Punching QANTAS man, I appal an island state (8)
I believe the answer is:
tasmania
'state' is the definition.
(I know that Tasmania is a Australian state)
'punching qantas man i appal an island' is the wordplay.
'TASMANIA' is hidden in amongst the letters.
However, I'm not sure how this is indicated.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for tasmania that I've seen before include "Aussie island state" , "Pacific isle" , "Island state off SE Australia, capital Hobart" , "somewhere in Antipodes?" , "What a relief!" .)