In agreeing to pay a $100m penalty and compensate tens of thousands of customers to the tune of $20m for selling them tickets on already-cancelled flights, Qantas has abandoned its farcical claim that as an airline it doesn’t sell seats on a specific service, but rather a “bundle of rights”.
For new CEO Vanessa Hudson – who stepped into the top job eight months ago after allegations aired in the consumer watchdog’s legal action against Qantas hastened former boss Alan Joyce’s retirement – the landmark settlement is a retreat from her predecessor’s confrontational style that many argued had trashed the airline’s brand.
