Qantas will bring forward plans to retire some Boeing 747 aircraft and defer deliveries of Airbus A380s, A320s and Boeing 787s as part of its A$2 billion ($1.8 billion) three-year cost-cutting plan.
“To reach $2 billion in cost cuts over three years, we have to work our assets harder, become more productive, retire older aircraft, and make sure that our fleet and network are the right size,” says Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce. “We must defer growth and cut back where we can, so that we can invest where we need to.”
As a result, the airline will accelerate the retirement of 747-400s, with the aircraft to exit the fleet by the end of 2015. That will leave it with nine 747s, including six -400ERs that are used on services to Santiago and Dallas-Fort Worth. To facilitate the retirement of those 747s, Qantas will transfer some A330-200s from its Jetstar long-haul and domestic businesses to the international operation.
For the complete story by Ellis Taylor of Flightglobal, click here.
