Qantas is responding to rising demand for travel between Australia and Japan with the launch of a new seasonal service to Osaka.

The airline has revealed plans to operate direct flights from Sydney to Japan’s second largest city between 14 December 2017 and 24 March 2018. Services will run three times a week (Monday, Thursday and Saturday) using a two-class Airbus A330 aircraft.

This will become the only direct flight between the two cities, and will complement Qantas’ existing Sydney-Tokyo Haneda, Brisbane-Tokyo Narita and Melbourne-Narita services. Jetstar currently flies from Cairns to Osaka.

Qantas’ Sydney-Osaka service will connect to the airline’s domestic and trans-Tasman networks, as well as to Jetstar Japan’s domestic network from Osaka.

“This December we celebrate 70 years of flying to Japan and we’re delighted to add another destination to the growing list of services Qantas operates between the two countries at a time when travel to Japan is booming,” said Qantas International’s CEO, Gareth Evans.

“Our commitment to the Japanese market is reflective of the strength of this growth, which we are very well placed to support with the largest Australia-Japan network, the largest domestic network in Australia, and the largest low-cost domestic network across Japan through Jetstar Japan.”

Flight QF33 will depart Sydney at either 0930 or 1325, depending on the day, and arrive at Osaka’s Kansai International Airport at 1725 or 2120. The return flight, QF34, then leaves Osaka at 1855 or 2250, and arrives back in Sydney at 0645 or 1040 the next morning.