The government gave the airline a $900m standby loan in March when Covid-19 hit, closing borders and ending virtually all international air travel.
The airline's chair Dame Therese Walsh said at its annual meeting it has about $1 billion in reserves, including the government loan, which it has started to tap into.
"We have recently drawn down on a portion of the loan and will continue to draw incremental amounts on an as needed basis to ensure we are not paying more interest than necessary."
