Qantas Provides Rescue Flights to Australians in Lebanon

DALLAS — To help Australians in Lebanon get back home, Qantas (QF) will operate two nonstop flights between Cyprus and Sydney, on behalf of the Australian Government.

The Australian flag carrier will operate the assisted-departure flights using its Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which can transport up to 440 Australians back home.

The inaugural trip is slated to depart Larnaca, Cyprus, on Monday evening (local time) and arrive in Sydney on Tuesday. The second direct Dreamliner service is scheduled to depart on Wednesday.

While QF will operate these flights at no expense to the Australian government or passengers, the carrier is seeking to get the appropriate approvals. According to the airline, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is coordinating registration for Australians wanting to return home.

Qantas pilots and cabin staff need to express their interest in operating the flights to the airline. This is expected to be oversubscribed, as it was for special assistance flights from Tel Aviv in October 2023, when 900 cabin staff indicated interest in 70 slots.

The airline noted that these assisted-departure flights would have an impact on some customers who had booked flights on QF's international network. They will be contacted individually with alternative travel arrangements.

History Repeats Itself, Sort Of

Almost half a century ago, Pan Am's Mission 1965/31 evacuated its Vietnamese employees and anybody else who could fit on board the airline's Boeing 747.

The mission occurred at Tan Son Nhat Airport (SGN) in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, six days before the city's fall on April 30, 1975. 

Much like in the Middle East today, the situation in South Vietnam had become tense. The People's Army of Vietnam and the Viet Cong had amassed on the outskirts of Saigon as they prepared for a final assault on the city.

The time came for a group of Pan Am Flight Crews to volunteer for mission 1965/31, the last passenger flight out of South Vietnam.

You can read the full harrowing story in our history post, The Last Flight Out of Vietnam.