Hannah Dowling

After the flight, users took to Twitter to share their emotional responses to the return of QF1 to London Heathrow after nearly two years of travel restrictions.

New images released by the airport show how much earth has been cleared in preparation for the construction of the airport’s runway, taxiways and terminal, all due to begin construction in the coming months.

The flight carried some of Australia’s first passengers that were free to leave the country without first securing an exemption for the government to travel. The trip took around 22 1/2 hours, including the layover in Darwin.

The office also reported a strong uptake in the newly introduced digital International COVID-19 Vaccination Certificate for overseas travel, with more than 717,500 certificates in the two weeks since the certificate was introduced.

Joyce clarified that by mid-2022, the airline will aim to be servicing all routes on its pre-COVID network, however with less frequency and smaller aircraft, before conditions improve into 2023.

QF1 is the first Qantas International flight to leave the country since the government lifted the national travel ban, and NSW, Victoria and the ACT all reopened their borders to fully-vaccinated Australians.