The Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN) share price is struggling through this week despite the company's CEO Alan Joyce heralding the end of "the most challenging period in Qantas' history".
Joyce made the comment as the first international flights from Victoria took off on Monday.
On top of the reopening, the travel giant's boss noted the company is taking advantage of "new opportunities" to broaden its offerings.
At the time of writing, the Qantas share price is $5.23, 0.57% lower than its previous close. That also represents a 4.6% drop since Friday's close.
For context, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has fallen 0.06% today, while the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is down 0.14%.
Here is a breakdown of the opportunities Australia's iconic airline is taking advantage of as Australia's borders reopen.
Qantas share price slumps despite Joyce's optimisim
The Qantas share price is struggling this week, but the business is surging into the newly-reopened world.
As The Motley Fool reported earlier this week, increasing numbers of new COVID-19 cases in parts of Europe and the United States might be weighing on ASX 200 travel shares.
Still, Qantas is forging ahead with its reopening plans. Additionally, the airline is launching new flights and opening new facilities as many Australians return to international skies.
The first new offering: Flights between Melbourne and Dehli.
The new route will take off from 22 December. It comes after the airline announced the launch of flights between Delhi and Sydney last month.
In more good news for those travelling in style from Melbourne to Delhi – or any other overseas destination – Qantas has reopened its international first class lounge in Melbourne.
Qantas is also opening a new business lounge in Singapore next month.
Joyce stated the new offerings are in response to "unprecedented pent-up travel demand". He also said:
The restart of our international flights is only possible because of the way Victorians and Australians more broadly have rolled up their sleeves to get the jab…
This is helping us bring more Qantas employees back to work.
Qantas will also be relaunching flights between Melbourne and London on 27 November. Though, the flying kangaroo won't be flying between Melbourne and Los Angeles until 19 December.
Right now, the Qantas share price is 7% higher than it was at the start of 2021.
