Qantas has had a similar arrangement with Finnair for flights to Bangkok and Singapore since October 2023, but this wet lease will convert to a "dry lease"– where Qantas will use their own locally based crew and maintain the aircraft itself from next year. Qantas' share price closed 4 per cent lower at $7.12 on Tuesday following the announcement. Virgin is yet to confirm the timeline of the Qatar agreement beyond saying flights would ideally commence in mid-July, pending ACCC approval. Treasurer Jim Chalmers said it wasn't appropriate to preempt regulatory scrutiny of the proposed deal while Opposition leader Peter Dutton issued his support. "I will say, more broadly, we do want to see a strong, competitive airline industry that delivers for consumers," Chalmers said.