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Bonza has come out on top of the latest BITRE data in both on-time departures and on-time arrivals.
The low-cost carrier beat the long-term average for on-time arrivals last month, only slightly lagging the average for on-time departures and cancellations. It also led the table among participating airlines on the first two measures, only beaten by Rex on cancellation rates.
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Bonza saw on-time departures and arrivals of 81.7 per cent in February, compared to the long-term average of 82.1 per cent on-time departures and 81 per cent on-time arrivals. Cancellations were 2.5 per cent, just above the long-term average of 2.2 per cent.
“This data demonstrates consistency of performance with Bonza being top of on-time arrivals for 6 of the last 7 months since August 2023,” a Bonza spokesperson said.
“Our team of legends and partners are working hard to deliver a great experience for our customers, that starts with a low-cost fare, and extends all the way through their Bonza journey, as we believe that paying less shouldn’t mean trading off on reliability or a great quality onboard product.”
Rex celebrated beating both Qantas and Virgin in on-time departures for what it says is the 17th straight month, as well as winning the cancellation rate stakes.
In February, 76.3 per cent of the carrier’s flights took off on time, compared to 74.2 per cent of Qantas and QantasLink services and 73.9 per cent of Virgin services, though it sat in the middle of the pack for on-time arrivals behind Bonza, Jetstar, QantasLink and Skytrans but ahead of Qantas and Virgin.
Just over 2 per cent of Rex flights were cancelled, compared to 2.8 per cent of Virgin flights and 5.8 per cent of Qantas and QantasLink flights. Rex’s chief operating officer, Neville Howell, said Rex is Australia’s “most reliable major airline”.
“Rex’s outstanding reliability in an extremely challenging aviation environment is a testament to the indefatigable team at Rex who work tirelessly everyday to eliminate or reduce disruptions,” he said.
“We will continue to do so to thank the increasing number of Australians who have now made Rex the airline of choice.”
Daniel Dihen, head of Qantas’ Operations Centre, said the Flying Kangaroo had beaten its main rival Virgin on reliability for the 18th consecutive month, with QF-designated services outperforming VA-designated services.
“Getting our customers to their destination on time is a huge focus for teams across Qantas and there has been a big step up in our performance in recent months,” he said.
“Data for March so far indicates Qantas is continuing its climb back to pre-covid levels of reliability, with on time performance in the high 70s.”
For its part, Virgin pointed to lower cancellation rates and better on-time performance on mainline VA flights than on mainline Qantas flights and said it is taking steps to improve reliability.
“We are working hard behind the scenes to improve reliability and in February we were pleased to lift our on-time performance and completion rates for the second consecutive month,” a spokesperson said.
“We are focused on consistently delivering a stable and reliable service while continuing to provide great value and choice to Australian travellers.”
Simon Russell
says:Well done Bonza!