Author: Matt Graham

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to more than 100 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course! Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. His interests include aviation, economics & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine. You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.

Virgin 737 at Darwin Airport

Virgin Cancels Most Flights, Tigerair Grounded

The Virgin Australia Group will cancel around 90% of its domestic flights from midnight on Friday 27 March 2020, as most Australian states move to shut their borders to contain the spread of COVID-19. This is in addition to the grounding of all international Virgin Australia flights from 30 March, and is a further cut beyond … Continued

How to Get an Exemption to Leave Australia

Australians Banned from Travelling Overseas

The Australian government has banned Australian citizens from travelling overseas until further notice, with some limited exceptions. The ban was announced last night and came into effect from midday today, on 25 March 2020. Last week, the federal government strongly advised against all overseas travel. In doing so, it updated its travel advice for the … Continued

Qantas A380

Coronavirus is Causing Some Unusual Flights

Over the past few weeks, things have been anything but “business as usual” for airlines. As more and more countries shut their borders – leaving some overseas travellers stranded – airlines have had to find some creative solutions. Two weeks ago, Air Tahiti Nui was forced to find a new way to operate its Papeete-Los … Continued

Sydney Qantas Club

Qantas, Virgin Close All Domestic Lounges

Qantas and Virgin Australia have both been forced to close their domestic airport lounges today due to new government-mandated COVID-19 measures. All Qantas-operated lounges worldwide, including Qantas Clubs and Qantas Business Lounges, closed at midday today. Qantas says that it is working through options for Qantas Club members that are impacted by the lounge closures. … Continued

Many Qantas flights cancelled

Cancelled Flights: Am I Entitled to a Refund?

If you’ve booked an international flight for travel in April or May, your flight will almost certainly be cancelled. Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia are all grounding international flights from the end of this month – as are many other airlines around the world. But if your flight has been cancelled, are you entitled to … Continued

Coronavirus graphic

COVID-19 Travel Update: 23 March 2020

There have been yet more developments over the weekend as the coronavirus situation evolves. Several Australian states and territories are now imposing self-quarantine for arriving travellers, and the Prime Minister is now advising against non-essential travel within Australia. Meanwhile, Emirates has announced that it will suspend almost all passenger flights from Wednesday, and Singapore & … Continued

Qantas 747s in Sydney

The Last Qantas 747 Flight Could Be This Week

Update (29 March 2020): The final Qantas 747 flight will now be QF28 from Santiago, which is expected to land in Sydney around 5.30pm on Sunday 29 March 2020. VH-OEE (named Nullarbor) is the operating aircraft. The reason for the change is that the final QF64 was cancelled and the final QF28 service was delayed … Continued

Quarantine Australia

Podcast #32: The World is Shutting Down (Temporarily)

It has been a tumultuous few weeks for the airline, tourism and hospitality industries. As the coronavirus outbreak spreads exponentially, many airlines have stopped flying and international borders are being closed at unprecedented rates. In Episode 32 of the AFF on AIR podcast, Matt looks at the implications of the past few weeks on travellers and … Continued

The World is Shutting Down Temporarily – AIR032

  It has been a tumultuous few weeks for the airline, tourism and hospitality industries. As the coronavirus outbreak spreads exponentially, many airlines have stopped flying and international borders are being closed at unprecedented rates. In this extended episode, Matt looks at the implications of the past few weeks on travellers and the airline industry. … Continued