Darwin, Alice Springs flights: Mass cancellations leave Bonza customers hanging

Budget airline Bonza is ‘temporarily’ suspending services, prompting warnings thousands of Territorians and local travel operators could be left out of pocket. Here’s what we know.

Budget airline Bonza has announced a “temporary suspension” of services, with a sudden mass cancellation of flights across its network, including in the Northern Territory, and conversations underway about the viability of the business.

Experts have warned it could leave thousands of Territorians and local travel operators out of pocket, with a resumption of flights unlikely after a grounding of this scale.

Chief executive Tim Jordan apologised to customers and said Bonza was working to find “a way forward” as quickly as possible.

“Bonza has temporarily suspended services due to be operated today (Tuesday April 30) as discussions are underway regarding the ongoing viability of the business,” Mr Jordan said in a statement.

“We apologise to customers who are impacted by this and we’re working as quickly as possible to determine a way forward that ensures there is ongoing competition in the Australian domestic aviation market.”

Mr Jordan did not address claims at least one Bonza aircraft had been seized by a leasing company.

Bonza Airlines has cancelled all flights in an appeared collapse. Picture: Mark Stewart

It comes amid speculation Bonza was in financial troubles and had called in restructuring specialists KordaMentha – a claim the company flatly denied less than a fortnight ago.

“Bonza is not showing signs of stress and is not restructuring,” a spokeswoman told the NT News on April 19.

“Jobs are not at risk at Bonza.

“KordaMentha hasn’t been engaged by Bonza. They haven’t visited Bonza and don’t have access to Bonza in any way. Suggesting otherwise implies that a well-known restructuring firm is somehow engaged by or entrenched in Bonza, which is not true and could have significant commercial and reputational impacts.”

Bonza Airlines has cancelled all flights in an appeared collapse. Picture: Mark Stewart

What happens if I’ve got flights booked with Bonza?

Bonza’s mass grounding likely signalled bad news for Territorians who had booked flights with the carrier, NT aviation expert Bruce Dale warned.

“It’s exceptionally rare for an airline to start flying again after a grounding of this scale,” Mr Dale said.

“The options are, if you have credit card recall you might be able to get your money back – you’d need to talk to your bank.

“Virgin has said they will offer support for stranded Bonza customers, and its likely Qantas will announce something too.

“Unfortunately, its highly likely Bonza customers could become an unsecured creditor and be out of pocket.”

Mr Dale said Bonza’s prices – with flights in and out of the Territory for less than $100 – were “too good to be true”.

Bonza’s model of connecting small ports with large aircraft was based on successful European airlines, Mr Dale said, but proved difficult with Australia’s large distances and scattered regional population.

“If you don’t have the bums on seats then it’s hard to be viable,” he said.