SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Qantas Airways posted a bumper 17.9 percent jump in interim net profit Thursday and announced a share buyback while outlining plans to create one of the southern hemisphere’s biggest pilot academies. The Australian carrier’s result came in at Aus$607 million (US$473 million), with a strong performance from its domestic arm boosting the bottom line. Underlying profit before tax, its preferred measure, which strips out one-time costs, was the highest in its […]