When artists have big tours, it’s not uncommon to see them travel in private jets, or in some cases, even charter commercial aircraft. After all, a lot of people and a huge amount of equipment has to be moved. However, chartering an Airbus A380 isn’t something you often see… but that’s exactly what’s happening right now, if rumors are to be believed, as flagged by PYOK!
Qantas A380 operates intriguing Sao Paulo to Sydney charter flight
On Sunday, February 22, 2026, a Qantas Airbus A380 flew from Sydney (SYD) to Sao Paulo (GRU). Specifically, the 14hr49min flight departed at 10:28PM local time, and landed at 11:18PM local time the same night. It was operated by the A380 with the registration code VH-OQA, and had the flight number QF6043. Qantas typically uses flight numbers in the 6XXX range for ferry flights (so without passengers).
The plane didn’t spend a long time on the ground, and on Monday, February 23, 2026, it turned around after just several hours. According to reports, the plane is supposed to fly from Sao Paulo back to Sydney via Auckland (AKL), in what will be a marathon flight. This journey has the flight number QF308. Qantas typically uses flight numbers in the 3XX range for charter flights.
I’m curious about the staffing for this flight — presumably Qantas had to deadhead a crew to Sao Paulo days earlier to work the return flight, and then the crew that ferried the plane to Sao Paulo will have to deadhead back to Sydney on a separate flight.
Is Bad Bunny chartering this Qantas A380 for his crew?
It’s not every day that you see an Airbus A380 chartered for an ultra long haul flight, so all we can do is speculate as to what’s going on here. The reports I’ve seen suggest that there could be a very interesting reason behind this flight.
Specifically, American superstar Bad Bunny (yes, Puerto Rico is part of the United States, who knew?!) is currently on his “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS” world tour. He performed on February 21, 2026, in Sao Paulo, and his next show is on February 28, 2026, in Sydney.
Obviously tour logistics are incredibly complicated, in terms of the number of people and the amount of equipment that has to be moved between show locations. While efforts are typically made to minimize distances between show locations, moving between Brazil and Australia is quite a trek. There are two challenges that make this particularly complicated:
- There are no nonstop regularly scheduled flights between the two countries, which limits options
- The journey between Brazil and Australia is one of the most remote air routes in the world, and there are a limited number of aircraft that can operate it (in terms of range needed, ETOPS requirements, etc.)
I have to imagine that a Bad Bunny tour involves moving a lot of people and a lot of equipment, so it very much tracks that this charter flight between the two countries would be for that purpose. For that matter, the flight must actually be quite full of people and equipment, based on the fact that it needs to stop in Auckland to refuel.
It goes without saying that this is a massive expense. We’re talking about chartering an A380 for 30+ hours of flying. I have to imagine that this costs north of a million bucks, when all is said and done. It’s pretty wild that there are actually only two shows in Sydney, before the tour continues to Tokyo, which is once again quite a distance away. So that’s quite a bit in expenses that has to be allocated to those two performances.
I’m sure we’ll find out soon enough if this was in fact a charter for the Bad Bunny tour, though it’s hard to imagine for what other reason an A380 would be chartered like this.
Qantas’ Airbus A380s are equipped with 485 seats, including 14 first class seats, 70 business class seats, 60 premium economy seats, and 341 economy seats.
Bottom line
A Qantas Airbus A380 is currently operating a charter flight from Sao Paulo to Sydney via Auckland, just hours after having arrived in Sao Paulo. While the reason for this flight hasn’t officially been announced, the timing is interesting, as Bad Bunny just had a show in Sao Paulo, and his next show is in Sydney in several days.
These kinds of tours involve moving a lot of people and a lot of equipment, so if I were a betting man, I’d say it’s highly likely that this is what the charter is for.
What do you make of this Qantas A380 charter flight?
