A New South Wales mother received an unexpected thrill after finding out the scratchie she thought was worth $1000 actually worth a lot more than she expected.

Embattled national carrier Qantas has been accused of seeing itself as “above the law” in what is the latest controversy to confront the airline.

Freshly minted Qantas chief executive Vanessa Hudson has issued a second apology as the airline’s woes continue to mount, promising to make changes to win back customers’ trust and rebuild the company’s flagging reputation.

The family of Western Australian police officer Ella Cutler, still critical after a fall overseas, is making preparations to fly her back to Australia.

With the start of school holidays mere hours away, travellers are being urged to prepare for the busiest international travel period since the international borders reopened.