Issue Summary

September 1 marks the beginning of spring in Australia and New Zealand, two airline markets, appropriately enough, now springing back to life. Demand for Qantas and Air New Zealand is in many respects just as strong if not stronger than it was pre-crisis, aside from some markets like China and Japan. Capacity, however, hasn’t returned to the same extent, pushing up yields and — less welcomingly — causing operational distress. Both airlines lost money in the first half of this calendar year. But both are optimistic about the months and years ahead.