World's best airline named as Qantas climbs back from low point
It's the ninth time the Middle Eastern carrier, which took a 25 per cent stake in Virgin earlier this year, has taken out the award.
Qatar Airways also won world's best business class at the awards. Singapore Airlines came second in the rankings, followed by Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific, Dubai's Emirates and Japan's All Nippon Airways.
Meanwhile, Qantas surged 10 places to be named the world's 14th best airline, up from its low point in 2024 where it fell to 24th place. It's still a far cry from its previous highs – the airline was rated in the top five as recently as 2022.
Its decline followed the early departure of long-term chief executive Alan Joyce in 2023 to make way for chief financial officer Vanessa Hudson and a series of scandals including illegally sacking staff, selling fares for flights that had already been cancelled and criticisms over the availability of rewards seats for Frequent Flyer members.
Virgin Australia also had better results this year, climbing from 43rd to 34th place. Jetstar, however, continued to slide, with its rating dropping from 75th last year to 88th in this year's top 100.
Qatar Airways win comes just after Virgin Australian relaunched long-haul international routes using 'wet leased' Qatar Airways planes and crew. The first Virgin Australia wet-least flight departed from Sydney to Doha on Thursday last week.
Qantas won eight awards at the event – announced on Tuesday at the Paris Air Show's Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace (Museum of Air and Space) – but all were regional awards for Australia/Pacific-based airlines. Its wins included best business class, best economy class, best premium economy, best catering in both business and economy, and best cabin crew.
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West Australian
16 hours ago
- West Australian
Noema, a new Bali resort, marries art with a family focus
It's become truly hard to stand out in Bali's crowded tourist-focused south-western enclave of Canggu, but sometimes it's still possible to find a good surprise. Noema Pererenan Resort, part of Indonesia's own JHL Collection of hotels, is the first resort-style property in the popular namesake beach, set within a 10-minute walk (700m) from the black sand Pererenan Beach and a couple of minutes away from its strip filled with high-brow restaurants, art galleries, and cafes. The 157 rooms are all disabled accessible thanks to large corridors, elevators and ramps. The hotel has two large, attractive swimming pools, and about 11 rooms on the ground floor have secluded verandas with direct access to the second, more private pond. Upon arriving at the lobby, which has a welcoming, large open side strewn with couches, one steps out of the largely concrete-paved surroundings and into a youthful, airy environment. Noema utilises a soothing Mediterranean-type palette of colour, where beige and light sand brown make a relaxing backdrop for splashes of greenery, and walking inside the arch-like ceiling reminded me of stepping into a Middle Eastern caravanserai structure or a Moroccan mansion. A series of couches set below the floor level and hemmed by a pond filled with red fish sets the lobby's farthest perimeter, inviting guests to look right towards the open space where a large free-form pool nestles outside of the wall-to-ceiling windows of Noema's all-day restaurant, Mamaloma. We are served a fruit-infused welcome drink as staff register us in, and soon enough we are ushered in our room, one of Noema's Imagisuite on the third floor — a large, luminous room with a cosy living room space, table and mini-bar and coffee preparing station on the left, separated by a bamboo-covered screen housing a flipping LED television that gives way to the sumptuous bedroom area. The bathroom is impressive — larger than life, with beautiful retro terrazzo tiles and a vintage and artsy vibe, a bathtub to soak in, and, if needed, enough room to accommodate a whole family with children. There's also a balcony that overlooks the swimming pool and — a very nice touch given the speed of development in the area — a relaxing view over Pererenan's last and rare rice terrace fields. Other types of rooms have a private plunge pool and their own rooftop balcony. Their warm, artist home-like feel — each has art books and colourful rugs that set the mood — is the first sign of Noema's commitment to blend hospitality with creativity and art — the rest is all visible as one strolls around the resort's three long floors. One of Noema's characteristic creative features is outside on the second floor: a rock-climbing wall realised by Japanese artist Kanoko Takaya, a mix between adult playground and work of art. A few metres away and set in a vertical open space from the ground to the third floor is another art installation by Jogjakarta-based artist Iwan Yusuf. A giant man and a woman come together in mid-air, cleverly realised using a mix of upcycled materials, most of it sourced from the sea, such as fishing nets, ropes and pieces of driftwood. Just in front of it, on