Australia's Qantas celebrates subdued 100th birthday, looks to post-COVID future

Australia's Qantas, the world's third-oldest airline, on Monday marked its 100th birthday during its toughest year yet due to the coronavirus pandemic but is looking to the future with optimism, its CE said. “Qantas every decade has literally reinvented itself,” CE Alan Joyce said. “That is why it has survived as long as it has.” The airline, founded in Australia's outback as Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services in 1920, is the world's third-oldest operating carrier behind Dutch airline KLM and Colombia's Avianca Holdings. Qantas’ centenary will include a 100-minute low-level flyover of Sydney’s famous harbour at sunset on Monday evening for 100 employees as well as frequent flyers.<br/>At the start of the year, the airline had been in a strong financial position and was expecting to order up to 12 Airbus A350 jets for routes including the world's longest-ever non-stop flights between Sydney and London. It has since announced cuts to nearly 30% of its workforce and grounded the bulk of its fleet. It doesn’t expect a return to most international travel until the second half of 2021 as Australia’s borders remain largely closed. The domestic market outlook is brighter as state borders begin to reopen, with the airline expecting to return to as much as 50% of normal capacity by Christmas.<br/>