With a severe nor’easter hammering the US East Coast, Qantas on 24 February released a commercial waiver covering tickets issued on or before that date for travel between 23 and 25 February. The policy applies to 13 airports from Boston to Washington and allows Australian passengers to rebook within seven days in the same cabin with no change fee or fare difference. Alternatively, customers may convert to a flight credit without penalty.
Although Qantas operates only one daily Los Angeles—New York codeshare sector, the waiver is crucial for Australia-based corporates whose executives often connect onto American Airlines shuttles up and down the Eastern Seaboard. Travel managers welcomed the clarity, noting that US carriers have issued their own waivers but intra-alliance consistency is not guaranteed.
The storm underscores the need for contingency planning in long-haul duty-of-care programmes. Australian mobility teams are being advised to use traveller-tracking dashboards to identify staff within the storm’s impact radius, ensure hotel and per-diem extensions are approved, and confirm that any replacement itineraries maintain minimum-rest requirements ahead of critical meetings.
![Qantas issues fee-free rebooking for East-Coast US winter storm, shielding business itineraries]()
For travellers whose reshuffled schedules might bump up against expiring travel authorisations, VisaHQ can step in quickly. Through its Australian platform (https://www.visahq.com/australia/), the service provides rapid visa procurement and ESTA updates, helping corporates keep documentation in sync with last-minute flight changes while feeding real-time status alerts back to mobility dashboards.
Qantas’ waiver is notable for allowing downgrading to a lower cabin with a partial refund of the fare difference—an option seldom offered and one that could save companies thousands of dollars on short-notice re-tickets at peak fares. However, the airline cautions that seats are limited and must be re-issued by 3 March to remain valid.
Passengers holding separate tickets on domestic US legs remain responsible for those changes, a reminder that split-ticket itineraries can introduce hidden risk. Mobility managers are being urged to review policy language to mandate through-ticketing where possible on routes vulnerable to extreme weather.
Although Qantas operates only one daily Los Angeles—New York codeshare sector, the waiver is crucial for Australia-based corporates whose executives often connect onto American Airlines shuttles up and down the Eastern Seaboard. Travel managers welcomed the clarity, noting that US carriers have issued their own waivers but intra-alliance consistency is not guaranteed.
The storm underscores the need for contingency planning in long-haul duty-of-care programmes. Australian mobility teams are being advised to use traveller-tracking dashboards to identify staff within the storm’s impact radius, ensure hotel and per-diem extensions are approved, and confirm that any replacement itineraries maintain minimum-rest requirements ahead of critical meetings.
For travellers whose reshuffled schedules might bump up against expiring travel authorisations, VisaHQ can step in quickly. Through its Australian platform (https://www.visahq.com/australia/), the service provides rapid visa procurement and ESTA updates, helping corporates keep documentation in sync with last-minute flight changes while feeding real-time status alerts back to mobility dashboards.
Qantas’ waiver is notable for allowing downgrading to a lower cabin with a partial refund of the fare difference—an option seldom offered and one that could save companies thousands of dollars on short-notice re-tickets at peak fares. However, the airline cautions that seats are limited and must be re-issued by 3 March to remain valid.
Passengers holding separate tickets on domestic US legs remain responsible for those changes, a reminder that split-ticket itineraries can introduce hidden risk. Mobility managers are being urged to review policy language to mandate through-ticketing where possible on routes vulnerable to extreme weather.