the other side of the corridor on each floor, there is access to Noema's feature dedicated to kids of all ages, the Hoola Playground, which is developed using rope tunnels and slides across three stories. The area is made with a mix of rattan, bamboo and playground-type games that help kids own an area they can explore while their parents enjoy other parts of the resort. The main piece is an octopus installation made of bamboo and rattan, whose tentacles dominate the structure and become the pillars upon and among which the kids can climb, jump and explore. Adults may find the spot attractive, too — the swings and structures are certainly nice for taking pictures. A dedicated studio space is used for workshops and for exhibiting artworks, where guests can take a stroll and get to know about some contemporary Indonesian and visiting artists. Noema takes the art involvement even further by offering international artists the chance to take up residencies of about a week. The guest artists' works are then exposed at the nearby Sun Contemporary Gallery tucked away along Pererenan's main street, a delightful space funded by a South African artist. When we visited, we saw the incredibly detailed miniature paintings of South African artist Lorraine Loots, who created a series inspired by her time on the island. Noema's annexed restaurant, Mamaloma, is set around the right corner from the lobby, with views of the swimming pool hemmed by greenery and rice fields. Breakfast is a la carte, with a menu of eggs and French toast-type mains, with an additional well-stocked buffet area where the highlights definitely were the Indonesian choices (I loved the tempe and fresh ground spicy sambal on offer), the salad area, fresh cheese, and pastries. The coffee served is barista type, brewed with beans from a Jakarta-based company called Roemah Koffie. My cappuccino was frothy the way I like it. The selection of four different coffees in the rooms, all from the same brand, surprised me with fruity flavour and the high quality of the brews. If one had to try lunch at Mamaloma, the menu leans towards Italian tastes. We tried a mushroom soup, which was good but a little salty, and as an Italian I am, I had to try the sourdough pizzas. Done in a Napoli style, they have a soft and light crust that didn't feel stuffy even after I wolfed down a whole pizza. My wife tried the duck confit ravioli — served in a thick layer of olive oil and butter, it's filled with tender shredded meat to enhance the taste and flavour. Well done. I was positively impressed by Noema. The rooms are perfect for families or couples who need a little bit of extra space or an excuse to snuggle inside a foamy bathtub. The swimming pool area is quiet and hemmed by greenery, which is a rarity in these southern Bali parts, and the breakfast is definitely curated and deserving of the area's reputation for excellent food. Families with kids will enjoy having the Hoola Playground as a space to let their little ones go wild, and if I could pick, I'd say that the rooms with private pool access are definitely the highlight. Pick Noema if you look for a cosy and artsy stay with plenty of good vibes and relaxed colours, secluded and yet set deep into the heart of one of Bali's tourist hot areas. + Marco Ferrarese was a guest of Noema. They have not influenced this story, or read it before publication.
Perth Now
18 hours ago
- Perth Now
Aussies ‘distraught' by super fund collapse
It's been almost five years since Darwin resident Sam decided it was time to switch up his superannuation. Scrolling on social media in 2020, he was met with a post that asked him if he had 'checked his super lately'. Intrigued and hoping to get a little bit more value out of his $250,000 in retirement funds, the 54-year-old chef and veteran decided to take the plunge and switch to another fund. 'I wasn't after anything astronomical, like a million dollars or something,' he told NewsWire. 'I was just basically looking for something that's going to work a little bit better than what I was having at the time.' Darwin-based chef Sam has suffered significant health setbacks after losing $330,000 of his savings. Supplied Credit: Supplied He was hoping to purchase a home to retire in with his super. Supplied Credit: Supplied That's where his journey with First Guardian Master Fund began. About 6000 Australians have invested $590m into First Guardian, which was established in 2019 as a management investment scheme. Investors were advised to roll over their superannuation into a retail super fund, then invest their money into First Guardian. Sam asked his fund adviser to provide an update on his superannuation every six to 12 months. At first, Sam said things were 'working really well', with his $250,000 investment increasing to $330,000 over the span of a few years. However, he soon discovered 'the whole lot' of his money had been transferred to Venture Egg Capital. He said his fund manager encouraged him to stay with the fund despite it being frozen by ASIC. Supplied Credit: Supplied Other customers said they were unaware their funds were being transferred to First Guardian Master