Pilots union shifts stance to stand beside Qantas

By admin


The announcement of Virgin Australia’s $350 million foreign capital injection has prompted the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA) to join Qantas in calling for amendments to the Qantas Sale Act.

The union, which has previously had a tumultuous relationship with the Flying Kangaroo on this issue among others, gave its support to the Qantas' call to change the contentious legislative bill on the condition that any new foreign investment streams are directed into Australia and not into “unproven overseas ventures”.

"The current Australian aviation environment has evolved rapidly and AIPA recognises that this necessitates a shift in position. Therefore AIPA is now willing to support amending the Qantas Sale Act (QSA)," AIPA president Nathan Safe said.

"The problem we have at the moment is an un-level playing field – Virgin is free to access foreign investment channels that Qantas cannot due to the restrictions of the QSA. It is therefore clear that the only viable policy approach is for the QSA to be reviewed.”

Safe stressed that any amendments to the QSA must ensure that the Australia aviation industry is not disadvantaged by foreign competitors, with any advantages gained through its amendment to “flow straight to Qantas’ Australian operations”.

“Under such changes, new streams of foreign investment could not be used on the sort of unproven forays into Asia that we have seen Qantas Group pursue through Jetstar and other subsidiaries in recent years,” he insisted.

The specific ownerships restrictions of the QSA have become “unsuited” to the modern environment, he admitted, although he swiftly added that the underlying purpose of the act remains as relevant as ever.

"So if Qantas management is truly seeking changes to the QSA in order to support its local operations, the local economy, and local jobs, then there is no reason that such a caveat should present a problem,” Safe said.

Amendments to the QSA may constitute only one part of an overall solution required to deliver a level playing field, according to Safe, but in the meantime he declared that the AIPA will petition the Federal Government for legislative change.

Latest News

  • Aviation

Top four airports report return to profit after post-Covid period comes to an end

The aeronautical operations of Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney airports returned to profit in 2022-23, the first full financial year since the end of COVID-19 travel restrictions, the ACCC’s latest Airport Monitoring Report shows. In contrast, all four monitored airports reported losses on their aeronautical operations in 2021-22. A return to profit was helped by […]

  • Luxury

COMO launches new family-sized farmhouse in the heart of Tuscany

COMO Hotels and Resorts has launched its new farmhouse apartments in the heart of Tuscany, just in time for Australians to escape our wet winter. And it’s also an ideal time for Aussies of Italian ancestry to explore their home country as 2024 has been declared the year of Roots and Heritage Tourism by the […]

  • Aviation

Green light, green fuel for Townsville Airport as passenger numbers set to double to 3.7m

The Townsville Airport Master Plan, including the expansion of the airport terminal and development of the surrounding precinct, has been given the green light by the Federal Government. The 2023 plan outlined Townsville Airport’s strategic vision and growth objectives over the next two decades, with a detailed focus on the initial eight years. Townsville Airport […]

  • Destinations
  • News

New Caledonia in lockdown and airport closed after violent riots rock Noumea

New Caledonia officials have announced a 6pm-6am curfew, a liquor ban and have closed the country’s main airport after overnight riots in which vehicles were torched and roads blocked in the wake of proposed constitutional reforms. Australian Government website Smartraveller has issued an alert informing visitors to exercise a high degree of caution in metropolitan […]