What To Expect With Finnair's Airbus A330s Operating Certain Qantas Flights (2024)

Commencing from the end of October 2023 to March 2024, two Finnair A330 aircraft will operate for Qantas behalf on select Sydney to Singapore (QF291 outbound and QF292 inbound) and all Sydney to Bangkok flights, respectively.

The two oneworld partners have agreed to Qantas using the planes for the next six years, with a wet-lease deal in place for the first two-and-a-half of those, during which time, Finnair pilots and an outsourced team of cabin crew will operate the aircraft. However, Qantas will cater, entertain, and provide amenity kits.

For the latter three years of the agreement, a dry-lease will kick in, meaning the aircraft, while owned by Finnair, will be totally operated and staffed by Qantas crew, effectively fully integrating them into the fleet until the point at which Qantas anticipates having enough aircraft and crew to sustain the business on its own.

Is this truly viable?

Intent on adding capacity but without the aircraft to do so, Qantas joins other airlines, such as British Airways, in seeking external assistance. BA, which currently wet-leases four Finnair A320s to supplement its European operations following the transfer of a number of short-haul aircraft from Heathrow to Gatwick, has entered into a twelve-month arrangement.

Fret not, for Finnair, or any lessor, is handsomely compensated for offering up its aircraft to airlines who need the capacity pronto. As such, the carrier now has fewer planes but considers the long-term relations with partner airlines and a steady stream of income worth it. Moreover, due to the closure of Russian airspace, the airline has struggled to optimally utilize its A330s given range restrictions: Ergo, a win-win.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Finnair has similar dealings with Qatar Airways and the Lufthansa Group.

Urgent to reshuffle aircraft placement and redistribute crews to entirely new or perhaps thus far relatively underserved destinations that are seeing a renaissance on the heels of the waning pandemic, the airline reached out to its partner for assistance.

While Bangkok receives Qantas flights from Sydney only, Singapore is contrastingly served by flights from Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth by the A330, and from Sydney by the A380, too, as it continues on to London as QF1. The former could be speculated to be falling away as a lesser prioritized Qantas destination, whereas the latter sees very little change, except the addition of twenty-one premium economy seats a couple of times each week.

On June 23rd, Qantas is doubling down on its love for Singapore by adding Darwin to the mix; Embraer R190s are scheduled to fly the 2,095 miles between the two cities.

Is it a welcome surprise?

It depends. With all the fuss surrounding Project Sunrise, Qantas finds its clientele yearning for something fresh and innovative. In the meantime, this will do. Passengers most set to benefit from Qantas' new aircraft are business class travelers who will experience Finnair's popular shell-like "Air Lounge" seats.

The seatmap for these planes illustrates stark differences from the cabin of Qantas' own A330-300s. With 28 business, 21 premium economy, and 230 economy seats, Finnair's models juxtapose those of Qantas, which have 28 business and 269 economy seats.

Photo: Qantas

The other significant party due to be happy about the new arrivals down under is the Sydney planespotting community... shout-out to the folks on the Mound. Harking back to the COVID repatriation flight era, one cannot forget the rare arrivals every new day ushered in at Kingsford Smith, including Austrian Airlines, KLM, South African, Saudia, Edelweiss, and five Emirates 777-300ERs on the ground at the same time, to name a few. And now the chance to catch further newbies is enticing as ever.

While Qantas navigates growing demand and rejigs its international presence, flyers and non-flyers alike will relish the impending aircraft - a symbol of the novelties and refreshments to come. Today plans for an additional one million extra seats across Qantas' international network were announced, and with higher profit margins than pre-pandemic, everyone is gearing up for a busy and exciting period ahead.

Nonetheless, not all members of the aviation community have welcomed the move. The Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA) has challenged the motive that allows Finnair crew to fly on these routes. Captain Tony Lucas, the President of AIPA, shared his disappointment over the decision to outsource Australian jobs.

In a statement seen by Australian Aviation, he said:

"Qantas' decision to wet lease two Finnair aircraft is shocking, bitterly disappointing, and could have been avoided with more effective management decisions. It beggars' belief that Qantas is outsourcing the Spirit of Australia while simultaneously converting two of our own A330 passenger aircraft into freighters."

With Australia still recovering from the transformations of the pandemic, it's not a surprise that crew members are disappointed with the decision. The airline and its staff will be hoping to balance operations in the coming months.

Are you excited to catch a glimpse of Finnair's A330s down under? Perhaps we'll see you on board.

Source: Australian Aviation