Qantas beats Virgin for on-time performance but not cancellations

The airline said QF7168, scheduled to depart Melbourne at 5pm for a 6:40pm arrival, would carry 485 passengers, the equivalent of almost three cancelled Boeing 737-800 aircraft that normally fly the busy route.

The stricken low-cost carrier had “played a key role in connecting regional hubs across the domestic network”, the competition watchdog noted in its latest Domestic Airline Competition in Australia report, as it tried to stimulate demand on routes not …