Regional South Australian travellers will benefit from more seats and improved reliability as Qantas upgrades all regional routes from Adelaide to the larger QantasLink Q400 turboprop aircraft.

The introduction of the larger Q400 aircraft into Port Lincoln, Whyalla, Mount Gambier and Kangaroo Island has been made possible by the airline’s significant investment in 14 additional Q400s for its regional fleet to better connect regional Australia. Once the transition is complete, Qantas will have three Q400s based in South Australia.

Qantas operates more than 50 return flights per week between Adelaide and the regional cities, providing essential connections for residents and tourists as well as business and resource travel. These flights are currently operated by smaller Q300 aircraft which have 50 seats. These older aircraft are being gradually retired from Qantas’ fleet.

The airline is also overhauling its beverage offering. Eight new regional wines will debut onboard all QantasLink turboprop flights from mid-March, with six of these being from South Australian wineries including Stonehaven, Pioneer Road and Angove.