Summary:
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Qantas said its profits for the year’s first half were more than A$1.4 billion, a big jump from last year.
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It happened after Australia implemented strict travel rules, and the company lost more than A$7 billion because of the pandemic.
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The airline said its recovery was due to more people wanting to fly, higher ticket prices, and measures to cut costs.
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Alan Joyce, the CEO, said that sales for the six months ending in December went up to about A$10 billion because travel restrictions related to the pandemic were eased.
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The A$1.4 billion (£793 million; $954 million) profit compares to a A$456 million loss for the same time last year.
Qantas said its profits for the year’s first half were more than A$1.4 billion, a big jump from last year.
It happened after Australia implemented strict travel rules, and the company lost more than A$7 billion because of the pandemic.
Last year, it had more problems and got a lot of bad press for things like late flights, lost luggage, and cancellations.
The airline said its recovery was due to more people wanting to fly, higher ticket prices, and measures to cut costs.
Alan Joyce, the CEO, said that sales for the six months ending in December went up to about $10 billion because travel restrictions related to the pandemic were eased.
The A$1.4 billion (£793 million; $954 million) profit compares to a A$456 million loss for the same time last year.
Considering the enormous losses we were experiencing just a year ago, Mr. Joyce added, “This is a huge reversal.”
As a result of the pandemic, Australia put in place some of the strictest travel restrictions in the world. This had a significant effect on many airlines as countries closed their borders.
Due to strict immigration limits, borders remained closed to most non-Australians for more than 18 months, leaving thousands of Australians trapped abroad.
Qantas said in August 2020 that it would cut costs by outsourcing about 2,000 ground staff jobs and letting go of thousands of workers.
Nonetheless, that led to a pricey legal dispute and a staffing crisis.
Last year, when rules were loosened, shortages caused chaos at Australian airports. People had to wait in long lines to check in and their flights were delayed. Senior executives were brought in to help fill the vacancies.
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Qantas requests that executives serve as bag handlers.
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The “existential crisis” of Covid-19 is over, claims Qantas
As resentment increased, news emerged in August that eggs and toilet paper had been thrown at Mr. Joyce’s A$19 million waterfront mansion.
The airline didn’t believe that there were problems with all of its planes, even though it had a string of mechanical problems during flights, which only made things worse.
Despite these accidents, Qantas was once again ranked as the world’s safest airline by AirlineRatings.com.
On Thursday, Mr. Joyce stated that the airline was “reinvesting” for its passengers and that once supply chain and resourcing challenges subsided, fares would begin to “decline pressure.”
Nonetheless, Qantas also warned that prices would remain “substantially” higher than in 2019.
