Qantas is considering giving free flight vouchers or air miles to people who have had Covid-19 shots, joining a growing list of businesses offering vaccination incentives to kick-start global travel.
While details haven’t been finalised, fully inoculated Qantas frequent fliers might also be offered free loyalty status credits, Qantas said in a statement. The programme is due to run until the end of 2021, when Australia’s vaccination programme is expected to be mostly complete, the airline said.
As reluctance in many countries to get vaccinations threatens a recovery from the pandemic, companies with the most to gain from a global reopening are pitching in. United Airlines is offering vaccinated frequent fliers the chance to win free flights for a year. Even dating sites including Tinder are rolling out incentives such as profile boosts for users who have been vaccinated.
Australia’s success in suppressing the virus has not been matched by its vaccination programme. Only about 3.7 million people in the nation of 26 million have received their first shot, and Melbourne was ordered into lockdown for the fourth time on Thursday to combat a growing cluster of cases. – Bloomberg