Jetstar - Low Cost Flights Australia, Asia
| Jetstar is a low-cost airline based in Australia and flying to both Australian domestic and international destinations. It was originally set up in 2003 by Qantas. It also has a separate Asian entities Jetstar Asia based in Singapore and Jetstar Pacific in Vietnam. It plans flights to Europe in the next few years... |
Jetstar's main Australian hub airports are at Melbourne Tullamarine, Sydney and Brisbane - they serve the major coastal destinations in Australia. Their main domestic competitor is Virgin Blue which also operates as a "low-cost" airline. Parent company Qantas remains a "full-service" carrier, however it does sell Jetstar tickets on its own site.
Jetstar also flies domestic New Zealand routes. Its international services from Australia include flights to New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Japan and Hawaii in US.
Jetstar Asia out of Singapore has a decent network of flights throughout the region with destinations that include Manila, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh and Bangkok. It also operates "Valuair" flights to Indonesia.
Jetstar Pacific has domestic services between Vietnam's main hubs using leased Boeing 737s, although they have Airbus A320s on order. Jetstar Asia uses A320s whilst Jetstar Australia utilises A320s and A321s on domestic services. For longer international services A330-200s are used.
Jetstar will continue to develop their Singapore hub. A new service from Melbourne to Singapore will start in December 2010 whilst March 2011 sees Auckland - Singapore introduced.
The A330s are configured to 303 seats which include 265 economy passengers (31" pitch) and 38 "Star Class" passengers (2-3-2 config, effectively leather covered Qantas domestic business seats with 38" pitch). Economy passengers have to pay for meals and hand-held IFE player; these are complimentary in Star Class.
Star Class passengers do get access to Qantas Club lounges, have a dedicated check-in and priority boarding and get a 30kg checked luggage allowance. They also earn Qantas Frequent Flyer Points and Status Credits at business class rates. QFF points are also earned on jet Flex fares but not on Jet Saver fares.
The cheapest international fares come in around AU$800 to AU$1,000. Note that the Jet Saver Light fare comes without checked baggage - you will need to pay AU$20 per flight for 20kg. Star Class is priced from approximately AU$1,000 per one-way flight. Watch for promotional fares by joining their JetMail list.
In the future Jetstar plans to fly from Australia to various destinations in Europe and west-coast USA. They have an order for 15 Boeing 787s - however with both the economic crisis and delays in the development of the 787 it could be some years before we see long-haul Jetstar services.