Why Qantas scored a soft landing on phantom flights

Rather than press the issue, Hudson has instead opted for contrition, and it’s an approach that would have been almost unthinkable under Joyce.

By admitting to misleading conduct Hudson may have also managed to soften the blow for Qantas, with the ACCC’s penalty landing on the lighter side of expectations. That’s despite Qantas confessing that it was selling tickets on cancelled flights until August last year, more than a year longer than the ACCC had identified.

Qantas had initially blamed this misleading practice on the chaos surrounding the restart of flying after the pandemic. It was during this period that customer service was appalling, marrying bags to customers was a crap shoot and finding a Qantas phone operator to help was like winning Lotto.

Again, it was an argument that the airline would have found hard to back up in court.

Unsurprisingly, Hudson’s mantra now is to look past the baggage left behind by Joyce and things are slowly falling into place for her.

Qantas’ on time statistics have improved significantly, fewer bags bound for Los Angeles end up in Paris and one doesn’t need to bring a pre-packed meal for sustenance while waiting for Qantas customer support to pick up the phone.

Meanwhile, the customer pain point around redeeming loyalty points has eased from arthritis to a bit of stiffness. Although, there is more than a decent smattering of members who remain unsatisfied.

The new rewards category Classic Plus is better value than the expensive Points Plus Pay but nowhere near as generous as the somewhat elusive Classic points program.

Hudson’s pitch to customers is offering new routes and new aircraft, which customers love enough to pay a premium price for. And the good news for Qantas and its shareholders is that the cost of living crisis hasn’t made much of a dent in forward bookings.

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Qantas’ budget brand, Jetstar, is picking up the cost conscious customers and demand is pretty strong for travellers looking for a ride at the front of the plane.

Polishing up Qantas’ tarnished crown has now sucked much of the air in Hudson’s first eight months and there is still one major issue to be resolved by the courts. This is in relation to compensation for Qantas’ ground handlers that were illegally sacked by the airline.

That’s on schedule to be done and dusted next month and once resolved, it will open the door for Hudson to really put her stamp on the flying kangaroo.