Hudson has major task to rebuild Qantas’ reputation

Alan Joyce’s departure from Qantas two months ahead of schedule gives successor Vanessa Hudson, who steps up to the top job on Wednesday, a chance to set about rebuilding trust among the airline’s customers. Starting that process now, rather than in November, is in the airline’s best interests and those of the travelling public. In addition to sorting out problems relating to flight cancellations, flight credits and customer service, Ms Hudson will be overseeing the modernisation of the airline’s ageing aircraft fleet.

Mr Joyce’s retirement will be sweetened by overly generous bonuses. He stands to pocket a final payout of about $24m and faces further heat over his massive share sell-off in June, though Richard Goyder, chairman of the Qantas board, said on Tuesday the airline would consider whether to withdraw executive bonuses to Mr Joyce. “If you look at our remuneration report, there’s provisions for ­clawbacks,” he said.

Mr Joyce ran the airline for 15 tumultuous, challenging years that included the Covid meltdown. During that time, numerous rival airlines folded. Time and again he delivered for shareholders. To his credit, he was prepared to take on trade unions when it became necessary to contain costs. He leaves Qantas well in the black after a bumper profit on the back of generous taxpayer subsidies during Covid. The airline suffered about $7bn in losses during the pandemic. But Mr Joyce’s standing, largely due to his own making and responses to significant problems, has fallen to a low ebb.

A fighter by nature, which has often been an advantage in a competitive industry, Mr Joyce clearly recognised it was futile to stay the course for another two months. In a statement to the stock exchange, Mr Joyce said the “events of the past make it clear to me that the company needs to move ahead with its renewal as a priority”. He’s right. The last straw, surely, was the revelation that between May and July last year Qantas kept selling tickets for more than 8000 flights it had cancelled. It continued to sell the tickets for weeks after the cancellations, disrupting the travel plans of thousands of customers. The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission announced last week it had filed proceedings against the airline in the Federal Court for allegedly engaging in “false, misleading or deceptive conduct”. ACCC chairwoman Gina Cass-Gottlieb wants Qantas to face a fine of more than $250m if the case against it succeeds.

While some have been irritated by the progressive social agenda imposed on the airline during Mr Joyce’s watch, it is flight cancellations, late departures and poor service, especially when problems arise, that have soured many Australians’ regard for what many people long regarded as an iconic brand. The Albanese government is responsible for the poor decision to block Qatar Airways’ bid to increase flights to Australia, and perceptions it was acting to shield Qantas from competition that would have benefited consumers have heightened resentments against the airline. But Qantas would have lobbied hard.

Flight credits that came out of the pandemic are also major bugbear with customers. The original expiry date for the credits, in December, was scrapped in the face of consumer anger. Qantas has about $570m in flight credits to be repaid. And as prices have soared, travellers have also found themselves forced to pay a premium to travel on journeys they believed they had purchased. The airline also faces allegations of slot hoarding at Sydney airport. After serving as chief financial officer, Ms Hudson takes on the leadership of Qantas with a good understanding of how to keep it profitable and sustainable. Her main task, however, is to restore the confidence of its once loyal customer base.