Qantas to auction off two lie-flat business class seats for desperate travellers locked down in their homes
Travellers pining for the days of unrestricted international travel can recreate the experience in their loungeroom after Qantas announced it would auction off two lie-flat business class seats.
An online auction at 8am on August 5 will allow members of the Qantas Frequent Flyer program to bid for the two seats, which were taken out of a Qantas A380 'superjumbo'.
You must also be in Australia in order to participate in the auction, and the seats must be purchased as a pair.
Bids will need to start at 350,000 Qantas points for the seats, the airline said.
The two seats are auctioned from 8AM AEST for Qantas Frequent Flyers resident in Australia
The A380 seats will recline in your lounge room but the in-built TV screens won't work at home
The opening bid for the seats, which must be purchased as a pair, is 350,000 frequent flyer points
While Qantas' 12 A380s are currently grounded in California's Mojave Desert due to the ongoing Covid pandemic, the seats were in the process of being replaced in the aircraft by newer versions.
The airline stressed the seats' built-in television screens won't work at home but they will recline if plugged into the wall via a converter so that the winning bidder can lie back and watch Seinfeld on the home flatscreen.
It's not the first time Qantas has auctioned unique experiences to frequent flyers.
Last year it auctioned bar carts from its ageing 747 fleet and they were quickly cleared by eager collectors.
Other items to be offered in the online auction conducted from August 2 to 6 include a private charter flight, a 787 simulator experience and a kids' soccer coaching clinic with Socceroos coach Graham Arnold.
Qantas had estimated its A380 fleet may remain grounded for another two years as international travel routes remain restricted by border closures.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce hopes international travel will resume for Australians in 2022 as Australia's vaccination rate lifts
Mr Joyce also said Covid vaccinations could be made mandatory for all international travellers once Australia's borders reopen
The airline's CEO Alan Joyce initially hoped a fuller schedule of Qantas international flights would begin in October this year, but recently said that he hoped domestic and international borders would be reopened by next year as vaccination rates increased.
'Most people should be vaccinated before the end of the calendar year,' Joyce said. 'Hopefully, they the can meet that time frame.'
Mr Joyce had also said Covid vaccinations could be made mandatory for all international travellers once Australia's borders reopen.