The CEO of Qantas has said the airline won't be flying to Europe or North America until the 'end of 2021' due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Aussie airline will instead concentrate on travel corridors to a number of Asian and South Pacific countries.
Chief executive Alan Joyce has said flights to Europe and the US aren't possible at the moment due to the number of cases in those countries, but hopes that a potential vaccine could make it possible late next year.
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Appearing on the Today show, he said: "Unfortunately, with the levels of the virus in the United States and in Europe, we're not going to see operations to those destinations in any real strength until we see a vaccine being rolled out, which is likely towards the end of 2021."
This echoes what Joyce said back in October when he stressed the importance of a vaccine to get things back to normal.
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"For some of our big destinations like the United States and the UK, it's going to need a vaccine given the high prevalence of the virus in both of those locations," he said at the time.
"But we are getting more and more confident about the opportunities and the potential for a vaccine in helping getting those operations up by potentially by the end of 2021."
Qantas is said to be focusing on flights to countries closer by as well as opening new routes.
Joyce added: "With most international travel off limits for a while, we're expecting to see a boom in domestic tourism once more borders open up.
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"And when international travel does eventually return, our market share is expected to grow too, as overseas carriers take a conservative approach to capacity and focus on opportunities closer to their own home markets."
At the moment, Australia's borders are mainly closed, with a few exceptions, putting the blocks on international travel.
Speaking in June this year, Joyce said international travel won't start until July 2021 and that sadly meant job losses.
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Around 6,000 people have lost their jobs, with 100 planes grounded.
In a statement, Joyce said: "This is something that weighs heavily on all of us. But the collapse of billions of dollars in revenue leaves us little choice if we are to save as many jobs as possible, long term.
"Many of the 6,000 job losses we're announcing today are people who have spent decades here. It's not unusual to have several members of one family working at Qantas and Jetstar.
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"What makes this even harder is that right before this crisis hit, we were actively recruiting. We were gearing up for Project Sunrise.
"We were getting ready to buy planes. Now, we're facing a sudden reversal of fortune that is no one's fault - but is very hard to accept. Across the world, airlines are shrinking by up to 50 percent.
"To avoid anything on this scale, we will be extending the stand down for a large number of our people as we wait for the recovery we know is coming.
"Separate to job losses, about 15,000 people will remain stood down for some time - people for whom we have no work now, but will in future.
"Around half of those stood down will be back flying domestically, we think, by the end of the year. The remainder - mostly those supporting international flying - will return more slowly."
Featured Image Credit: PA
Topics: UK News, travel, Australia