Jake Nelson

Australia’s second-largest airline group saw underlying EBIT grow to $490 million, up 11.7 per cent on the first half of 2024–25, though statutory net profit after tax was down 27.9 per cent to $341 million due to the exhaustion of deferred tax credits accrued through losses from COVID-19.

The ASU, which is currently butting heads with the Flying Kangaroo over job cuts at the airline’s Mascot HQ, said it is “disappointed that Qantas has announced further redundancies at the same time they are unveiling a massive $1.46 billion profit”.

The airline, which launched the service in October, has said it intends to continue offering the option, with plans to grow it to select flights to and from Adelaide and Launceston. It follows an announcement last month that the trial would be extended to the end of June.

The Flying Kangaroo increased pre-tax profits by $71 million over the same time last year, with statutory profit after tax up $2 million to $925 million for the first half of the 2025–26 financial year. It comes after the airline took delivery of nine new aircraft in the half, including its first A321XLRs.

The national carrier will launch a new seasonal non-stop service between Sydney and Las Vegas in December, operating three times per week on 787-9 Dreamliners until March 2027. It will allow Vegas-bound Australians to skip layovers in cities such as Los Angeles or San Francisco.

The federal and Victorian governments have released early designs for the Sunshine superhub, which will see a $4.1 billion investment to “untangle the complex rail junction” and create space for the much-delayed new airport rail link, which will join the Melbourne train network at the station.