What does the aviation industry look like in Australia post-Covid-19? Qantas CEO Alan Joyce shares his expert opinion on what happens next.
In a story and release posted on LinkedIn, Qantas CEO Alan Joyce shared his wisdom on what the aviation industry will look like once things get going again.
Here’s his take in full.
“A lot of people are wondering what the travel market in Australia will look like by the time people start flying again.
There’s a lot we don’t know, particularly around timing, but here are three things I think we can be pretty certain of:
1) It will be competitive
The Australian domestic market has huge potential. And for that reason, this is never going to be a one airline town – or it wouldn’t be one for long.
Stiff competition has made Qantas better over the years and we don’t want that to stop now. And, frankly, the regulatory pressures on entrenched monopolies tend to make them unattractive.
2) There will be lots of low fares
Airlines will be keen to stimulate travel demand to get their people and aircraft back to work and restart their cashflow pipelines, repairing the damage done by the devastating and sudden drop in revenue.
That’s good news for consumers because it means plenty of good deals.
3) Domestic travel will start well before international
Australia has done a remarkable job of flattening the curve and cutting coronavirus infection rates.
We have to be careful not to take the brakes off too early, but restrictions on domestic travel are likely to lift well before international travel.
That’s great news for our local tourism industry, with more people holidaying in Australia to start with.
Life will be different as we come out of this crisis. Recovering from the economic impacts will take time for most companies and individuals. But if this period of isolation has taught us nothing else, it’s how much we value seeing people and places.
And that’s why aviation will remain so important.
A recent survey of our Frequent Flyers showed around 85 per cent are keen to travel again once they’re able to.
Alan Joyce, CEO Qantas
I know our people can’t wait to welcome them back on board when the time is right.”
Alan Joyce