Throughout 2014, airlines will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first commercial flight – a special milestone for our industry.
It’s set to be a busy year for Qantas, as we continue to focus on customer initiatives in the core areas of network, product and service, and technology, alongside our ongoing transformation program to ensure we are as competitive as possible.
In network, our priority will be to maximise the customer benefits of our ‘global gateway’ strategy, where we fly to major hubs and extend our network through partnerships with the airlines based in those destinations.
Customers now rightly expect to be able to choose from a global network of destination and that is what we aim to provide.
The end of March marks the first anniversary of the Qantas-Emirates partnership. Customer satisfaction with the partnership to date has been very positive, and we need to keep that momentum up – ensuring that our customers and industry partners are fully aware of the possibilities opened up by the Dubai hub.
Elsewhere, we have our biggest ever network in China, having recently added a codeshare partnership with China Southern (via Guangzhou) to our long-standing arrangement with China Eastern (via Shanghai). This means that our customers can now access 13 destinations across mainland China through two of the country’s biggest transport hubs.
As the economic and tourism relationship between Australia and China grows, Qantas is committed to playing a lead role in strengthening the aviation network that links our two countries – part of our broader strategy for the Asian region. There’s no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution for airlines operating in Asia, which is why we are developing a network of strategic partnerships to give our customers maximum choice and convenience.
Customer product and service is another priority area. We achieved record satisfaction scores in 2013, but we cannot be complacent in a fiercely contested market.
Fleet and lounge renewal remain two of the biggest assets airlines have to win customer satisfaction, and Qantas has some exciting developments in the pipeline. New premium lounges are due to open in Hong Kong and Los Angeles and the upgrade of our entire A330 fleet will begin later in the year (covering 10 A330-300s for international operations and 20 A330-200s for domestic operations).
Like our new Singapore lounge, the Hong Kong and LA lounges will re-create the exclusive feel of their Sydney and Melbourne counterparts, while incorporating strong local influences.
The new A330 cabins are going to be superb, featuring Marc Newson-designed ‘Business Suites’, a refreshed economy cabin and Qantas’ signature Q-Streaming inflight entertainment system.
The A330-300s will operate primarily on routes to Asia and the A330-200s primarily on flights to and from Perth – both vital markets for us.
Technology is providing new ways of understanding customer needs and concerns, allowing us to gain feedback in real time and make the information available to Qantas employees across the business. At the same time, it is helping us improve the customer journey, whether it’s the ability to check-in with a frequent flyer card, download a mobile boarding pass or stream inflight entertainment via iPad.
A challenge for 2014 is to keep harnessing innovative technology to make the customer journey more tailored and seamless than ever before.
When it comes to distribution, Qantas will continue to pursue a close partnership with the travel industry, based on good commercial partnerships, clear communication and, again, new technology. The implementation of EMD, under IATA’s Simplifying the Business initiative, will be an important step in making transactions more seamless and transparent for our travel agent partners.
Qantas and the industry have a common, fundamental interest in Australia’s future success in a fast-changing global travel market.
Ensuring that the relationship is in good health will be another priority for the year ahead.
