Qantas adds in-flight zest to virtual meetings

Bored by the bland background of your Zoom meetings? Concerned about the clutter? Or maybe you’re an aviation tragic who just wants to escape the COVID crisis to better times above the clouds? Qantas may have the answer to your high-altitude aspirations. READ: Qantas offers frequent flyer extension. The Australian carrier has released a series of aviation-themed meeting backgrounds that can be easily downloaded as backgrounds for virtual meetings. Access the images here. Now you can conduct your meetings from a Boeing 747 cockpit, the comfort of a business class seat or with a classic sun-soaked “wing shot” as a background.

The airline sees it as a fun way to keep its frequent flyers engaged while many are unable to experience being up in the air. “Our customers tell us they miss flying as much as getting to the destination itself and this sensory experience will help fill the temporary void while some of us can’t fly because of border closures,”  said Qantas Group chief customer officer Stephanie Tully. “We have some of the most engaged frequent flyer members in the world and while we might not be able to take them around the world right now, we can remind them of what they have to look forward to when we welcome them back onboard a Qantas flight in the future.” Qantas has also made a signature soundtrack used as boarding and inflight default music on domestic and international flights,  freely available on streaming services Spotify and Apple Music. The soundtrack, which comes in two extended parts, was created for the airline by composer Haydn Walker and producer Nathan Cavaleri and also features on the airline’s YouTube channel. Other efforts by Qantas to keep customers engaged include a recent points auction where two older A380 Skybeds attracted a winning bid of two million points and a Melbourne IT entrepreneur splashed out 6 million points on a Boeing 787 simulator session and a private charter flight. It has also sold a limited number of inflight products such as business class PJs, care packs, amenity kits and playing cards.