SYDNEY (AP) – Qantas Airways Ltd. on Thursday posted a record 2.8 billion Australian dollar ($2.6 billion) loss, reflecting a profit-draining battle with its smaller rival Virgin Australia and aircraft write downs.
The loss for the financial year ended June 30 is the largest the former state-owned airline has posted in its 94-year history. It made an AU$1 million profit in the previous year.
The dire result was expected. Shares of Qantas were up 7 percent in Sydney on the airline’s confirmation it would separate its domestic and troubled international businesses. It will establish a company for the international business that will be able to attract new investors after an Australian law change eased limits on foreign investment in Qantas
The result included an AU$2.6 billion write down of the value of its aging international fleet of Boeing 747s and Airbus A380s, reflecting a weakened Australian dollar.
Excluding the write down and other one-off costs, Qantas made an underlying pre-tax loss of AU$646 million, compared to a AU$186 million underlying profit a year earlier.