Author: Matt Graham
Matt Graham
Matt was the editor of Australian Frequent Flyer from 2015 until 2025. His passion for travel has taken him to more than 100 countries - with a lot of help along the way from frequent flyer points! 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 @Mattg.
The Alice Springs “Plane Graveyard” – AIR055
Visitors to Alice Springs, a town in Australia’s red centre, have been greeted by an unusual sight since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The town is also now the temporary home of Singapore Airlines A380s, Cathay Pacific 777s, and many other airliners grounded by the pandemic. In total, there are now around 150 … Continued
Qantas Launches “Mystery Flight” Adventures
Qantas is launching a series of “mystery flight” weekend adventures, with tickets going on sale from 12pm (AEDT) today. Many airlines have sold mystery flights in the past, where travellers purchase a ticket for a regularly scheduled flight but don’t learn where they’ll be flying until the last minute. But these new Qantas mystery flights … Continued
Australia Extends Outbound Travel Ban Until 17 June 2021
The Australian government has extended the outbound travel ban for a further three months. It means Australian citizens and permanent residents will continue to need a travel restriction exemption to leave the country until at least 17 June 2021 – three months later than previously announced – although it is likely that the travel ban … Continued
Rex to Launch Boeing 737 Flights to Adelaide & Gold Coast
Rex will complement its newly-launched Boeing 737 flights between Sydney and Melbourne with new routes to Adelaide and Gold Coast from the end of March. Starting from 29 March 2021, Rex will fly twice per day direct from Melbourne to the Gold Coast using Boeing 737-800s. Tickets are on sale from $79 one-way in Economy, … Continued
Etihad Guest Miles Unlock Cheap Virgin Australia Reward Flights
Update: Please note that Etihad Guest ended its partnership with Virgin Australia in June 2025. Unfortunately, you can no longer redeem Etihad Guest miles on Virgin Australia. You can of course redeem Velocity Frequent Flyer points to book reward seats on Virgin Australia flights. But did you know that most Etihad Guest redemptions on Virgin … Continued
Get 30% off Qantas Sydney-Melbourne Reward Flights [March 2021]
If you’re thinking about booking a last-minute flight between Sydney and Melbourne, you can now get 30% off Qantas Classic Flight Reward seats for travel any time during March 2021, as well as from 13 April-22 June 2021. Qantas Sydney-Melbourne flights are currently available for just 5,600 Qantas points + $38.12 in taxes & carrier … Continued
Rex Melbourne-Sydney 737 Flights Start Today
The inaugural Regional Express (Rex) Boeing 737-800 passenger flight took off this morning, with flight ZL18 departing from Melbourne to Sydney at 7am. It marks the beginning of jet aircraft operations for Rex, whose business model since launching in 2002 had previously been to just fly small turboprop aircraft to country towns. Over the coming … Continued
Qantas Wine Sales Boomed During COVID-19 Lockdowns
Qantas Wine sales increased by 74% in the second half of 2020, compared to the same period a year earlier, with Qantas attributing the record increase to “shifts in consumer behaviour during lockdown”. The revenue from Qantas Wine was the highest it has ever been, taking into account both cash sales and frequent flyer point … Continued
Qantas Now Plans to Restart International Flights in October 2021
Qantas says it now plans to resume international flights to most destinations from the end of October 2021, although it has so far only resumed selling tickets on 27 of its previous 37 international long-haul routes. Last month, Qantas – perhaps too optimistically – reopened international bookings from 1 July 2021. But the airline yesterday … Continued