The flood of cheap Chinese airfares that's undoing Cathay Pacific Airways is proving a boon for Qantas.

Hong Kong-based Cathay posted its first loss in eight years last month, overwhelmed by pricing competition from mainland rivals including China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines. For Qantas, it's doing the opposite – bringing a record number of Chinese visitors to Australia and generating new business for the flagship carrier, which ferries them on its local network.

"The growth opportunity is the Chinese market,'' Qantas chief executive officer Alan Joyce said on Tuesday. "We see the Chinese visitors exploring the entire domestic network."

The cut-price Chinese fares that are threatening marquee Asia-Pacific carriers such as Cathay and Singapore Airlines are supercharging one of Australia's fastest corporate turnarounds. Joyce has led Qantas to record earnings and widened its profit margins by more than any of the world's 20 largest airlines in the past two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.