Which Airlines Still Offer First Class from Australia?

First Class has been in decline for the past decade. Even before COVID-19, many airlines were choosing not to install First Class on their new planes, instead opting for ultra-luxe Business Class seats (like Qatar Airways’ popular Qsuite).

The pandemic sadly accelerated this decline as many airlines retired their older, larger aircraft such as Boeing 747s which were fitted with First Class cabins. Many airlines also say that demand for First Class seats passengers from fare-paying passengers has reduced over time.

Of the handful of airlines that had been operating aircraft to Australia with First Class cabins before COVID-19, there are currently only seven left.

That doesn’t leave many options for people who are prepared to spend good money (or points!) for an ultra-premium flying experience. But there are some exceptions to this trend!

Which airlines still sell First Class to Australia?

The key player in this space is Emirates, which continues to offer First Class on most of its long-haul (and even short-haul) flights, including to all of its Australian destinations.

Singapore Airlines, Qantas, British Airways, Qatar Airways and American Airlines have also resumed offering First Class on selected routes out of Australia.

Japan Airlines is not currently offering First Class to Australia, but will on its Sydney-Tokyo route from June 2024.

Unfortunately, Thai Airways, Etihad Airways, Japan Airlines, China Southern and China Eastern no longer have First Class to Australia at all. Thai Airways used to sell First Class on its Boeing 747 flights between Sydney and Bangkok, but this route has been taken over by smaller planes without First Class. Similarly, Etihad and China Southern are now only operating aircraft to Australia without First seating.

There have been some rumours that Etihad could fly its Airbus A380, which has First Class seating, between Sydney and Abu Dhabi again in the future. However, since bringing its A380s out of storage last year, Etihad has so far only been using them on the Abu Dhabi-London route. (Etihad will also resume flying A380s to New York from April 2024.)

China Eastern does offer “Business Plus” seating on its Airbus A350-900, but this is not a true First Class product. It’s a longer Business Class seat with more space and privacy, but the same service as Business Class.

How to book First Class from Australia using points

Let’s take a closer look at exactly which international routes to and from Australia have First Class available in 2024 and beyond, and how you can book a seat using your frequent flyer points…

Emirates

Emirates continues to offer First Class on its Airbus A380 and Boeing 777 flights between Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Dubai. The UAE-based carrier also sells First Class on its fifth-freedom routes between Melbourne-Singapore and Sydney-Christchurch.

The actual First Class seats on Emirates’ Airbus A380s are basically the same as those on the older Boeing 777s which are flown to Australia. But the Emirates A380 has a larger First cabin with more seats, as well as the famous Emirates shower and on-board bar!

It’s no longer possible to book Emirates First Class reward seats through most frequent flyer programs. But you can still redeem Qantas points, Air Canada Aeroplan points or Emirates Skywards miles – subject to award availability, of course.

Beware of the high fuel surcharges when redeeming Qantas points or Skywards miles for Emirates flights. These can be over $1,000 for a one-way flight. Fuel surcharges are not charged on Aeroplan redemptions.

Emirates First Class reward seat availability is often quite good on the Sydney-Christchurch and Melbourne-Singapore routes. Reward availability on Emirates flights from Australia to Dubai can be limited. But in general, you may have the best chance of finding seats when booking either 11 months out or at the last minute.

Emirates often releases extra reward seats just a few days prior to departure, which can be useful if your travel plans are spontaneous!

The Qantas website often gives an error message when you try to search for Qantas Classic Flight Reward seats departing from Dubai. This is an ongoing bug with the Qantas website. To get around this, try conducting a one-way or return flight search (rather than using the multi-city tool) or call Qantas to make your booking.

If available, a one-way First Classic Reward from Melbourne to Dubai flying Emirates costs 170,800 Qantas Frequent Flyer points + approximately $1,178 in taxes & carrier charges.

Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines offers First Class on all of its Sydney-Singapore and Melbourne-Singapore flights that are operated by Airbus A380s or Boeing 777s. This currently includes three of the four daily flights on the Sydney-Singapore route, and one of five daily Melbourne-Singapore services.

Singapore Airlines offers traditional First Class seats on its Boeing 777-300ER, and Suites on its Airbus A380.

