Qantas has delivered a record $1.43bn half-year profit on the back of huge demand from customers to fly again in a period also marked by high fares and flight delays. Its chief executive, Alan Joyce, described the result as a “huge turnaround” after three turbulent pandemic years, and defended ticket prices which are still 20% above 2021 levels. “What we are seeing is that as we add capacity back in, fares are moderating,” Joyce said on Thursday. “There’s plenty of competition. Qantas cannot dictate the airfares of the market.” Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup He said fares had risen due to high fuel costs and because capacity couldn’t keep up with demand amid supply chain constraints. The profit, generated in the six months to December, contrasts with the dour returns from a year earlier, when the national carrier reported a $1.28bn loss. The record six-month profit rivals the size of returns Qantas was delivering over a full year before the Covid-19 pandemic. The large returns and healthy margins also contrast with the financial pressures faced by households, weighed down by rising rents and mortgages and inflation-fuelled food and electricity costs. The Labor senator Tony Sheldon said the airline was profiteering. “There’s nothing to celebrate in Qantas making massive profits by ripping off customers with extortionate airfares during a cost-of-living crisis,” said Sheldon, the former national secretary at the Transport Workers’ Union. There has been a lot of turbulence at the national carrier over the pandemic years. Joyce’s pay packet has remained robust throughout the period, despite customer fury about service failures, lost bags and cancelled flights. Qantas is also seeking to overturn in the high court a finding that it illegally outsourced 1,700 ground handler jobs in the early months of the pandemic. Joyce, known for his strong sparring with unions over the years, has headed Qantas since 2008. Qantas has ruled out a change at the top of its leadership before the end of 2023. Revenue tripled to $9.9bn in the half year and the airline announced a $500m on-market buyback, a strategy companies use when they have excess cash and want to reward shareholders. He said operational performance was back to pre-pandemic levels and that there was a balance between investing in the company and giving money back to shareholders. “If there were ever another crisis and we needed to raise money to survive, shareholders have the knowledge it’s a two-way street,” Joyce said. The airline has invested $200m to try to avoid a repeat of past issues, with money spent on additional crew, training of recruits to cover spikes in sick leave and more aircraft on standby to respond to disruptions. The return to profit was driven by domestic operations, which include the low-cost carrier Jetstar, with flight numbers returning to 94% of pre-pandemic levels. International flights and freight are at 60%. By the end of June Qantas plans to increase domestic capacity beyond pre-pandemic levels and increase international capacity to 81%. It expects the delivery of a new aircraft every three weeks for the foreseeable future. Joyce said the airline had not recorded a pullback in demand even as household budgets are squeezed. “While interest rates and inflation are expected to hit discretionary spending at some point, we’re yet to see any signs of that in our bookings,” he said. The aviation sector was among the hardest hit in the pandemic as border closures and travel restrictions halted services almost overnight, leading to the bankruptcy of dozens of commercial airlines around the world. Many airlines are now recording bumper profits due to pent-up demand, with Air New Zealand also reporting a strong return to profit in results released on Thursday after three years of losses.