Fund despite the details being written in the company's legal documents. First Guardian Master Fund collapsed earlier this year, leaving thousands in the lurch and unsure if they will ever see their money again. In May 2024, Sam said Venture Egg informed him that his assets had been frozen, due to an investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Alarms went off in Sam's head after receiving a call from his fund manager a month later for his annual super check-in, who recommended he stay with the fund as it was 'set up to make an earning potential'. The 54-year-old had invested $330,000 of his savings into the fund, and was now unable to access any of it. The veteran said he was 'distraught' at the thought of losing his money. Supplied Credit: Supplied After his savings were frozen, Sam said his health went into a rapid decline. 'I've been diagnosed with a rare vasculitis disease, so I've got to spend more time in hospital than I do at home,' he told NewsWire. Vasculitis is the swelling of the blood vessels, which can lead to organ and tissue damage. 'I'm at the stage where I'd like to buy a house so I can retire in it,' he said. Sam said he has, instead, had to pick up part-time work as a chef to support himself, now he has nothing to fall back on. He has also been forced to rely to Centrelink for the first time since he was a teenager, and puts all his money into hospital visits, medication and everyday expenses. 'I'm sort of a proud man,' he said, adding he was working in a 'pretty high level management' position before his health deteriorated. 'The knowledge knowing I will not have the retirement I would have liked makes me distraught for my future,' he said. The veteran, who said he had been in war zones for much of his early career, said his stress baseline had increased 'four or five times', and has no ideas if he will ever see his money again. 'Here's me who's supported my country in more ways than one – and freedom for other countries too, fighting for them as well – and here I'm sitting on the bones of my back side sitting there wondering what I'm going to do and what I have to do to get my medication and make sure I get better,' he said. 'I was in Afghanistan – I was all these war-torn areas and these people, they just take it from me.' Victorian nurse Lisa lost $60,000 of her superannuation after the collapse of First Guardian Master Fund. Supplied Credit: Supplied Two years before First Guardian's collapse, Victorian resident Lisa made the decision to move her savings into a different fund. With a few years left working as a registered nurse in San Remo, the 63-year-old was hoping to find a fund that would bolster the growth of her savings ahead of her retirement. 'I was told my super would grow much faster by this 'lead',' she said. They instructed her to make an upfront payment of $4000 for her super to rollover, and was allocated a financial adviser from Financial Services Group Australia, who 'was the one to work out what how to invest my superannuation according to the growth I wanted'. Then in April 2024, she got a call from her adviser, who told her 'something happened with one of the companies'. She then learned $40,000 of her money had been invested into Shield Master Fund, which was subsequently frozen. It was then her financial adviser said 'he didn't know if I would get any (money) back'. After successfully getting in touch with her adviser after he 'no longer (returned) my emails', she discovered $20,000 of her savings had been transferred to First Guardian Master Fund. 'I had no idea I had any money invested in (First Guardian),' she told NewsWire. 'I had seen media coverage of this company's liquidation. When I said this to the adviser, he had no response.' Half of Lisa's retirement savings had allegedly been invested in two management funds which had since collapsed, and she had nowhere to go. 'I have not been offered any kind of compensation or, in fact, heard from anyone involved in the set up of my super portfolio,' she told NewsWire. 'I have now lost $60,000 – half my superannuation.' The nurse said she had no idea her money was being invested into First Guardian. Supplied Credit: Supplied FTI Consulting liquidators Paul Harlond and Ross Blakely, who released their preliminary report into First Guardian, said they 'intend to undertake further investigations', including the determination 'whether any breaches of the Corporations Act or any other laws have occurred by any party … or any other circumstances exist, which may give rise to a potential claim by investors'. In their report, the liquidators said they were 'seeking compensation on behalf of members of the fund for losses suffered', which could be as high as $446m. However, they also hold fears investors may never see their funds again. Their assessment found the 'overall recoverable value of the investments is likely to be considerably less than their combined book value' and a 'substantial shortfall of recoverable assets to outstanding investor funds will therefore likely arise in the liquidation'. In the report, the liquidators said 'a large proportion of investors in the (First Guardian Master Fund) invested through investment platforms', adding the recovered funds may not be as high as hoped. ' … the liquidators consider the value of the assets may have been overstated in the accounts,' the report read. 