Irishman Alan Joyce to step down from top job at Qantas as it appoints first female CEO

The first woman to lead the century-old airline will take over in November, replacing Alan Joyce, whose 15 years in the job has made him one of the longest-serving current CEOs of a major Australian company, and a high-profile figure in the global aviation industry.

Hudson inherits an airline that is delivering record profits as travel rebounds. But she will also need to fix a reputational crisis facing the flying kangaroo, as passengers are frustrated with delays, cancellations, lost baggage and staffing issues.

Qantas Chairman Richard Goyder said Hudson's handling of the finance and treasury portfolio during the COVID crisis put her ahead of almost 40 candidates globally that the airline had short-listed for the job.

Qantas shares were down 2.4pc on Tuesday against a broader market decline of 0.25pc.

Hudson joined Qantas 28 years ago and has held several senior roles there, including CFO, chief customer officer and senior vice president for the Americas and New Zealand.

Joyce, 56, served as Qantas CEO during turbulent times and is credited with navigating the airline through the 2008 financial crisis, the Covid-19 pandemic, fluctuating fuel prices, and a bruising market share battle with Virgin Australia domestically and international rivals such as Emirates and Etihad Airways.

Hudson said the airline has been working to rebuild trust among its customers. She will also work on building ties with the unions, who have had a poor and often bitter relationship with Joyce.

Joyce hired bodyguards in 2011 after receiving death threats over his unprecedented grounding of the airline's entire fleet during an industrial dispute.

Joyce, who is gay, has been a vocal supporter of campaigns for marriage equality, the recognition of Aboriginal people in the nation's constitution and for women's progress in the corporate world.

"There's not many female CEOs in the worldwide aviation industry, and it's a credit to this country that a gay man was appointed 15 years ago to be CEO of the company, and now we have the first female accredited to the board," Joyce said at a news conference.

Joyce said he and his husband would stay in Sydney, focus on community involvement and look forward to other opportunities that may come up.

Though men still account for far more top executive roles in Australian-listed companies, a growing number of high-profile CEO roles are occupied by women, including at the No. 1 investment bank, Macquarie Group, top telco Telstra Corp, oil and gas giant Woodside and financial services firm AMP.

Hudson said she was proud to lead the airline.

"On a personal note, I have two young daughters, 21 and 18, and I've always been a mother who's wanted to lead by example and to listening to their reflections last night was incredibly meaningful to me," she said.

Qantas swung to a record first-half profit from a loss this year, as raging travel demand from a population shaking off years of pandemic restrictions jacked up fares and profits.