Why does Australia Fuming Over Soaring Airfares Amid Qatar Airways Flight Blockage

The competition watchdog claims that allowing Qatar Airways to increase the number of weekly flights it operates from Australian airports would have resulted in lower ticket prices as pressure increases on the government to change its mind about blocking the airline.

In an effort to facilitate air travel for both locals and visitors, Australia has long sought to deregulate the global aviation industry. However, the transport minister, Catherine King, turned down a request from Qatar to provide what would have amounted to an additional flight a day into Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney in July, in a move that was previously reported.

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The national airline Qantas must stay viable, and the government claimed that cutting airfares could endanger it in the medium and long terms. As a result, the government stopped Qatar from adding 21 weekly flights at the airports in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane in the name of “national interest.”

However, that action has come under increasing scrutiny as aviation organizations struggle to dispute the government’s claims, former ACCC commissioners criticize the choice, and opposition and crossbench politicians pledge to look into the matter.

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On Thursday, Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones retracted prior statements that lower airfares would make Qantas “unsustainable,” claiming that his views had been misunderstood and that he had actually been discussing the need for a healthy sector.

The Australian Financial Review obtained figures from sources in the airline industry that show a cost of between $540 million and $788 million yearly in additional economic activity, based on the assumption that roughly 50% of the seats are sold to foreign tourists.

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