Joe DavidSWOT analysis of Qantas Airways
This is a detailed SWOT analysis of Qantas Airways. It aims look into the strengths and the weaknesses of Qantas. It also looks into the opportunities the company should explore and the threats it should keep an eye on.
Strengths of Qantas Airways
Qantas was founded in the Queensland in 1920. Since the inception, the airline has been growing steadily. It is the flag carrier of Australia and the largest airline in the country. It is also one of the oldest and the most experienced airlines in the world.
Qantas is Australia’s leading premium airline. It flies over 50 million customers every year across Australia and around the world (Qantas Airways Limited, 2021). Its performance is very strong and the customer satisfaction ratings are highly praise-worthy. Qantas is one of the 20 safest airlines in the world (AirlineRatings.com). It also won Best Catering, Best Lounges, and Best Domestic Service awards in 2017 by AirlineRatings.com. It came 9th in the world’s Top 10 Airlines of 2019 voted for by travellers around the world (Skytrax, 2021).
The financial position of Qantas is very strong. Its net profit for the 2018 financial year is $980 million. Domestic profits have seen a 25 per cent increase, while international profits have increased by 7 per cent. Qantas made a net profit of $852 million in the 2017 financial year (Janda, 2018). Its revenue in the financial year 2020 was 14.26 billion Australian dollars; however, it was lower than that in 2019 (Hughes, 2020).
Weaknesses of Qantas Airways
Bad customer reviews have been a problem for Qantas where the airline should work hard to bring about significant improvement. Numerous customers have expressed their disappointment on social media and customer review sites e.g. Consumeraffairs.com with the services of Qantas.
Qantas launched its longest flight (2nd longest in the world) from Perth to London on 24th of March 2018. The 787 Dreamliner flight flew 14,498 kilometres and took 17 hours and 20 minutes to complete the journey. However, safety concerns have been raised over the extreme non-stop flights, and the airline was accused by Unite (Britain’s largest trade union) of silencing the concerns of crew members over fatigue on the route (Schneider, 2018).
Opportunities for Qantas Airways
The global demand for cargo services is likely to grow in the next few years. Therefore, freight is a very good opportunity for Qantas. Likewise, after a dismal demand in 2020, tourism has started booming around the world. Particularly, countries such China and India are likely to see tremendous growth in business and other types of tourism. This is also a great opportunity for Qantas to expand its operations in Asia Pacific.
Threats to Qantas Airways
Threat is the last element to address in the SWOT analysis of Qantas Airways. Qantas competes with a number of giant airlines in its domestic and international routes. Virgin Australia, Singapore Airlines, Air New Zealand, Southwest Airlines, Malaysian Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Etihad Airways, Emirates and Thai Airways are some of the major competitors of Qantas.
Security is a big challenge for any airline. Natural disasters, terrorism, and trends towards protectionism may significantly impact on the operations of Qantas like any other airlines. Trade and political crisis between the USA and other countries such as China, Russia, Iran and others may put global economy in recession. These challenges are likely to increase fuel prices affecting the operations of Qantas.
We hope the article ‘SWOT analysis of Qantas Airways’ has been useful. You may also like reading SWOT analysis of Air New Zealand. Other relevant articles for you are:
Types of economy (economic system)
If you liked any of these articles, please feel free to share with others by clicking on the icons below. Also do not forget to enter your email address at the bottom of the site to ‘Join us’ free for our newly published articles and newsletters.
Last update: 19 January 2021
References:
Janda, M. (2018) Qantas profit soars even as fuel costs rise, available at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-23/qantas-profit-soars-even-as-fuel-costs-set-to-rise/10155252 (Accessed 22 September 2018)
Hughes, C. (2020) Qantas total revenue in Australia FY 2015-2020, available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1084194/australia-total-revenue-of-qantas/ (accessed 19 January 2021)
Qantas Airways Limited (2021) Our company, available at: https://www.qantas.com/travel/airlines/company/global/en (Accessed 17 January 2021)
Schneider, K. (2018) The problem with new Qantas route, available at: https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-advice/flights/the-problem-with-new-qantas-route/news-story/298a2a61df7d8a26b59571822e0bad6a (Accessed 27 September 2018)
Skytrax (2021) World’s Top 10 Airlines of 2019, available at: https://www.worldairlineawards.com/worlds-top-10-airlines-2019/ (accessed 19 January 2021)
Photo credit: Pixabay
Author: Joe David
Joe David has years of teaching experience both in the UK and abroad. He writes regularly online on a variety of topics. He has a keen interest in business, hospitality, and tourism management. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Management Studies and a Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing Management.
M Rahman
Veeren Gowrea