Qantas has more work to do

Qantas has 100 customer initiatives underway and planned for the coming year, with the company aiming to restore customer confidence and satisfaction.

Since September 2023, the airline has completed 120 customer improvement initiatives, spending approximately $230 million.

While customer satisfaction and punctuality have improved over the past year under CEO Vanessa Hudson’s leadership, she admits there is “still more work to be done.”

The airline would not elaborate on initiatives planned for the coming year, but said investments will continue to focus on operational performance, improved food and beverage, frequent flyers and customer retention.

Initiatives already implemented focus on the flying experience, digital interactions, simplifying airline interactions, and rewards and recognition.

In terms of the flying experience, for example, Qantas has set up a dedicated team of 50 technicians to refresh cabins, replaced small snacks with hot dishes on more domestic flights, served alcoholic drinks from midday on domestic flights and premium spirits on international flights, and introduced group boarding to reduce waiting times for customers.

Digital interactions include an update to the Qantas app with baggage tracking and passport scanning; inbound flight tracking for better disruption management; a click-to-call function through the app to reach call centre agents; and an enhanced Jetstar app.

To make it easier for customers to do business with Qantas, the airline has implemented a call centre training programme, hired 200 people to help with customer credits and disruption recovery, updated qantas.com to improve booking speed and performance, and digitised and automated customer refunds.

By the end of 2024, more than 20 million international and domestic rewards seats will be added through Classic Plus Flight Rewards. During the European summer peak, more Classic Flight Reward seats will be added and partners will be able to earn and use more Qantas Points.

Hudson said operational performance and customer satisfaction had improved across the group, announcing pre-tax profit of $2.08 billion (down 16 percent on the previous year).

On-time performance increased by 10 points for Qantas and 8.8 points for Jetstar, and customer Net Promoter Score improved by 22 points for Qantas and 19 points for Jetstar.

In the fourth quarter, 80 percent of Qantas flights and 74 percent of Jetstar flights departed on time. Qantas’ reputation score also improved, to 67 in July, according to corporate reputation monitoring specialist RepTrak.

The airline said mishandled baggage was down a third from last year, better than pre-COVID levels. Domestic fares are down 8 percent and international group fares are down 10 percent, adjusted for inflation, as capacity normalizes.

“Our focus this year has been on finding the right balance between delivering for customers, employees and shareholders and building a better, stronger Qantas Group,” Ms Hudson said.

“Restoring confidence and pride in Qantas as our national airline is our priority. And while there is still much work to do, we will achieve this by delivering for our customers and people.”

Meanwhile, the airline has finalised the cabin experience for its new Airbus A321XLR, which will be delivered from April next year. Qantas has ordered 28 of the long-haul single-aisle jets to replace its Boeing 737 fleet that will serve its domestic network for the next decade.

The aircraft offers a more comfortable flying experience with a quieter cabin and generates fewer emissions per seat than the 737s, Qantas says. The A321XLR can fly 3,000km further than the 737, enabling a wider range of direct domestic and short-haul international routes.

The longer, wider A321XLR will have 197 seats — 20 business class seats in a two-two configuration, and 177 economy class in a three-three configuration, though the first three aircraft will have 180 economy class seats. Qantas worked with Australian designer David Caon to maximise passenger comfort, including new materials and colours to make the cabin feel “calm and brighter”.

On board, passengers can expect a more comfortable economy class seat, wider than the 737 seat and with extra plush cushioning, though with the same 30-inch seat pitch; a six-way adjustable leather headrest; two USB A and C charging ports; a fold-out tablet holder for personal devices; and an adjustable dining table.

Business Class features a seat pitch of 94 cm and a 13 cm recline, a wireless charging pad, a six-position adjustable headrest, calf rest and foot rest, two USB A and C charging ports, an arm table with a built-in tablet holder and an extendable cocktail table.

The aircraft also features the largest overhead bins of any single-aisle aircraft, allowing for 60 percent more luggage than the 737. The planes also have higher ceilings and larger windows for a feeling of spaciousness. There is fast, free Wi-Fi on board and while there is no seatback in-flight entertainment, Qantas is promising an enhanced Qantas Entertainment App that will allow passengers to stream content to their own devices.

“Almost half of all customers Qantas carries each year travel on our 737 fleet, so the A321XLR aircraft we have ordered to replace them will be incredibly important to our future,” Hudson said.