Qantas Sends Boeing 717 to Coffs Harbour

QantasLink will switch one of its five daily flights between Sydney and Coffs Harbour to a Boeing 717 aircraft. The change will take effect from Sunday, 29 March 2020. It comes just weeks before Tigerair withdraws from the Sydney-Coffs Harbour and Melbourne-Coffs Harbour routes.

Currently, the Sydney-Coffs Harbour route is served by QantasLink exclusively with smaller Bombardier Dash 8 turboprop aircraft. QantasLink operates up to five flights per day, prioritising frequency, while Virgin Australia has a single daily Boeing 737-800 service on the Sydney-Coffs Harbour route.

The Qantas Boeing 717 will fly to Coffs Harbour every day except Saturday. These are the upgraded flights:

• QF1506 Sydney (SYD) 08:45 – Coffs Harbour (CFS) 10:00
• QF1507 Coffs Harbour (CFS) 10:40 – Sydney (SYD) 11:55

The larger Boeing 717 jet aircraft is faster, offers more seats and has Q-Streaming in-flight entertainment available. It will also provide a more comfortable passenger experience than the Dash 8 – especially for those lucky enough to score a Business class seat!

Qantas does not sell Business class on the Sydney-Coffs Harbour route, but the QantasLink Boeing 717-200 aircraft is fitted with 12 Business class seats.

These coveted seats in rows 1-3 will likely made available to top-tier frequent flyers such as Qantas Platinum One members booked in Economy. They could also become available for selection by other passengers around 80 hours before departure.

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 60 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil, New Zealand & Kazakhstan. His interests include economics, aviation & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can contact Matt at [email protected]