Latest news

Singapore Airlines Returns to Darwin & Cairns

Singapore Airlines will resume regular flights from both Darwin and Cairns to Singapore from the end of March 2022. It brings the number of Australian destinations served by Singapore Airlines to seven. Singapore Airlines’ former regional subsidiary Silk Air served the Darwin-Singapore and Cairns-Singapore routes prior to COVID-19. Both routes were suspended early into the … Continued

27 Feb 2022 Singapore Airlines

Glitch Affecting KrisFlyer Mile Extensions

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles normally expire if unredeemed after 3 years, regardless of account activity. But it’s clearly unfair to expire people’s miles during a pandemic when they can’t travel, so Singapore Airlines has been progressively extending the validity of KrisFlyer miles that would have expired since April 2020. Each extension is for six months … Continued

24 Feb 2022 Singapore Airlines

Where to Search for Cheap Flights

Everyone loves a cheap flight, but what’s the most efficient way to find one? AFF members often discuss current airfare deals on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum. If you’ve subscribed to an airline mailing list, you may also be notified when that airline goes on sale. But if you need to book a flight to … Continued

24 Feb 2022 Planning & Booking

Qantas Points Plane Will Land As Perth Reopens

Western Australia will finally reopen its border to the rest of Australia and the world next week, with quarantine-free travel once again permitted from just after midnight on Thursday, 3 March 2022. A lot of flights into Perth next Thursday are already looking quite full. Clearly, a lot of people have been waiting a long … Continued

24 Feb 2022 Qantas

Qatar Airways Privilege Club Switches to Avios

Qatar Airways’ Privilege Club program will adopt Avios as its main reward points currency from next month, in a surprise move that almost nobody in the industry anticipated. Privilege Club will remain the frequent flyer program of Qatar Airways. The Qatari airline’s frequent flyers will also continue to earn Qpoints for the purpose of earning … Continued

23 Feb 2022 Qatar Airways

Nasty Change to Australia’s Tourist Refund Scheme

Australia’s Tourist Refund Scheme (TRS) has long been a popular way for international travellers to claim a refund of the tax paid on expensive items being carried out of the country. But a recent change has rendered the scheme a lot less useful than before for Australians heading overseas on short holidays or business trips. … Continued

21 Feb 2022 Travel Money

Tourism Australia’s Tough Sell as Border Reopens

Today, Australia’s international border reopens to tourists for the first time since it was slammed shut on 20 March 2020. This is great news for people who’ve been trying to get to Australia and haven’t been allowed in for the past 23 months. It’s also cause for optimism among Australia’s tourism operators. There will no … Continued

21 Feb 2022 Coronavirus and Travel

Podcast #78: Travelling to the UK in 2022

As the AFF on Air podcast continues its series on international travel in 2022, we turn our attention in this episode to the UK. In Episode 78, Matt chats to two Australian frequent flyers who recently travelled to London about their experiences. One of this episode’s guests is Andrew Holland, who flew Qantas Business Class … Continued

19 Feb 2022 AFF on Air Podcast

Travelling to the UK in 2022 – AIR078

  AFF on Air continues with its series of podcasts looking at what it’s like travelling to different destinations around the world as international borders open up again. In this episode, Matt speaks to two Australian frequent flyers who recently travelled to the UK. One of them flew to London with Qantas via Darwin, while … Continued

19 Feb 2022 AFF on Air (blubrry)

WA to Reopen Border on 3 March 2022

Western Australia will reopen its border on 3 March 2022, Premier Mark McGowan has announced. From this date, Australians will be allowed to enter WA from interstate if they are triple vaccinated (if eligible), have a registered G2G Pass and take a rapid antigen test within 12 hours of arrival. Passengers will also be allowed … Continued

18 Feb 2022 Coronavirus and Travel

Singapore Removes COVID Testing for Transit Passengers

Passengers travelling via Singapore in international transit will no longer need a pre-flight COVID-19 test from 22 February 2022. Singapore has also relaxed its requirements for passengers entering the country quarantine-free on a Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) flight. Changes to Singapore transit rules Currently, anyone flying through Singapore in international transit is required to get … Continued

18 Feb 2022 Coronavirus and Travel

Sneaky Change to Qantas Flight Credits

Qantas has come under fire after customers discovered they were being charged significantly more when booking with a flight credit. Over recent weeks, both A Current Affair and ABC News have accused Qantas of price gouging, with some customers claiming they had to pay triple the regular price to redeem their flight credit for a … Continued

17 Feb 2022 Qantas