Qantas returns to the skies as it counts cost to its reputation

Nearly 3,000 passengers were affected at London’s Heathrow airport alone. Worldwide, as many as 70,000 passengers were hit by the decision.

After the Australian government intervened, Qantas planes took to the air again yesterday, as a first flight left Sydney for Jakarta in Indonesia.

Flight QF032 to Singapore and Sydney left Heathrow late yesterday morning.

Qantas said all its domestic services should operate today, with international services expected to be back to normal by later in the day.

“Domestic and international services have resumed,” a spokesman said.

“We are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and stress our customers have faced over the past days and months.

“Industrial action is now over, you can again book Qantas flights with confidence.

“Some flight delays, cancellations and disruptions are expected as we return our operations to normal.”

By Sunday night, Qantas was forced to admit that more than 600 flights worldwide had been cancelled.

Flights resumed after the Australian government ordered an arbitration hearing.

The country’s workplace tribunal system – Fair Work Australia – issued an emergency ruling, ordering the unions to return to the negotiating table and reach an agreement within 21 days or face binding arbitration.

In the last few weeks, workers have staged strikes and refused overtime work over concerns that some of the airline’s 35,000 jobs would be moved overseas.

The strikes are estimated to have cost the airline $15m (Australian) – £10m – a week.

Some aviation experts said the surprise grounding of planes has hurt the reputation of Australia’s flag carrier.

Nevertheless, Qantas shares jumped almost 5 per cent to $1.62 (Aus) – £1.07– yesterday on the Sydney stock exchange.

Passengers spoke of chaos following the grounding of the fleet – with one blaming executives.

Jen Cleary, returning home to South Australia from the UK, said she had difficulty contacting Qantas staff to re-book her flight and was eventually given a “horrendous” itinerary.

“We haven’t slept since early Sunday UK time and have had a dreadful experience,” she said. “I actually feel sorry for Qantas staff and blame the management. What they have done here is un-Australian.”

Other passengers took a more forgiving view.

“They’ve put us in a hotel for the night. Wasn’t too bad and yeah, looking forward to getting home and having some cold beers, I reckon,” said Adam Cottrell from Perth.

Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said: “This has been a challenging period for Qantas, its employees, its customers and its shareholders.”

However, Mr Joyce added that the matter was now being looked into by the tribunal and he was confident the airline and unions will work together to find a solution.

“The industrial process has now passed into the hands of the independent umpire. All parties will be treated equally and we will respect the decisions that are made,” he said. “We have new and existing agreements with 12 unions. We now anticipate the conclusion of agreements with the remaining three.”