Qatar Airways Flight Denial Sparks Australian Government under Fire

Primarily because Australian government blocked Qatar Airways flights, putting Prime Minister Albanese’s role, as well as industry transparency, under the lens.

The Coalition will look at senior bureaucrats to see whether Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had a hand in preventing any extra Qatar Airways flights. The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PM&C) has been advised by Liberal Senators Richard Colbeck and Simon Birmingham that questions about potential interference relating to Qantas and particularly the aviation sector will be raised.

In a letter to PM&C Secretary Glyn Davis, senators say they will rise with the Prime Minister or his office whether the Transport Minister Catherine King acted on the Prime Minister's instructions to reject Qatar’s request for additional 21 flights per week into Sydney and Melbourne among other major Australian airports. But aviation competition and market access issues became part of the debate over how the application was rejected on "national interest" grounds.

But Senator Jane Hume asked why accusations Albanese used his position as Transport Minister to ask Qantas for flight upgrades were being raised. It’s not just about the validity of the upgrades; it’s very much about the ethical use of power for personal gain.

Given the fact that Qatar Airways is trying to acquire 25% of Virgin Australia in effort to strengthen its foothold in the country, the allegations regarding the blocked flights can potentially affect the aviation industry as well as the options available for the customers.

This also raises wider issues about the honesty and equity of the aviation policies in Australia, bearing in mind that the two major political parties in the country are under a microscope for their relations with the airlines.