Friday, December 13, 2024

Bonza bust crashes Albury visitor boom

Albury City Mayor, Kylie King says the Council was been left “extremely disappointed” to hear news that budget airline, Bonza, has entered voluntary administration.

The airline made public the state of its financial woes on Tuesday morning, cancelling flights across the country.

The Mayor said the service that Bonza has provided since its launch in January 2023 has supported significant numbers of visitors to the region and provided the opportunity for locals to travel more frequently to Queensland’s Sunshine and Gold Coasts.

“Feedback from our community has been overwhelmingly positive and they have appreciated our collaboration with Bonza to enable services to be provided from our region,” she said.

“The airline business is not without its challenges. Like many airport operators across the country, we have had to ride the ups and downs experienced by airline operators to ensure that connectivity to and from our region meets the needs of our community and economy.”

AlburyCity Mayor, Kylie King.

Mayor King said the Council will actively engage with the administrators and are seeking legal advice in relation to the recovery of any outstanding funds owed to AlburyCity.

“Until such time as we have worked through this process, details of any funds owed will remain confidential.”

“We empathise with those impacted by Bonza’s actions and encourage them to contact the Australian Government hotline for affected passengers on 1800 069 244.”

Bonza Chief Executive, Tim Jordan today confirmed all flights had been “temporarily suspended” as administration talks get underway.

“We’re working as quickly as possible to determine a way forward that ensures there is ongoing competition in the Australian domestic aviation market,” a company statement reads.

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