Qantas Airways Limited
(ASX:QAN) has announced it will cancel firm orders for 35 new commercial airliners on the same day it posted its first annual loss since privatisation.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliners are valued at $US8.5 billion at list prices and the cancellation will preserve $US140 million in Qantas’ first half bottom line.
However analysts have identified longer term concerns for the growth of the airline’s premium international division.
Australia’s largest carrier says the order change has been enacted to return its international operations to a profit in the next three years.
Qantas yesterday posted a $244 million net loss for the 2012 financial year.
