The corporations behind two of the country’s biggest airports have called on the federal government to review its decision to knock back Qatar Airways’ bid to run more flights into Australia. 

Qatar had wanted to run an extra 21 flights a week into Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. 

Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) told a Senate inquiry into the decision that the rejection was driving up airfares and undermining tourism. 

The inquiry, which is sitting in Brisbane today, is looking at whether the government stifled competition when it refused Qatar’s request. 

BAC told the inquiry successive governments had “disappointed” in their decisions about Qatar Airlines. 

Executive general manager Ryan Both said airlines need more competition, with the country’s consumer watchdog warning fares have more than doubled since April. 

“Higher airfares restricts travel, it restricts trade, it restricts people from visiting family and friends,” he said. 

“It means we have less Europeans, which is the primary market we are talking about visiting Australia and visiting Queensland

“Higher airfares are not good for the economy and not good for choice.

“We see it as in the interests of the people of Queensland that we have open skies and, in particular, [that] the decision be reviewed,” Mr Both said. 

Melbourne Airport’s Michael Cullen agreed. 

“From our perspective, we think the economic contribution of international services should be a very relevant factor,” he said. 

Tomorrow, Qantas chairman Richard Goyder, new CEO Vanessa Hudson, and Qatar Airways will front the inquiry when it continues in Canberra. 

On Monday, Qantas pilots called for Mr Goyder to step down. 

In an interview with ABC News Breakfast on Tuesday, Australian and International Pilots Association president Tony Lucas said the Qantas board needed a “reset”. 

“What we’re after is for the staff to be valued and respected and that’s not something we’ve seen from this board over a considerable period of time now,” he said. 

“We’re after a board that is looking to engage staff and treat them as an asset rather than a cost to be controlled or a cost to be outsourced.”

The airline has been ordered to attend mediation with the Transport Workers’ Union after the High Court unanimously rejected Qantas’ appeal against a ruling that the airline outsourced the jobs of its ground staff illegally.

Airfares sky-high

According to the Australian Travel Industry Association, Australians are paying up to 100 per cent more for international airfares than before the pandemic.

“Fundamentally, what’s driving that is a throttling of supply where we have 11 per cent less airlines and around 20 per cent less seats travelling to and from Australia,” the association’s CEO Dean Long said.

“We have a massive amount of demand, and that capacity is just throttled.”