Sydney - Australian airline Qantas said Friday it would cut 1,500 jobs and retire more aircraft in response to lower passenger numbers stemming from the faltering world economy and the surging cost of fuel. 

Chief executive Geoff Dixon also said the pruning was a response to the airline's pay dispute with its maintenance engineers. 

"Over 20 per cent of our management and head office support jobs will be cut," he told reporters. 

Up to 200 call centre jobs in the United States and Britain will be axed, with a new concentration of those jobs in Australia and New Zealand. 

The former state-owned carrier will retire up to 22 aircraft from its fleet of 228. 

Dixon said he hoped the introduction of the fuel-efficient A380 and B787 aircraft would help trim costs and prevent further lay-offs. (dpa)