History
In August 2008, it was announced that Eastern Australia would shortly commence operating 72-seat Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 aircraft on services to regional centres in New South Wales, supplementing services with smaller 50-seat Dash 8s and allowing the removal of 36-seat Dash 8s from service on some routes altogether with the retirement of all 100 series Dash 8s. [3]
In June 2015, Qantas Group chief executive Alan Joyce announced that Eastern Australia would operate regional services in New Zealand, using Jetstar-branded Bombardier Dash 8 turboprops. [4]
In September 2019, Jetstar CEO Garath Evans announced a proposal to withdraw from regional flying in New Zealand. This was followed up by a confirmation in October 2019. Jetstar cited soft demand, higher fuel costs and a loss making operation as reasons for the withdrawal. Following the withdrawal, the five Jetstar-branded Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft were transferred back to Australia. [5] [6]
On 25 June 2024, Qantas announced an order for 14 mid-life Dash 8-400 (Q400) aircraft to be operated by fellow Qantaslink airline, Sunstate. [7] This will begin the phasing out of the Q200 and Q300 aircraft, with the fleet replacement leading to all aircraft being retired from the Eastern Australia fleet. [8] [9]
On 8 August 2025, Qantaslink operated its last flight with the Q300, it flew between Tamworth and Sydney as QF2003. [10] To commemorative the retirement of the Q300, Qantaslink operated QLK300, a celebratory flight for staff and crew, where the aircraft completed a scenic flight around Sydney and the Harbour Bridge. [11] [12] Following this flight, Eastern is no longer the registered operator of any aircraft on behalf of the Qantas Group, [13] with all regional turboprop flights operated by Sunstate Airlines Q400 aircraft. [7]
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