Emirates to watch Qantas’ moves closely

Emirates will watch Qantas' forthcoming annual result closely with a view to filling any premium capacity gap left by the restructure of Qantas' international business, the airline stated at the Aviation Outlook Australian Pacific conference (The Australian Financial Review, 22-Jul-2011). Emirates will increase weekly frequency out of Australia from 63 to 70 when it moves to a three times daily schedule out of Sydney on 01-Oct-2011. The airline still has 14 weekly slots available to use if any opportunities arise. Emirates could increase capacity into Australia without increasing frequency by increasing the use of A380s on services.