'It is very likely that some of the funds' assets/investments are not recoverable or will not recover their full ascribed value. Indeed, significant shortfalls to book values are expected.' Thousands of Australians have invested into the management funds. NewsWire / Simon Bullard. Credit: News Corp Australia An ASIC spokesman said its 'first priority has been to preserve any remaining assets of the scheme so they can be recovered for investors'. 'Following concerns raised by ASIC, the Federal Court appointed liquidators to Falcon Capital and ordered the wind-up of First Guardian and its related funds in April. The court also restrained David Anderson a director of Falcon from dealing with his assets and appointed a receiver to his personal property. 'ASIC's investigation suggests that potential consumers were called and referred to personal financial advice providers who advised consumers to roll their superannuation assets into a retail choice superannuation fund, and then to invest part or all of their superannuation into First Guardian. 'While ASIC's investigation is ongoing, the Federal Court has made interim travel restraint orders against Falcon Capital director David Anderson on ASIC's application. 'The Court also made interim orders freezing the assets of another Falcon director, Simon Selimaj and restraining his travel. Those orders are in place until 27 February 2026.' No charges have been laid. To those impacted, the spokesman said they 'understand the circumstances surrounding First Guardian are distressing for those affected' and it was 'one of ASIC's priorities to investigate what has happened'.
Sydney Morning Herald
a day ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
The Gen Z billionaires who are bored with business
The family that ran India's largest luggage maker for more than half a century is packing it in, with control of Mumbai-based VIP Industries passing to private equity. 'What do I do?' chairman Dilip Piramal, 75, wondered aloud in a TV interview after announcing the sale. 'The younger generation is not interested in management.' Piramal isn't the only ageing businessperson to have run out of successors. 'Today among the scions of some of the most affluent families of India, someone is an artist, someone wants to be a sportsman, someone wants to run a small restaurant. There's nothing wrong in that. It's the modern trend, people want to do their own things,' he said. Two hundred years ago, that 'modern' trend among young people used to be enterprise. That's when families like Piramal's began to spread out of the Marwar region in land-locked northern India to take advantage of British-controlled trading opportunities in the port cities of Bombay and Calcutta – now Mumbai and Kolkata. Cotton, jute and opium sold to China provided the seed capital to the Marwari business community for everything from textile mills to cement factories. By the early 20th century, these emerging industrial empires were large enough to challenge the colonial masters and their commercial interests. The likes of Ghanshyam Das Birla openly supported Mahatma Gandhi's campaign for independence, even as they outran rivals like Andrew Yule & Co. The Birla House in Delhi, a prominent hub for the freedom movement, was also where Gandhi was assassinated. As the sway of family firms continued after India's 1947 independence, it was believed that newer generations would always be available to take over the reins. Below the surface, however, the link between ownership and management has been weakening for some time. Piramal's daughter, Radhika, a Harvard University MBA, was the chief executive officer for a few years before quitting in 2017 and relocating with her spouse to London. Her same-sex marriage is not legally recognised in India. The luggage maker was back to being in the care of professional managers, a double-edged sword considering that a rival firm set up by a former managing director is now three-fifths bigger than VIP by market value. The heirs of prominent business families – Millennial and Gen Z billionaires – are setting their own life goals. It's the sensible thing to do. In a labour-surplus economy, access to capital through clan networks and strategic marital alliances was family-run firms' core advantage. But via public markets and private equity, finance is now available to a much wider section of entrepreneurs. Risk-taking has been democratised. That frees up younger members of business dynasties to try new things. Someone recently asked the singer-songwriter Ananya Birla on social media if she was from the family behind India's largest-selling cement brand. She is indeed the great-great-granddaughter of Ghanshyam Das Birla. But from financial inclusion among rural women to a recently launched beauty brand, the 31-year-old Oxford graduate has her own interests that are independent of the sprawling commodities behemoth led by her father.