All other Singapore Airlines flights to Australia are operated by other aircraft types like the Airbus A350-900, Boeing 787-10 or Boeing 737-8 which do not have First Class cabins.

It is not currently possible to redeem Velocity Frequent Flyer points for First Class on Singapore Airlines (this should return soon). Singapore Airlines also doesn’t make these seats available to most other Star Alliance partner airlines. But you can redeem Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer miles for a seat.

If you don’t have credit card reward points that you can transfer to KrisFlyer, you can also transfer points over from Velocity Frequent Flyer.

Singapore Airlines has made very few First Class seats to Australia available as KrisFlyer Saver redemptions lately. Although there have been some available between Melbourne and Singapore. More flights have availability in the more expensive KrisFlyer Advantage award category.

If there is no award availability on your preferred flight, it is also possible to waitlist for a KrisFlyer award seat.

Onward connections via Singapore to/from cities across Europe, North America and Asia are also available in Singapore Airlines First Class. Again, Saver awards are hard to find, but you may have better luck finding Advantage award availability.

Qantas

The Airbus A380 is the only aircraft in the Qantas fleet with a First Class cabin. This aircraft is currently being used on the Sydney-Los Angeles, Melbourne-Los Angeles and Sydney-Singapore-London routes. It is also due to begin operating Sydney-Johannesburg flights from July 2024.

Qantas is temporarily using Airbus A380s between Sydney and Hong Kong at the moment as well, but is not selling First Class on these services.

Qantas First Class reward availability is typically difficult to find. But you may be able to find a seat with Qantas points when Qantas releases extra Classic Flight Reward seats. If you’re a Qantas Platinum or Platinum One member, you may also be able to request the release of a First Class reward seat.

Qantas will install six First Class suites on its Airbus A350s, which it will use to fly non-stop from Australia to London and New York. These new jets are due to enter service for the airline in late 2025.

British Airways

British Airways flies daily from Sydney to London via Singapore using Boeing 777-300ERs. Their four-class jets house 8 First Class seats in the nose.

Unfortunately, British Airways First Class reward availability to and from Sydney is very limited. While British Airways reserves reward seats for its own Executive Club members in the other three cabins, this guarantee does not extend to First Class.

As a general rule, your best chances of booking a seat are booking either 355 days or less than a month prior to departure.

If there is availability, you could book a seat using Qantas points, British Airways Avios or any other Oneworld frequent flyer program.

Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways First Class is available on the airline’s Airbus A380 flights from Sydney and Perth to Doha.

There is often reasonably good First Class award availability between Perth and Doha. You should be able to book a seat using Virgin Australia Velocity points or any Oneworld frequent flyer program except Qantas Frequent Flyer.

Japan Airlines

Japan Airlines will resume flying Boeing 777-300ERs on its daily Sydney-Tokyo (Haneda) service from June 2024. This aircraft type has 8 First Class seats in the nose, which you can book using Qantas points.

American Airlines

American Airlines uses a mix of Boeing 787-9s and Boeing 777-300ERs on its year-round Sydney-Los Angeles route. The larger Boeing 777-300ERs, which have First Class seating available, are used on a seasonal basis during busy periods like the Easter and Christmas holidays.

Although American is a Oneworld partner airline of Qantas, it’s very rare to find an American Airlines First Class award seat available to book using Qantas points. But if you have AAdvantage miles or want to buy a ticket, this is another First Class option out of Australia.

American Airlines First Class to Australia won’t last forever, though. The airline has announced that it will eventually phase out First Class when it retrofits its Boeing 777-300ERs.

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A left-field option: Air New Zealand

Although Air New Zealand doesn’t offer First Class, it is currently flying a leased Boeing 777 jet on selected Melbourne-Auckland services that used to fly for Cathay Pacific. This aircraft still has exactly the same seats used by Cathay Pacific, including the First Class seats. These are available to select as a paid upgrade by Business Class passengers.

Air New Zealand still offers the same Business Class service to passengers who’ve splurged on one of the ex-Cathay Pacific First Class seats. You’re just paying for the better seat.

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 70 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include economics, aviation & 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 @AFF Editor.