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Still facing cost increases on some fronts, Alaska Air Group's leadership believes it has successfully navigated the worst of the pandemic-related inflation experienced across the airline industry. CFO Shane Tackett said during a 12 September investor conference that, regarding inflationary costs, "the biggest spike is behind us" and that "a lot of the costs we have are maintenance costs and long-term contracts with fixed rates". "The area that is probably the biggest headwind for us is airport-related costs," Tackett says. Those include renovations in some of the airports that the airline is a large operator, like Seattle or Portland. "You just have to sort of get through it; we have a couple more years of airport cost headwinds." Alaska is overhauling its lounge areas at Seattle-Tacoma International airport, and said last year that it expects to complete a new 1,858sq m (20,000sq ft) lounge as part of the Port of Seattle's C Concourse Expansion project by 2026. Rising fuel costs are another concern. Alaska on 6 September raised its fuel cost per gallon estimate to $3.15-$3.25 from between $2.70 and $2.80 previously – a roughly 16% bump. “Over the past several weeks, fuel prices have increased considerably, driving a downward revision to our adjusted pre-tax margin expectations for the quarter,” Alaska said in a filing with the US SEC. Those higher prices could imact the airline's network planning into 2024. "On average, in any given period, we're wrong," Tackett says. "But as you think about how to plan for next spring, if people are planning for $3.25, I think you come up with a different network than you do for $2.75. That will probably hold true again." Other airlines have reported similar increases in the price of jet fuel. Coming off a strong summer travel season boosted by a surge in post-pandemic leisure travel, Alaska has experienced a return to more or less normal seasonal demand, Tackett says. <br/>

Qantas has lost its high court bid to overturn a ruling that it illegally outsourced 1,700 ground handler jobs. On Wednesday the high court unanimously upheld a full federal court decision exposing the embattled airline to a mammoth compensation bill for laying off staff at 10 airports in November 2020. In July 2021 the federal court ruled Qantas’s outsourcing of the workers was in part driven by a desire to avoid industrial action, which is a breach of the Fair Work Act. The decision is a major win for the Transport Workers Union, which was supported in the case by an intervention from workplace relations minister Tony Burke. Ahead of the high court decision TWU national secretary, Michael Kaine, said the outsourcing decision was part of outgoing CE Alan Joyce’s “spiteful management style” that had damaged the airline’s reputation. The union cited complaints increasing by 70% in 2022 amid high cancellations, delays and lost baggage. The TWU responded to the result by calling for a public apology from Qantas and for the chairman, Richard Goyder, and the entire board to be replaced by new directors, including a worker representative. “Qantas workers have made history today,” Kaine said. “It has been three years and 20 days since Alan Joyce first announced the decision to outsource these workers, and they have not stopped fighting for a moment to ensure justice was served. “The final act of this board should be to strip Alan Joyce of his bonuses and follow him out the door. “The Joyce regime has been toppled, but the airline cannot achieve the reset necessary for its survival under the same board that resided over the largest case of illegal sackings in Australian corporate history. Richard Goyder cannot make it through another day as chair.” In the majority judgment, chief justice Susan Kiefel and justices Stephen Gageler, Jacqueline Gleeson and Jayne Jagot said the meaning of the Act was “readily ascertainable”.<br/>

Qantas has apologised after passengers on an international flight waited six hours for their plane to take off before it was eventually cancelled. Flight QF93 to Los Angeles sat on the tarmac at Melbourne Airport on Monday night (local time) before travellers were sent home. Passengers were told the flight was too heavy to take off due to the winds. Melbourne Airport was undertaking overnight works on the main north-south runway, which resulted in its length being temporarily shortened. The airport has been undertaking runway works since November last year. A Qantas spokesperson apologised for the inconvenience caused by the disruptions. "The aircraft arrived late in Melbourne following a weather-delayed departure from the UK and then faced further issues including runway works and bad weather which impacted take off," the spokesperson said.<br/>