Qantas is not looking for a handout.
And the airline's CEO Alan Joyce believes there is "little political or community appetite" for changing the Qantas Sale Act.
But the federal government can still come to national carrier's aid, he says.
Hinting that the airline continues to seek a debt guarantee from Canberra, Mr Joyce outlined some detail during a speech to the Tourism and Transport Forum in the nation's capital on Wednesday.
"We have encouraged the government to look for other solutions to address the uneven playing field as it stands right now," he said of the Australian airline industry.
"We think there are appropriate solutions that would not create precedents and would not come at a cost to taxpayers."
The Qantas Sale Act limits at 49 per cent any foreign ownership of the airline, with no offshore entity allowed more than a 25 per cent stake in the flying kangaroo.
"The Act limits our financial options, it adds cost to our business, and it influences our actions as a publicly-listed company," Mr Joyce said.
"Over the long term, repealing it is essential to remove the distortions in our aviation system."
Record fuel costs and a high Australian dollar have added to the airline's struggles over the past five years.
And in December Qantas flagged a $300 million underlying loss for the six months to the end of 2013, prompting ratings agencies Standard and Poor's and Moody's to downgrade its credit rating to junk status.
Already Qantas has moved offshore some of its aircraft maintenance services, with more to follow.
"We will look at all options and consider all steps to strengthen our business," Mr Joyce said.
"Few of the decisions we make will be popular."
Mr Joyce championed the airline's value to the Australian economy, listing its 30,000-strong workforce and $6 billion annual expenditure on Australian goods and services.
He named four coalition MPs and outlined the contribution Qantas makes to their electorates.
"We have done more than any other Australian company to reform in the face of new economic realities," Mr Joyce said.
Qantas has succeeded without the "benefits" many of its competitors receive from their governments, he added.
"We have never asked for a handout. And we are not asking for one now."
Mr Joyce is understood to have met with government ministers during his visit to Canberra.
