QANTAS has assured disrupted passengers they will have no difficulty accessing free flights being offered as a goodwill gesture while pilots said it will take more than that for the public to forgive airline management.

The airline today said that the free return economy flight being offered to more than 70,000 passengers pretentious by the grounding was completely separate to its compensation packages or any other payments.

But passengers deprived of their business class flights will have to fly economy if they wish to take up the Qantas free offer, which the airline estimate will cost it about $20 million.

It takes the cost of the grounding to over $50 million.

The pilots' union today dismissed offering free tickets as a waste of airline money, pointing to a survey which they claimed showed people blamed the Qantas management more than unions for damaging the airline's standing.