Qantas issues a grovelling apology to Australians after nightmare week

Qantas’ reputation has been “hard hit on several fronts”, but the flag carrier has promised to restore it in a statement to fed-up Australians.

Qantas vowed to regain Australia’s confidence after a nightmare week plagued by the consumer watchdog’s accusations that it was selling ‘ghost flights’, a senatorial rant over competitor flights, backlash over bonuses and a blowout in Covid refunds.

The Australian Consumer and Consumption Commission (ACCC) took action in Federal Court on Thursday, alleging that the flag carrier had “engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct” by selling sales tickets for more than 8,000 between May and July last year. already canceled flights. year.

The ACCC wants to fine the airline more than $ 250 million.

In a statement on Monday, a Qantas spokesperson admitted that the airline’s service standards had “fallen short.”

The spokesperson said the airline was aware that the ACCC’s allegations in particular had caused “great concern among our customers” but that the allegations were taken seriously.

“The ACCC’s allegations come at a time when Qantas’ reputation has already been badly damaged on several fronts,” the spokesman said.

“We want the community to know that we hear and understand their disappointment.

“We know it takes time to fix it. And we are absolutely determined to do that.’

The spokesperson said the period covered by the consumer watchdog’s claims – mid-2022 – was “a period of much publicized turmoil and uncertainty in the airline industry.”

Qantas also denied suggestions it had made to charge a ‘no service fee’ and said it would fully address the allegations ‘without going through legal process’.

“Our long-standing practice is that when a flight is canceled, customers are offered an alternative flight as close as possible to their original departure time, or a refund,” the spokesperson said.

In launching its action, the ACCC claimed that Qantas “continued to sell tickets on its website” for an average of more than two weeks – sometimes up to 47 days – after the flights were cancelled.

It also alleges that for more than 10,000 flights due to depart over the three months, Qantas “did not notify existing ticketholders” that their flights had been canceled for an average of 18 days, but in some cases up to 48 days.

Qantas chief Alan Joyce was awarded $10.8 million this month in stocks and bonuses that were deferred during the pandemic

The ACCC alleges that for about 70 percent of canceled flights, Qantas continued to sell tickets for the flight on its website for two days or more, or notified existing ticketholders that their flight was canceled for two days or more or both. was cancelled,” the ACCC said last week.

Earlier last week, a parliamentary hearing on Monday revealed that Qantas owed $100 million more in Covid flight refunds than previously thought, forcing the airline to backtrack on its December 2023 expiration plans.

It was also revealed that Qantas had expressed concern to the government over Qatar Airways’ proposal to double the number of flights to Australia’s east coast – a move welcomed by the industry but ultimately blocked by Labor.

Qantas’ bad week was crowned on Friday when it was revealed that CEO Alan Joyce had been awarded $10.8 million in shares for deferred bonuses during the pandemic – while Qantas insisted it was not required to pay the $2.7 billion in government payments it received to pay back. during Covid-19.

Last month, Qantas posted a profit of $2.47 billion for fiscal year 2022-2023.

Mr. Joyce will step down as CEO in November, but after perhaps one of the worst weeks in the airline’s history, there are calls for him to leave his post early.