Qantas pledges to cap fares from key regional centres

Qantas acts after a Senate report showed regional airfares were among the world’s most expensive.

Passengers board a Qantas 737 at Mount Isa Airport.

Qantas has promised residents of key regional centres they will not pay more than about $400 for a one-way airfare to the nearest capital city, under an expansion of its discounted fares program.

The announcement comes months after a Senate committee report showed regional airfares in Australia were among the world’s most expensive.

Qantas Domestic chief executive Andrew David said the company had listened to concerns raised through the Senate inquiry and expressed to Qantas directly.

In response, he said, up to $10 million would be invested in the residents’ fares program to ­provide flight discounts for locals of 16 towns in Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern ­Territory.

“There are some fundamental realities about the costs of operating regional services that we can’t change, particularly to remote parts of the country, but we are making this commitment and ­investment to assist residents in those towns,” he said.

Under the current program, the cheapest fares start at $175 to $325 a sector but bigger discounts will now apply as well as a maximum cap of about $400 one-way.

Mr David said this would help address residents’ concerns about the need for greater fare flexibility.

“Some residents have told us that when they need to travel during peak travel periods, or at the last minute, for things like funer­als or urgent medical appointments, they end up … paying more, or they don’t travel,” he said.

“That’s why we are introducing bigger discounts to these bookings. The maximum residents in these towns will pay is around $400 per sector, or around $800 return.”

Eligible towns include Mount Isa, Cloncurry, Longreach, Barcaldine, Blackall, Karratha and Kalgoorlie, where airports and councils have committed to ­reducing passenger fees for Qantas. Consultation was continuing with the communities of Moranbah, Roma, Charleville, Broome, Port Hedland, Newman, Para­burdoo, Alice Springs and Yulara (Ayers Rock).

Cloncurry resident Hamish Griffin, who has campaigned for lower airfares, welcomed expansion of the discounted fares program, saying it was a “substantial win for regional Australia”.

“I would love to see a flight from Mount Isa and Cloncurry to Brisbane and/or Townsville for $175 one-way,” he said.

“Even a cap of $400 one-way or $800 return is a relief (but) in my mind it’s still a very expensive fare compared to a fare between Brisbane and Melbourne.”

Mount Isa Mayor Joyce McCulloch said she knew of ­people having to pay upwards of $2000 for last-minute return airfares to Brisbane. “I hope those days are now ­behind us,” she said.

State MP Robbie Katter was more sceptical, saying it was ­“absurd Qantas was trying to convince people they were doing something for the community … Passenger numbers are tracking upwards, and so are prices.”

Searches by The Australian yesterday found fares were ­available between the towns in question and the nearest capital city for less than $400 each-way. They included Mount Isa-Brisbane for $372, Alice Springs-Darwin for $357, Cloncurry-Brisbane for $383 and Karratha-Perth for $270.

Return fares from Melbourne to Brisbane were $434, Melbourne-Sydney cost $380 and Brisbane-Sydney were $330.