Qantas has appointed the Irish head of its no-frills carrier Jetstar, Alan Joyce, as its new chief executive.
Mr Joyce (42) will take over from current chief executive Geoff Dixon when he steps down after the annual shareholder meeting in November, Qantas said. He will join the board immediately.
Mr Joyce, who has headed Jetstar since 2003, takes over as soaring fuel costs have threatened profits across what Mr Dixon has described as "one of the toughest industries".
This month Qantas axed 4 per cent of its workforce and scrapped growth plans. It was the airline's fifth cost cutting measure in three months.
Just days before the job cuts were announced Mr Dixon, chief executive since 2000, told his staff they were in "the greatest crisis in aviation history" as airline fuel bills soar.
"We are in uncharted territory. This is...bigger than the Gulf wars, the attacks of September 11th, 2001, severe acute respiratory syndrome and past oil shocks," he said in a memo to staff on July 15.
Crude oil, which hit a record $147.27 a barrel earlier this month, is still up near $124. World airlines stand to lose more than $6 billion this year if fuel costs remain around current levels, the International Air Transport Association estimated.
In the US, airlines have cut tens of thousands of jobs and at least seven smaller US airlines have filed for bankruptcy stopped operating this year.
Compounding rising costs, Qantas, which has never had a fatal crash, was ordered yesterday to check all its Boeing 747s after investigators said an exploding oxygen bottle might have ripped a hole in a Qantas 747, forcing an emergency landing at Manila on Friday.
Qantas is expected to report a 40 per cent rise in net profit for its fiscal 2008 ending June, but net profit for the current year is forecast to nearly halve due to the tough operating environment. The results are due on August 21st.
Mr Joyce has worked in aviation for 20 years, spending around 15 years in leadership positions at Qantas, as well as at the now defunct Australian airline Ansett and Aer Lingus, where he spent eight years.
Addressing journalists, he promised "a continuation of a lot of the strategies Geoff has employed. The key message is continuity."
Mr Joyce said fuel prices were "the major challenge to the business" and that he planned to continue "enhancing and utilising the two brand strategy" of the Qantas full-service and Jetstar no-frills services.
Reuters