Qantas steps up spending on 39;customer improvements39;
H1 fuel bill forecast jumps by A200 mln
Shares fall to oneyear low

SYDNEY, Sept 25 Reuters Australia39;s biggest airline Qantas Airways said on Monday it will spend more than previously planned to improve customer pain points but warned spiralling fuel costs may force it to raise fares from alreadyelevated levels.

The update sent its shares down as much as 2.5 to a oneyear low as investors questioned the airline39;s ability to grow profit given persistently high costs.

The company, under a new CEO, is trying to navigate a path between reassuring customers it is taking seriously complaints of widespread service problems while telling investors it can contain a surge in costs linked to tight oil supply.

The airline that sells three in five Australian domestic fares has seen its reputation tumble in its home market as its handling of the postCOVID travel revival brought a wave of flight cancellations and reports of lost luggage.

Adding to its woes, last month the antitrust regulator sued Qantas accusing it of selling fares on thousands of alreadycancelled flights in 2022. Qantas also lost a union lawsuit when the High Court found its 2020 sacking of thousands of groundstaff was illegal.

The socalled flying kangaroo said it would now spend A80 million 52 million on customer improvements on top of the A150 million previously flagged.

This additional investment is aimed at addressing a number of customer 39;pain…