Clark said. Emirates has pursued a code-share agreement with American, which hasn’t made progress as the US company examines a merger proposal from US Airways and goes through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, he said.

 It will be interesting to see the Qantas response to this proposal from Emirates and whether they are open to code sharing with Emirates on what is one of their most prestigious and financially rewarding routes.  It will also be interesting to see how the Australian Government and the ACCC will respond to any request to add this route to the current or future alliance agreements.

I suspect that the fact that the route will still be flown on QF metal wearing QF colours with QF benefiting from the flights, that there would be less resistance than if EK were seeking to fly the route with their own metal and benefiting from the profits of such a flight.  But time will tell if the two airlines want to pursue this route, and if they do whether the ACCC want to give them the opportunity to do so.

Read more of the bloomberg interview via the Brisbane Times HERE