Qatar Airways will upgrade its daily Sydney-Doha flights to the flagship Airbus A380 from September 15 2016, replacing the Boeing 777s currently plying the route.

While the superjumbo's Sydney slot is three months off the airline's initial plan of June, the move will sharpen already-strong competition in Australia's toughest market.

The A380 will begin as a seasonal service which is expected to stretch through to early 2017, but Qatar Airways CEO His Excellency Akbar Al Baker hopes to see this become a year-round fixture.

“At the moment (Sydney’s A380) is seasonal, but I think it will continue as we receive additional A380s, because we have additional aeroplanes that will be in the pipeline that will be delivered to Qatar Airways,” Mr Akbar told Australian Business Traveller at a press event in Adelaide.

For business travellers, Qatar's A380 represents a monumental improvement to the business class experience, replacing the 2-2-2 seating layout of the airline's Boeing 777 with a much preferred 1-2-1 configuration which guarantees passengers direct aisle access from every seat.

Read: Qatar Airways Airbus A380 business class review

The superjumbo also brings with it an exclusive first class cabin – the first time Qatar Airways will offer first class on any Australian route – with eight luxe seats in a spacious 1-2-1 layout...

... and an inflight bar and lounge area shared by both business and first class travellers:

Read: Photo tour: Qatar’s Airbus A380 first, business class

The news comes as the airline launches daily Airbus A350 flights between Adelaide and Doha, which also represent Australia’s first commercial Airbus A350 service.

Qatar Airways will also reveal its new ‘super business class’ seat in November this year, featuring sliding doors to convert it into a suite-like private cabin.

Read more: Qatar Airways to reveal 'Super Business Class' seat in November

Chris Chamberlin is visiting Adelaide as a guest of Qatar Airways.

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PREVIOUS | Qatar Airways hopes to bring its flagship Airbus A380 to Sydney from June this year as part of a seasonal boost to its newly-introduced Sydney-Doha flights.

"We will be operating an Airbus A380 during peak periods from June onwards" Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker told Australian Business Traveller at this week's launch of its newest route.

Al Baker says that the airline's first Sydney-Doha flights are "fully booked", and also teased the possible extension of its Australian network to another destination – most likely Brisbane – "in the not-too-distant future."

Qatar's Sydney-Doha flights currently operate on a Boeing 777-300ER with business class and economy class, but the superjumbo will up the ante with first class and its latest generation of business class as well as an impressive inflight bar and lounge.

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