In May Qantas announced an interesting concept, which they referred to as “Points Plane.” The idea is that they plan to offer a series of dedicated frequent flyer redemption flights across their network, with seats only bookable using Qantas points.
They’re offering these in very specific situations where it makes sense, like when they have a charter that requires repositioning a plane, and other scenarios along those lines.
The first such flight will be from Melbourne to Tokyo Narita on October 21, 2019, using an Airbus A380.
All 484 seats on the plane were bookable with points. Not surprisingly, the premium cabin seats sold out quickly, while the economy class seats didn’t.
Qantas has now announced their next Points Plane flight, and it’ll be a fun one for aviation geeks.
Qantas’ next Points Plane flight will be from Sydney to Los Angeles on Sunday, October 13, 2019. The coolest part (or saddest part, depending on how you look at it)? This will be the last flight with passengers for this particular 747-400.
The whole reason the plane is flying to Los Angeles is because it’s being retired, so they’ll fly it from there to the desert. As Qantas describes it:
After 20 years of flying, this flight will be the final journey for our Boeing 747 – ‘Lord Howe Island’ (VH-OJU) and for a limited time, every single seat can be booked using Qantas Points.^
Qantas Frequent Flyers have exclusive access until midnight 2 September 2019 to book a Classic Flight Reward for:
- All 58 seats in Business
- All 36 seats in Premium Economy
- Over 200 seats in Economy
As of now there are still award seats in every cabin. If you’d like to book this flight, it will cost you:
- 96,000 plus 480AUD points in business class
- 72,000 plus 405AUD points in premium economy
- 41,900 plus 205AUD points in economy
This is only bookable directly through Qantas’ program, and not through partner airline programs. Do keep in mind that Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One, and Citi ThankYou are transfer partners with Qantas.
It goes without saying that this is an awesome flight for aviation geeks, and I hope some of you are able to book this. Beyond that, Qantas is incredibly stingy with transpacific business class award seats, so this is also quite convenient for anyone who just happens to be headed east across the Pacific that day.
Anyone plan on booking the Qantas Points Plane to LAX?
(Tip of the hat to Nick)
Membership is free and takes no more information than commenting as a guest. Earn status points for good contributions, and see fewer ads as your status grows.