SYDNEY, July 15 — Australia’s national airline Qantas has hit back against widespread criticism following widespread delays, flight cancellation, and mishandling of baggage as the nation’s airline industry restarts, reported Xinhua.

“Qantas and Jetstar are preparing to fly more than 350,000 customers across Australia over the next four days, with many families returning home to New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory and Western Australia as the school holidays come to an end,” read a Friday statement from Qantas.

As demand for domestic and international travel surged, the nation’s aviation industry has struggled to rebuild its workforce and provide smooth operations.

Swathes of held-back jetsetters took to social media to vent over lost baggage, delayed or cancelled flights, being stuck at airports, and being forced to sleep in the terminal.

The Department of Transport reported that in May, Qantas had the highest cancellation rate of any airline at 7.6 per cent, with just 61.5 per cent of all departures being on time.

Hitting back, the airline released a statement saying the delays were “industry-wide” and the result of a spike in COVID cases, extreme weather, and a tight labour market.

“More than 1,000 operational team members have been recruited since Easter, including cabin crew, airport customer service, pilots and engineers,” said a Qantas spokesperson.

They said that major staff boosts had been made to lessen the impact of COVID-19, and that they had begun using the larger Airbus A330, normally reserved for international flights, to meet domestic demand.

The airline further deflected complaints saying the situation across Europe, the United States and Britain was more severe.

Despite the return of travellers to the sky, the disruptions have seen Qantas’ stock price fall over 20 per cent since the beginning of June.

In its end of financial year market update, the airline reported still being mired by AU$4 billion (about US$2.7 billion) of debt, largely accrued during the pandemic when the industry was ground to a halt.

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