Qantas cuts flights to struggling NT town because of reduced demand

EXCLUSIVE QANTAS will pull all flights to and from Gove following the closure of Rio Tinto Alcan’s refinery.

QANTAS will pull all flights to and from Gove following the closure of Rio Tinto Alcan’s refinery.

The airline will cease its Gove operations from August 17 “as a result of decreased travel demand”, the NT News can reveal.

East Arnhem Chamber of Commerce chairman David Suter said Gove was “going to fade into history”.

“It’s the final nail in the coffin for us,” Mr Suter said.

“A lot of the employment (in Gove) is based on employees getting airfares in and out of town.

“The impact of trying to get them out if services are reduced is going to be severe.

“It will mean workers will have to book holidays very well in advance and once the road closes because of wet weather, we’ll be landlocked.

“You would hope the NT government has spoken to Airnorth to take up the slack in service.”

AirNorth has this morning announced it will take on daily services to Nhulunbuy from August 18, in addition to its other flights into the Gulf.

Chief Minister Adam Giles said Airnorth will run a Darwin-Gove-Cairns and Cairns-Gove-Darwin service seven days a week, “ensuring a seamless transition for Nhulubuy residents”.

“Airnorth is confident that the route remains viable using its 76 seater jet fleet,” Mr Giles said.

“Airnorth is a local company with a long commitment to the Gulf region.

“I know the Airnorth has big plans for the region including the development of new tourism opportunities. I think the company will be a good business partner for the East Arnhem region as it works to build a new economic future.”

The news from Qantas comes a day after the town was left without electricity for 24 hours after a “technical issue” at the refinery cut supply.

READ: Gove without power for a day

Qantas Gove staff members were contacted by the company executives via teleconference last night and told they will soon lose their jobs.

The airline employs 13 part time ground handlers at Gove airport.

Qantas Link chief executive John Gissing said affected staff will be “offered redeployment opportunities where possible and with redundancy packages”.

“The decision was not taken lightly, but after a thorough review of the route, it was found to not be viable to continue operating,” Mr Gissing said.

“This coincides with the closure of the Rio Tinto aluminium refinery.”

Rio Tinto Alcan announced late last year it would close its alumina plant at its Gove refinery in July 2014 — which will affect 1200 jobs — and move to a bauxite operation.

The Gove alumina refinery.

“A large portion of customers on the Gove route were Rio employees,” Mr Gissing said.

“The number of customers travelling on the route has decreased significantly in recent months, with most flights departing at around 50-60 per cent of capacity. We expect this downward trend to continue later this year.”

READ: GOVE REFINERY TO SHUT DOWN

Qantas customers who have purchased tickets after August 17 “will be re-accommodated or offered a refund”.