(James D. Morgan/Getty Images)
Australian airline Qantas on Monday was accused of continuing to sell seats on long-canceled trips and will pay a $66 million (R1.2 billion) fine following a damning “ghost flight” scandal. agreed.
The country's competition watchdog said Qantas had “admitted that it had misled consumers” by advertising seats on tens of thousands of flights despite the cancellations.
Qantas will also pay $13 million in compensation to 86,000 travelers affected by the failure to cancel or reschedule.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairwoman Gina Cass Gottlieb said: “Qantas' conduct is egregious and unacceptable.”
“Many consumers will be making vacation, business, or travel plans after booking a canceled phantom flight.”
Qantas said in some cases customers were booked on flights that were canceled “more than two days” in advance.
Qantas Chief Executive Vanessa Hudson said the airline had “let our customers down and fallen short of our own standards”.
“We know that many customers were affected by our failure to provide timely notice of cancellation, and we sincerely apologize,” he said in a statement.
Fines must be approved by the court.
Long known as the 'Spirit of Australia', 103-year-old national airline Qantas has been on a mission to restore its reputation.
The airline is facing consumer backlash caused by soaring ticket prices, claims of sloppy service and the layoffs of 1,700 ground staff due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Qantas has previously defended selling seats on canceled flights.
Rather than buying a ticket for a specific seat, the newspaper said, customers buy a “bundle of rights” with a promise that the airline will “do its best to get consumers where they want to be, on time.” He claimed to be buying it.
Qantas posted an annual profit of $1.1 billion last year, capping a sharp turnaround after the coronavirus disrupted travel.
Veteran CEO Alan Joyce announced his early retirement in September last year amid a barrage of criticism.
