Qantas putting festive touch on flying to see out bumpy 2024

Qantas has been seized by the Christmas spirit, as the airline goes to great lengths to show it’s more nice than naughty.

The 737 Roo-dolph, which will be taking to the skies in December.

Qantas has been struck by the Christmas spirit, with festive fare and Santa-themed aircraft set to the take to skies this month to see out a tumultuous 2024.

After taking a relatively low-key approach to the Christian celebration in recent times, Qantas has embraced all things Christmas in 2024 as it prepares for a busy month ahead.

The most prominent change is the launch of “Santa’s Freight” in the form of an A321 freighter, joining the QantasLink Dasher-8 and Boeing 737 Roo-dolph, decked out in Christmas livery.

It’s the first time a freighter has been given a Christmas makeover, in a nod to the important role such aircraft play in delivering presents and festive fare all over the country.

Qantas Group customer and digital officer Catriona Larritt said they were thrilled the festive aircraft were making a return in 2024.

“We know our customers, especially the youngest ones, love flying on our special festive aircraft,” said Ms Larritt.

“Our teams have been working hard over several months to prepare our operations to be ready to help millions of customers to see their family and friends through the holiday season.”

Frequent flyers who find themselves travelling on Dasher-8 or Roo-dolph will be further rewarded with double the points, while first and business class passengers can expect a refreshed in-flight and lounge menu.

Qantas has restocked the beer fridge in its lounges ahead of the Christmas rush. Picture: Supplied

Creative director of food, beverage and service Neil Perry will be dishing up king prawns, Margra lamb, Glacier 51 toothfish and Wollemi duck to mark the occasion.

In the lounges Qantas travellers could look forward to a Christmas cocktail consisting of

vodka, cherry brandy, lemon juice, strawberry syrup, soda water and ginger, as well as turkey rolls, fruit mince pies and Christmas gingerbread.

The beer fridge has also been restocked at domestic lounges, with varieties such as James Squire ginger beer, Straddie Amity pale ale, Hawke’s lager, and Stomping Ground Big Sky Hazy.

New First Lounge fare at Qantas.

Qantas’ Christmas countdown comes after a slightly less turbulent year for the airline under the CEO-ship of Vanessa Hudson compared to the previous 12 months.

A big increase in spending on customer initiatives and focus on improved operational performance have helped lift Qantas’ own customer satisfaction levels from the lows of the post-pandemic period.

The demise of Rex and Bonza returned the domestic market to a cosy duopoly, and the Qantas share price lifted dramatically from $5.31 at the start of 2024 to $8.88 in late trading on Wednesday.

The year has not been without its headwinds, however, with Qantas embroiled in controversy over cabin upgrades for politicians, and the ongoing battle with the Transport Workers Union over compensation for illegally outsourced workers.

The latest Roy Morgan “risk monitor” also suggested there was still some way to go for the flying kangaroo to return to its former glory.

According to the market research company’s “most trusted and distrusted” brands report based on monthly surveys of 2000 people, Qantas ranked as Australia’s fourth most distrusted company, down from second last year.

Optus, Woolworths and Coles ranked ahead of Qantas on the least trusted list, while Facebook/Meta was fifth and Telstra sixth.

Bunnings topped the list of most trusted brands, followed by Aldi, Kmart, Toyota and Apple.