On May 9, Qantas boss Geoff Dixon said he would remain at the helm of the Australian airline despite his support for a failed AU$11 billion takeover of the company.

Dixon, who is the profitable airline's chief executive officer, added that he would accelerate existing management strategies, including expanding Qantas' budget off-shoot Jetstar.

He said although the bid by a private equity consortium headed by Macquarie Bank had failed, the bidders had endorsed Qantas' plans for the future.

"The bidders made it very plain that they were making the offer for Qantas to implement the strategic plan Qantas was undertaking," Dixon told The Australian. "We intend to continue with that plan."

Apart from expanding Jetstar, the strategies include buying into foreign carriers and developing freight business.

The embarrassing failure of the bid, which crashed after the Airline Partners Australia (APA) consortium did not reach a minimum 50% of shareholder acceptances for its proposal, had led to calls for a shake-up of Qantas management.

The Qantas board, which stood to gain millions of dollars in payouts and bonuses if the takeover went ahead, had unanimously endorsed the bid.

Qantas chairman Margaret Jackson has given no indication she will step down, saying earlier that continuity and stability were vital to the continuing successful operation of the airline.

Meanwhile, the airline is scrambling to ensure that recent heavy trading in Qantas shares has not left a majority of the airline's stock in foreign hands.

Under Australian law, Qantas' foreign ownership is capped at 49%.

Australian Transport Minister Mark Vaile said on May 9 that there was no deadline on Qantas completing a reconciliation of its foreign ownership.

"We've said we expect that to take place as soon as possible," he said.

"Obviously, that can't be done to the detriment of all other shareholders if it has a deleterious effect on the share price, but it needs to be done as soon as possible."