Qantas Airways Ltd: A Brief History
Qantas Airways Ltd is Australia's national airline and the world's largest airline in terms of international flights, destinations, and fleet size. Qantas is one of the world's oldest airlines, having been founded not long after Avianca and KLM.
Early Years
The company has developed from two little biplanes that could only carry three passengers to an airbus A380 that can transport 450 people around the world. Hudson Fysh and Paul Mc Ginnes created Queensland and North Territory aerial services limited in Winton, Queensland, in 1920. Arthur Baird and Fergus McMaster eventually joined them. In the beginning, the airline operated joy and taxi flights and airmail services partly funded by the government of Australia.
Growth and Expansion
During the period between 1926 and 1938, the company built a few aircraft in Longreach and stated the royal flying doctor service of Australia. Later, it upgraded Boeing 707-138 airliners in 1959 and was replaced with the newer 747 series in the year 1989. In august of 1992, the Australian government sold the local airline Australian airlines, a move which gave Qantas unprecedented access to the local market for the first time since its formation. The company was privatized in two stages, first through a sale of a quarter of the company's shares to British Airways in 1993. The remaining 75 percent was sold to the public in 1995.
Operations and International Centers
Quanta’s major international centers of operation are at Melbourne and Sydney airport. However, the company runs numerous overseas flights to and from Brisbane airport, Auckland, Singapore change, London Heathrow, and Los Angeles international airport. The company also carries out operations in the airports of Canberra and Cairns. Since privatization in 1993, the airline has become one of the most profitable in the world.
Key Value Drivers and Risks
All members of the Qantas group made significant contributions to the company's successes in the last two years. Of the period from 2015 to 2017, Qantas international, domestic, loyalty, and Jetsam group presented satisfactory EBIY results and increased margins of operation. About two-thirds of the revenues generated came from loyalty and domestic businesses, and one-third came from overseas operations, which reflects the importance of reduced volatility in the portfolio and diversification.
Transformation Program
The most influential driver of performance in the company's operations was $1.66 billion of savings and benefits obtained from the implementation of the Qantas transformation program. As the program reaches its conclusion, the company is expected to increase benefits to $2.1 billion. The transformation has had the effect of making the company more cost base competitive and has changed employee work ethic. The company has attained greater agility and now adopts newer technologies faster.
Other Value Drivers
There are other notable value drivers in the company's operations. Qantas has acquired a vast amount of operating experience, technology, and operational accountability. This arises from the fact that it is one of the oldest in the industry. The carrier also has flights to numerous international destinations all over the world, and this has attracted a large customer base.
Threats and Challenges
However, the company also faces a number of significant threats. The company has been accused and found guilty of price fixing, and there have also been allegations of price fixing. Although the latter have nearly been resolved, these events have had a negative impact on the airline's reputation and may adversely affect future profitability.
