Bonza plane sitting on Gold Coast tarmac as flights cancelled

Cancelled flights plague Bonza, with revelations one of their planes is on the other side of the world and another is stranded on a Qld tarmac.

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A Bonza jet earmarked to serve the airline’s Gold Coast routes is sitting idle on the tarmac while another flies services in Canada as the besieged operator cancels dozens of flights while battling for approval from aviation regulators.

A plane bearing Bonza’s distinctive purple livery has been sitting at Gold Coast Airport while its Canadian flight crew undergoes “necessary training” because they do not have approval from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority to begin operations.

On the other side of the world, a Boeing 737-8 painted in a combination of artwork for both Bonza and its partner airline Flair is making journeys across Canada instead of flying out of the Gold Coast while the impasse with Australian regulators continues.

Bonza plane sitting on the tarmac at Gold Coast Airport while the airline awaits CASA approval.

It is the latest setback for Bonza, which started operations in January as a new player in the low-cost airline market with 11 routes out of the Sunshine Coast, 9 out of Melbourne and two out of Toowoomba, before scrapping five routes months later.

The Gold Coast was announced as Bonza’s third base, servicing 11 destinations but the airline was forced to suspend flights on seven Gold Coast routes until further notice, cancelling thousands of tickets for travellers over the Christmas holidays because the Flair aircraft and crew do not yet hold the accreditation required to operate in Australian skies.

Bonza CEO Tim Jordan said the airline would work hard to regain the trust of customers.

“We fully recognise that we’ll have to earn customers’ trust and we want our customers to know that we are deeply committed to servicing their regions,” he said.

“However for the customers impacted here, many flying with us for the first time, we simply haven’t delivered, (and) we are sorry.”

Mr Jordan said Bonza accounted for only five of more than 5000 cancelled flights across the country between August and October but that number is expected to soar while the airline awaits regulatory approval.

Bonza chief executive Tim Jordan. Picture: Supplied

Affected Bonza customers have been offered full refunds, with many choosing to jump ship to flights offered by rival airline Jetstar.

In a statement, a spokesperson for CASA said Bonza needed “to demonstrate how they will integrate these Canadian-registered aircraft and crew members into their operation”.

“This is an important part of Australian aviation safety regulations,” the statement said.

Under Australian aviation regulations, operators must have “comprehensive safety systems” covering issues such as crew training and checking, maintenance and emergency procedures.

The Canadian-registered Flair aircraft are not part of the existing approval which gave Bonza the green light to start operations in January out of the Sunshine Coast.

It is hoped the plane still serving in Canada will arrive in Australia by the end of next week.

Graeme Hughes, director of Griffith University’s Business Lab, said “trust was paramount” for customers and Bonza faced a difficult task to win them back.

“Customers vote with their feet (and) they seek assurance that they will be provided with what they’ve paid for,” he said.

“The Australian aviation industry is notoriously competitive and difficult to penetrate and trust is so important to the equation.

“(But) customers do understand that things do go wrong and not everything runs smoothly so I think Bonza can certainly recover with strong customer service and if they provide a remedy.”

Bonza was founded in 2021 with the backing of US investment giant 777 Partners, which also owns Flair Airlines as well as stakes in professional soccer teams around the world, including a 99.99 per cent share in Italian glamour club Genoa CGF for a reported $245 million (AUD) two years ago.