Australia’s most remote communities received a long-awaited logistics lifeline on Monday 3 November 2025 as QantasLink operated its first regular passenger service from Perth to Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Two Airbus A320 flights—QF361 to Christmas Island in the morning and QF363 onward to Cocos in the afternoon—marked the start of a five-year Commonwealth-backed contract to keep the Indian Ocean Territories connected.
Until now residents and visiting technicians relied on ad-hoc charters or limited Virgin Australia flights routed via Singapore, leaving government agencies and businesses vulnerable to weather cancellations and seat scarcity. The new twice-weekly schedule (Mondays and Fridays) offers about 320 economy seats per week in each direction and a dedicated freight compartment for essential pharmaceuticals, mail and perishables.
![QantasLink’s Inaugural Perth–Christmas Island & Cocos Flights Take Off]()
For corporate mobility managers the route cuts door-to-door travel times by up to 12 hours, enabling same-week maintenance rotations for critical infrastructure such as satellite ground stations, phosphate mining operations and the islands’ airstrips. Tourism operators are already packaging four-night ‘crab migration’ and dive itineraries that align with the flight times, banking on pent-up demand from mainland nature enthusiasts.
QantasLink CEO Rachel Yangoyan said the carrier would monitor load factors over the next six months and could up-gauge to a Boeing 737 during peak seasons. The arrangement also includes a standby freight flight, providing contingency for medevac equipment and time-sensitive cargo.
Travellers pay domestic airport charges and do not require a passport, but they must carry government-issued photo ID and complete an online biosecurity declaration before boarding. Businesses with fly-in-fly-out workers should update mobility budgets: return fares are currently A$1,100–A$1,400, although Qantas Frequent Flyer redemptions are available at 18,600 points each way.
Until now residents and visiting technicians relied on ad-hoc charters or limited Virgin Australia flights routed via Singapore, leaving government agencies and businesses vulnerable to weather cancellations and seat scarcity. The new twice-weekly schedule (Mondays and Fridays) offers about 320 economy seats per week in each direction and a dedicated freight compartment for essential pharmaceuticals, mail and perishables.
For corporate mobility managers the route cuts door-to-door travel times by up to 12 hours, enabling same-week maintenance rotations for critical infrastructure such as satellite ground stations, phosphate mining operations and the islands’ airstrips. Tourism operators are already packaging four-night ‘crab migration’ and dive itineraries that align with the flight times, banking on pent-up demand from mainland nature enthusiasts.
QantasLink CEO Rachel Yangoyan said the carrier would monitor load factors over the next six months and could up-gauge to a Boeing 737 during peak seasons. The arrangement also includes a standby freight flight, providing contingency for medevac equipment and time-sensitive cargo.
Travellers pay domestic airport charges and do not require a passport, but they must carry government-issued photo ID and complete an online biosecurity declaration before boarding. Businesses with fly-in-fly-out workers should update mobility budgets: return fares are currently A$1,100–A$1,400, although Qantas Frequent Flyer redemptions are available at 18,600 points each way.
