Qantas woos Adelaide with international flights and a new lounge
'This is fantastic news for our South Australian customers,' said Wallace as he announced the non-stop Adelaide to Auckland service, which will take off on October 31.
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Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
Ex-Qantas boss returns to defends his troubled legacy
Alan Joyce has returned to public life to launch an impassioned defence of his tarnished legacy as Qantas chief executive. At an aviation conference in Sydney on Thursday, Mr Joyce broke from his near two-year hiatus from the national business stage to stress the industry's need to take further steps to keep its social licence. But he skirted around his controversial, illegal sacking of more than 1800 workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in a move a court ruled was designed to curb union bargaining power in wage negotiations. Days out from Qantas copping an expected nine-figure fine for the sackings, Mr Joyce trumpeted his ability to keep the flag carrier afloat in unprecedented times. "But here's the real insight: resilience isn't a reaction … it's a decision made years in advance, often when it's uncomfortable, even unpopular," he said. "Qantas was the only major Australian airline not to go bankrupt during or after the pandemic … that wasn't luck, that was resilience." Virgin Australia hit voluntary administration in 2020 as it struggled to manage billions of dollars of debt before private equity firm Bain Capital gave the carrier a lifeline. Cash-strapped carrier Rex went into administration in 2024, while budget challenger Bonza folded. Mr Joyce seemed amused by media attention surrounding his appearance - which included being on the front page of a national newspaper - but quipped that it at least meant "Donald Trump didn't do anything weird last night". He said airlines must take more climate action, including building a sustainable aviation fuel industry to "transform the environmental footprint of flight". "If we don't, we risk losing public trust, regulatory permission and, ultimately, our social licence to operate," he said. "This isn't fringe, it's the future and it's grounded in a very human concern for sustainability and intergenerational fairness." Mr Joyce quit Qantas in September 2023 after a tumultuous end to his tenure. The airline has since agreed to set up a $120 million compensation fund for its wrongly sacked workers after reaching a deal with the Transport Workers Union. It is due to be handed a Federal Court fine for the breach on Monday. Qantas also sold tickets to cancelled flights over several years, triggering more legal turmoil and a $100 million fine after it was sued by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. The airline trimmed millions of dollars from his departing pay packet, with other executives and directors also facing a cut after the brand turbulence.
Sydney Morning Herald
7 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Alan Joyce left Qantas two years ago. Now he's defending his record
Former Qantas boss Alan Joyce is expected to defend the airline's cost-slashing strategy during the COVID crisis, while laying out the challenges for Australia's aviation industry in a speech to be delivered on Thursday afternoon. Acknowledging the 'hard and painful decisions' made by Qantas management during the pandemic lockdowns, the outspoken former airline chief executive will underscore the importance of 'resilience' for the industry, according to his speech sent to reporters ahead of delivery. The address will be Joyce's first major public comments since leaving the airline after months of controversy in late 2023. 'It's easy to forget now, but in 2020, global aviation didn't just stumble. It collapsed,' Joyce will say. 'The skies emptied. Airports became ghost towns,' with passenger demand falling by 96 per cent, he added. 'Qantas, at one point, was just 11 weeks away from running out of cash. That's not a buffer; that's staring into the abyss. But we didn't fall. We made hard and painful decisions. 'Decisions such as the sale of assets, parking aircraft in deserts, reducing operations, and 'standing down staff'. 'Qantas, at one point, was just 11 weeks away from running out of cash. That's not a buffer; that's staring into the abyss. But we didn't fall.' Alan Joyce And the end of the pandemic doesn't mean skies are bright again for the nation's airlines, he will warn in his speech.
The Age
7 hours ago
- The Age
Alan Joyce left Qantas two years ago. Now he's defending his record
Former Qantas boss Alan Joyce is expected to defend the airline's cost-slashing strategy during the COVID crisis, while laying out the challenges for Australia's aviation industry in a speech to be delivered on Thursday afternoon. Acknowledging the 'hard and painful decisions' made by Qantas management during the pandemic lockdowns, the outspoken former airline chief executive will underscore the importance of 'resilience' for the industry, according to his speech sent to reporters ahead of delivery. The address will be Joyce's first major public comments since leaving the airline after months of controversy in late 2023. 'It's easy to forget now, but in 2020, global aviation didn't just stumble. It collapsed,' Joyce will say. 'The skies emptied. Airports became ghost towns,' with passenger demand falling by 96 per cent, he added. 'Qantas, at one point, was just 11 weeks away from running out of cash. That's not a buffer; that's staring into the abyss. But we didn't fall. We made hard and painful decisions. 'Decisions such as the sale of assets, parking aircraft in deserts, reducing operations, and 'standing down staff'. 'Qantas, at one point, was just 11 weeks away from running out of cash. That's not a buffer; that's staring into the abyss. But we didn't fall.' Alan Joyce And the end of the pandemic doesn't mean skies are bright again for the nation's airlines, he will warn in his speech.
