iscover
A Rex Saab 340b, VH-RXX, alongside a Qantas A330-202, VH-EBN, as shot by Victor Pody
Opinion: With Rex bowing out, does anyone stand a chance?
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After seeing two airlines challenge the reign of Qantas and Virgin and fail, one has to wonder if there’s a business model that can battle it out against the major players, argues Hannah Dowling.
It’s unfortunate that time and time again, the Australian travel market has truly proven that it is only capable of sustaining two major airline groups – and even then, we saw the second-largest sent into administration not yet five years ago. In the last three months, we’ve seen the total collapse of new market entrant Bonza, and the fall of former regional powerhouse Rex into voluntary administration, joining a decades-long list of ill-fated Australian airlines.
When Virgin Australia entered voluntary administration in April 2020, just weeks after the global COVID-19 shutdown, the then-profitable Rex leapt at the opportunity to take over the lease of several of Virgin’s Boeing 737 fleet, as the administrators immediately moved to “right-size” the airline. While Virgin’s future remained in flux, Rex secured new capital to secure bigger aircraft and capitalise on what was sure to be a gap in the leisure travel market by instating point-to-point capital city flying for the first time in 20 years.
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says:Currently we have three major airlines operating in Oz, their total fleet size exc. long haul assets are 265 units:- QF 101 – JQ 72 – VA 92 – (courtesy of Plane Spotters). Now with even the most extravagant enthusiasm how on earth can another operator with say four or a few more aircraft expect to operate profitably and offer “competition” and survive against the other brands;- it just does not compute! Tiger was good but clearly not good enough for it’s parent hence it’s departure. Interesting to note the plethora of current incentive fares in this region; – from experience, this is because of a fall in forward bookings and not a benevolent gesture by the operators concerned. It is fine to be critical, objectively that is, but currently some of the verbiage is lacking in maturity.