This year Qantas Group took home the highest honour at the ceremony, Airline/Airline Group of the Year.
This award is to the airline that has been the biggest standout strategically during the year, has had the greatest impact on the development of the airline industry, has established itself as a leader, and provided a benchmark for others to follow.
Qantas was selected for yet another year of strategic accomplishments. Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce won the CAPA Airline Executive of the Year award in 2015 and under Mr Joyce's leadership the Qantas Group has since continued to post some of the highest profit margins in the airline industry while continuing to innovate.
In Mar-2018, Qantas launched service from Perth to London, marking the first ever nonstop link between Australia and Europe. Qantas also has used its new 787 fleet to launch new flights from Melbourne to San Francisco and replace 747-400s on several existing long haul flights, driving efficiency improvements and frequency increases.
Meanwhile, Qantas has pushed Airbus and Boeing this year to develop a new ultra-long range widebody capable of operating nonstop flights from Sydney to London with a full payload of 300 passengers across four classes.
The group committed early this year to 18 A321neoLRs, which will be used by its LCC subsidiary Jetstar Airways to improve efficiency on Australia-Bali routes and launch potential new long haul narrowbody routes to Asia. Jetstar Group’s overseas affiliates, which are all now profitable, are also well positioned to grow by up-gauging to A321neos and A321neoLRs.
The Qantas Group has turned operating profits of at least USD1 billion in its last three fiscal years while generating revenue of USD12 to 13 billion, with ROIC well in excess of its target of 15%. At the same time the airline has been a leader in the areas of customer satisfaction and loyalty programme development.
"Qantas has had yet another remarkable year, posting a record profit for FY2018 and for the first time connecting the antipodes non-stop by launching nonstop flights from Perth to London," CAPA Executive Chairman Peter Harbison said. "Linking Australia and the UK nonstop is a major milestone for aviation in Australia and globally. Qantas is now pushing the envelope even further with preparations for nonstop services from Sydney to London, what it correctly claims will be the 'holy grail' of flights."
Via a prerecorded video, Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said the launch of its direct Perth to London route in March this year, as one of the main reasons for the award win. Mr Joyce describe it as "one of the last frontiers in aviation, the only two continents on the globe that didn't have direct services".
Watch the full video below: