Europe-Australia has most seats in 13 years; new airline & three new routes in 2026/2027

The market between Europe and Australia is enormous. In 2025, booking data suggests that 4.8 million two-way passengers, or 13,150 daily passengers, travelled between the two places.

Unsurprisingly, nearly everyone – an estimated 95% – flew indirectly. In descending order, the top ten sixth freedom operators were Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and China Eastern.

Approximately 63% of passengers flew via Gulf hubs; the so-called MEB3 carriers have really captured this large-volume market. In contrast, Southeast Asia hubs, once vital stopover points, had barely a fifth of the traffic. Of course, the war in Iran will temporarily reduce the significance and dominance of connecting in the Middle East.

Turkish Airlines has served Australia since 2024

Australia had long been a gaping hole in Turkish Airlines’ vast global network. The carrier’s debut took place two years ago, in March 2024, when Melbourne flights began. Sydney welcomed the airline in December 2024.

Currently, passengers connecting in Istanbul have a two-stop service, flying Europe-Istanbul-Kuala Lumpur/Singapore-Sydney/Melbourne. For big cities, this is usually suboptimal, and far less competitive, than flying via hubs in the Gulf or Southeast Asia. However, Turkish Airlines connects a considerable number of smaller European airports to Australia via its hub.

In the future, the airline plans to operate non-stop to Australia, which will transform its offering significantly. Many European cities will have one-stop flights to Australia for the first time. It also plans non-stop flights to New Zealand.

Major developments are coming in 2026/2027

Later this year, and in early 2027, three new and returning routes will begin. These developments contribute to non-stop and one-stop seats rising to the highest volume since 2013.

• 25 October 2026: Finnair, Helsinki-Bangkok-Melbourne (daily)
• 25 October 2026: Qantas, Melbourne-Perth-London LHR (daily)
• 9 January 2027: British Airways, London LHR-Kuala Lumpur-Melbourne (daily)

In NW26, Finnair will make history by commencing the first-ever scheduled service between the Nordics and Australia. The airline will extend one of its three daily Helsinki-Bangkok flights to Victoria, with fifth freedom rights available.

After last being offered in June 2024, Qantas’ non-stop Perth-London LHR will once again begin and end in Melbourne, rather than being a standalone service. This means it will be quicker and easier to fly the airline between Victoria and the UK.

British Airways will return to Melbourne next year, having last operated via Singapore in 2006. Its return, after 21 years, will see the stopover switched to Kuala Lumpur, which will assist in boosting the performance of that long-haul route from the UK.