Qantas Reroutes Perth to London via Singapore, Adds 45 Minutes
Qantas rerouted its perth-to-London service as QF209 through Singapore Changi Airport after airspace closures linked to the 2026 Iran Crisis added up to 45 minutes to the trip. The change affects the westbound leg that had run nonstop from Perth International Airport to London Heathrow Airport since March 25, 2018.
The airline said the Singapore routing can carry more than 60 additional passengers because it faces fewer weight restrictions. That shift turns a route Qantas had operated as QF9 and QF10 on a 236-seat Boeing 787-9 into a different operating pattern, with the total journey via Singapore rising to more than 20 hours.
QF209 through Singapore Changi Airport
Qantas said the revised Europe-bound service uses QF209 with a stop in Singapore Changi Airport. The airline began direct non-stop flights between Perth International Airport and London Heathrow Airport on March 25, 2018, using a 236-seat Boeing 787-9 on a route more than 9,000 miles, or 14,484 km, long.
Boeing lists the 787-9 range at 8,705 miles, or 14,010 km. Qantas equips the aircraft with 42 business class seats, 28 premium economy seats and 166 economy seats, a layout that leaves little room when the plane is pushed near its operating limits on the westbound leg.
Westbound Perth-London capacity
Analytic Flying said westbound seat capacity between Perth and London averaged 219 seats per flight from October 2024 to September 2025. On the eastbound return flight from London, only one seat remained empty on average over the same period.
That pattern shows how tightly the service was already being managed before the latest reroute. Qantas said the alternative path via Singapore allows it to carry more than 60 additional passengers per flight because the aircraft does not face the same weight restrictions on that routing.
Qantas changes in 2024
Qantas had used a similar rerouting twice for a short period in 2024. The airline also launched a seasonal route between Perth and Rome after London in 2018, but the Perth-London service remained the signature long-haul link now altered by the Middle East airspace closures.
For travelers booked on the westbound Perth-London service, the practical change is the stop in Singapore and the longer trip time. The new pattern preserves service on a route that can no longer run nonstop under the current routing without giving up cargo and passenger capacity.
