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The year 2024 is a big one for Qantas and its new CEO, Vanessa Hudson, after a tough 2023

She faces the task of overseeing a relatively fresh management team, including a newly appointed CFO who replaced her, a new domestic CEO, and a new Loyalty boss. Additionally, she will navigate the transition to a new chair of the board when Richard Goyder departs.

Unfortunately, things didn’t start well as Qantas’s brand took another hit, dropping to No. 41 among Australian brands in the 2024 Brand Finance Australia 100 list.

Qantas is facing some legal troubles. It’s going back to court to defend against claims by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission that it sold tickets for “ghost flights.”

They’re also negotiating fines with the Transport Workers Union after losing a court ruling that said they illegally outsourced baggage handler jobs during the pandemic.

On top of that, Qantas has more competition on international routes as other airlines return to pre-Covid levels. Singapore Airlines plans to add 4700 seats into major cities from March, and there’s more capacity expected from Emirates. Qatar Airways is also trying to expand its presence in Australia.

To make things more challenging, the Australian government is thinking about making a rule that airlines like Qantas must compensate passengers for delayed or cancelled flights. This proposal, put forth by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and independent MP Monique Ryan, mirrors a system established in the European Union.

But there’s some good news for Qantas. A record 9.4 billion passengers are expected to fly in 2024, beating 2019 numbers for the first time as people want to travel more.

It seems like Qantas is making positive changes. Recent data indicates that Qantas is performing better than its competitor Virgin Australia in terms of on-time departures and fewer cancellations, though not as well as before the pandemic.

Qantas is also getting new, quieter, and more environmentally friendly A220s this year. They’ve ordered 29 from Airbus, with seven arriving in 2024. With a range of 6300km, the A220s can fly between any city or town in Australia and could also operate some international routes.

Later in the year, Qantas hopes to get its first 20 new A321XLRs. These will replace some of their older planes on both local and international routes. With 200 seats and a longer range, these planes give Qantas more options for routes without having to fill as many seats as in the bigger planes.

Source: Qantas warns government on mandatory compensation for delayed; cancelled flights by M Bell The Australian 14th Dec, Can Hudson turn Qantas around by T Harcourt The Australian Jan 1st, Qantas brand plunges to 41st after horror year by S Buckingham AFR Jan 17th, When Qantas’ new route to Paris will start by R Ironside The Australian 17th Jan.