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Qantas Airways Ltd., Australia’s biggest airline, said sales of premium seats on its aircraft have fallen about 30 percent as the global recession curbs demand for corporate travel. The slump includes First and Business Class sales, Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce said in an interview with Bloomberg in Sydney today. The company is reviewing its fleet configuration and may change seat arrangements to adjust to the lower demand, he said.
Joyce, who took charge of the Sydney-based carrier five months ago, last week cut 1,750 jobs, forecast a record loss and put some planes up for sale as demand slumps. The airline is in talks to defer deliveries of Boeing Co. 787-800 planes as it cuts back on flights after delaying new Airbus SAS A380s. Qantas international “is taking a bigger hit as a consequence of the downturn,” Joyce, 42, said in Sydney today. “It has seen a drop in premium demand and seen heavy discounting in the leisure market.”
Qantas shares rose 1.3 percent to A$1.98 in Sydney and have fallen 25 percent this year. Joyce said all operators of flights between Australia and North America will lose money on the route as Delta Airlines Inc. and Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd. add services. The trans- Pacific route was previously Qantas’ most profitable as it shared a duopoly with UAL Corp.’s United Airlines.
source: BloomBerg
Australian flights and travel news