Regional airline asks Canberra to waive fees and back loans

Regional Express airline asks Federal Government to waive fees and back any new loans as carriers fight to stay in the air.

REX plane takes off from a regional airport

AN AIRLINE that services Tasmania has called on the Federal Government to waiver charges for a year so regional aviation and the small communities it supports are not “completely and irreversibly destroyed”.

Rex says it will soon drastically cut its schedule and drop some routes altogether.

REX Airlines has written to Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack asking the government to take immediate action and waive all fees including en route, terminal navigation, rescue and fire fighting and meteorological charges.

The airline has also asked the government to provide a sovereign guarantee for any new line of credit or loan taken out to help carriers stay in the air through to the end of the pandemic.

REX like many airlines is already seeing a severe drop in business due to COVID-19.

“Just this past Friday we saw our passenger numbers dropping 13 per cent year-on-year,” Chief Operating Officer Neville Howell said.

“One cannot even begin to comprehend what the economic impact would be if the infection rate rises to high double digits.”

“The current COVID-19 outbreak comes on the heels of the recent devastating bushfires and the historic prolonged drought from which regional airlines and communities are still reeling,” Mr Howell said.

Flybe Airline in the UK – which carries over 11 million passengers annually, has recently gone into administration due to the coronavirus pandemic, Norwegian Airlines also announced its has only weeks of reserves and Lufthansa says it will need government help as it grounds two-thirds of its aircraft fleet

“The CEO of the International Air Transport Association Alexandre de Juniac warned last week that the travel meltdown could lead to multiple airline failures within two to three months,” Mr Howell said in his letter.

“Australia will surely not be spared the carnage and Australian regional carriers will be the first to be impacted due to their limited financial resources.

“If regional carriers collapse, so will many regional communities for which the air service is their lifeline.”