The airline said QF7168, scheduled to depart Melbourne at 5pm for a 6:40pm arrival, would carry 485 passengers, the equivalent of almost three cancelled Boeing 737-800 aircraft that normally fly the busy route.
The airline, which began operating between Cairns and Hamilton Island in November – reviving a former QantasLink route – now says on its website that the twice-weekly flights are being replaced by “personalised services”.
The low-cost carrier is upgauging from A320s to A321neo LRs on the route between June and October this year, which will add a total of 4,500 extra seats over the entire season. Melbourne is Townsville’s third busiest destination, with 90 per cent of se…