Qantas' giant vaccination carrot: a year's unlimited flying

Australia’s Qantas is working on incentives to convince customers to get vaccinated that include grand prizes of a year's unlimited flying anywhere in the group’s network. Qantas Group chief executive Alan Joyce said this week that he expected people would be able to register for incentives that could also include 1000 frequent flyer points and fare discounts “in the next few weeks or few months”. But the big payoff will be 10  “super prizes” that will see at least one awarded for each state and territory and will offer unlimited flying for a year across the Qantas and Jetstar network. READ: US safety chief calls for curb on airport alcohol sales. “So when international opens up, you could go to New York every week and London every other week, if you wanted to do that,’’ Joyce told reporters on a telephone conference this week. “And tied into that, our partners ACCOR have given a million of their frequent flyer points which is tens of thousands of dollars worth of free accommodation to those winners and BP have given a fuel benefit to those 10 winners. “We’re hoping to get the technology ready within the next few weeks or few months so that we can get people to register and award those incentives by the end of the calendar year.” Australia has been a laggard when it comes to vaccinations and the national government has said it will not abolish caps on Australians returning from overseas until 80 percent of the eligible population is vaccinated. Dubbed “Phase C”, this phase would include a gradual reopening of inbound and outbound travel with travel bubbles and travel involving safe countries. It would not be until the nation enters the “Phase D” post-vaccination world that international borders would be opened more widely with uncapped inbound arrivals without quarantine for vaccinated travelers and testing regimes for those who have not had the jab. But some countries are taking a harder line and there were indications this week that the US was among those considering proof of vaccination as a condition of entry for foreigners. Digital health passes will be a key to international travel and Qantas, which has previously expressed support for a “no-jab, no-fly” regime,  has opted for the International Air Transport Association’s Travel Pass. The Australian carrier opted for the IATA health pass after testing several digital solutions aimed at verifying health credentials. The pass allows the airline to verify a customer’s vaccination information and connects to certified testing labs to allow them to demonstrate they have cleared required tests before flying. It also matches a customer's health information against a specific flight, checks the entry requirements of the destination country and provides clearance to travel on that flight. “Many Governments are already requiring proof of vaccine or a negative COVID test result for international travel,’’ Qantas Group chief customer officer Stephanie Tully said in announcing the technology. “Even if it wasn’t a government requirement, Qantas has always been a leader in safety and we have a responsibility to our customers and crew. “A digital health pass will connect customers with COVID testing facilities, health authorities and airlines, and ultimately enable the opening of more travel bubbles and borders.”