Aviation

Qantas grows codeshare network with new destination across India

Qantas Expands IndiGo Codeshares from Singapore

As part of an expansion of its codeshare partnership with IndiGo, Qantas is providing customers with even more alternatives for travel across India.

The national carrier launched the first phase of its codeshare agreement with India’s largest domestic carrier in August last year, offering customers seamless connections from Qantas flights in Bengaluru and Delhi onto IndiGo services to other major Indian cities, including Mumbai and Chennai, as well as smaller destinations such as Pune and Goa.

Virgin Atlantic and IndiGo announce new codeshare agreement(Opens in a new browser tab)

Under the second phase of the agreement, Qantas customers can now travel to an additional eight cities, bringing the total number of Indian destinations available for connection from Delhi and Bengaluru to 21. Qantas customers will also have more choice across IndiGo’s domestic network with more than 250 new flights available for booking.

Qantas Frequent Flyers can earn and redeem points on connecting IndiGo flights (with the QF code) and IndiGo recognises Qantas Frequent Flyer benefits for tiered members (Silver, Gold, Platinum and Platinum One) including priority check-in and priority baggage.

Qantas customers travelling on IndiGo can carry the same baggage allowance as their flight from Australia as well as receiving complimentary food and drinks.

New codeshare destinations:

Guwahati, Indore, Chandigarh, Mangalore, Jaipur, Nagpur, Thiruvananthapuram, Visakhapatnam.

Existing codeshare destinations:

Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Mumbai, Kochi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Patna, Pune.

Qantas flights to India

Qantas operates four return flights from Melbourne to Delhi per week and four return flights from Sydney to Bengaluru per week.

Aviation

COMAC Unveils Plans for the C929 to Rival Airbus and Boeing

After the success of China’s first C919 aircraft, the country is setting its sights on developing a larger plane. COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) has officially confirmed plans to build a widebody aircraft, marking a significant step in its aircraft lineup.

Traditionally, Airbus and Boeing dominate the widebody aircraft market, with decades of expertise in developing planes and engines capable of carrying heavy payloads. China, which currently relies on imported engines, is now aiming to challenge these giants with its own widebody jet, the C929, designed to compete with the Airbus A350 and Boeing 777.

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The C929 will be China’s first independently developed long-range widebody aircraft. It adheres to international airworthiness standards and boasts independent intellectual property rights. The baseline version is designed to seat 280 passengers and offers a range of 12,000 kilometers, catering to global demand for both regional and international air travel.

Russia, which also needs reliable narrowbody and widebody aircraft, could become a key customer for the C929. Additionally, China plans to target the broader Asian market as it continues to expand its aviation capabilities.

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China’s aviation progress includes the ARJ21 (now called C909), a regional jet with 100 seats for shorter routes, and the C919, a narrowbody jet with 180 seats designed to rival the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320. Both models have found increasing demand in the domestic market.

At China’s largest air show in Zhuhai, COMAC announced that Air China will be the launch customer for the C929 widebody jet, though details about order size and delivery timelines were not disclosed.

Other major deals announced by COMAC include:

Hainan Airlines: Firm orders for 60 C919 and 40 C909 regional jets.
Colorful Guizhou Airlines: 30 C909 jets, with 20 firm orders and 10 provisional agreements.

The C929, renamed from the CR929 after Russia withdrew from the joint development project in 2023, is expected to carry 280–400 passengers with a range of 12,000 kilometers, competing directly with Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.

According to COMAC’s deputy general manager, Tong Yu, the first fuselage section of the C929 is expected by September 2027, with prototype test flights anticipated soon after.