Sydney, 14 September 2017 – Qantas has today announced its seasonal service between Sydney and Osaka starting in December 2017 will be extended to operate on a year-round schedule.*
The decision follows a strong response to the airline’s seasonal announcement in July and the ongoing support provided by Kansai International Airport and the New South Wales Government’s tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
The direct flights will operate three times per week on Qantas’ upgraded two-class Airbus A330 aircraft and will be the only direct route between the two cities.
The service adds to the airline’s popular Sydney-Tokyo (Haneda), Brisbane-Tokyo (Narita) and Melbourne-Tokyo (Narita) services and complements Jetstar’s Cairns-Osaka service. With Jetstar’s flights from Cairns and the Gold Coast to Tokyo (Narita), customers will have even more options when travelling between Australia and Japan. More than half of the Qantas Group’s international capacity is directed towards Asia.
Qantas International CEO Gareth Evans said the feedback from Qantas customers, especially frequent flyers, had exceeded expectations.
“When we announced the direct seasonal service between Sydney and Osaka in July, we knew it would be popular with our customers, including those travelling from New Zealand, who wanted another gateway into Japan.
“We are really pleased to be able to extend the service year-round to support the strong growth in travel between the two countries.
“The service also provides additional freight opportunities into Japan in support of the successful Free Trade Agreement that has been in place since 2015, and reflects Qantas’ strategy to develop a flexible network that meets customer and trade demand.”
The Qantas Group operates the largest Australia-Japan network, the largest domestic network in Australia, and the largest low-cost domestic network across Japan, through Jetstar Japan.
Qantas’ year round services between Sydney and Osaka will begin on 14 December 2017. Tickets are available at qantas.com or from travel agents.
QANTAS SCHEDULE (14 December 2017-24 March 2018)*^
| Flt Num | Route | Dep/Arr | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu^ | Fri | Sat | Sun |
| QF33 | SYD-KIX | 0930/1725 | – | – | – | ✓ | – | ✓ | – |
| 1325/2120 | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||
| QF34 | KIX-SYD | 1855/0645 | – | – | – | ✓ | – | ✓ | – |
| 2250/1040 | ✓ | – | – | – | – | – | – |
*Subject to government and regulatory approvals.
^From 26 March 2018, Thursday’s service will change to Wednesday, so the weekly schedule will be Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.