Summary
- Bonza, the new Australian ultra-low-cost carrier, wants to establish a base at Sydney Airport but was told by the airport not to bother applying for necessary slots.
- The airline must base at least four aircraft and attain four morning and afternoon slot pairs for the base to be viable.
- Despite not being able to establish a base in Sydney, Bonza is expanding to other locations in Australia, including the Gold Coast, Darwin, and Mount Isa.
The new ultra-low-cost carrier looking to revolutionize air travel down under has stated that it would like to establish a base at the nation’s busiest airport, Sydney Kingsford Smith International (SYD). However, the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, Tim Jordan, claimed he was told to ‘not bother’ with applying.
According to Bonza, the airline would need to base at least four aircraft at the airport and attain four morning and afternoon slot pairs to make the base viable. If the CEO’s dreams were to transpire, he noted he would serve up to eight regional destinations from the airport.
Photo: Bonza
Not up and away at Sydney
Jordan was speaking in Caberra at the Select Senate Committee hearing earlier in the week, where he reiterated that the same success could happen in Sydney, in comparison to what is already taking place at Melbourne Tullamarine (MEL), where the airline currently serves Alice Springs (beginning December 12th), Bundaberg, Gladstone, Gold Coast (starting November 16th), Mackay, Mildura, Port Macquarie, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast, Tamworth, and Toowoomba.
Bonza also identified that what the airline needs to set up in Sydney would be less than 10% of what is currently unallocated or canceled at the nation’s busiest airport on a daily basis. This situation is another reason the airport is under the spotlight for the allocation of slots in Sydney, where Virgin Australia and Qantas Group are its biggest customers.
Photo: Michael Doran I Simple Flying
No point in applying
The ultra-low-cost carrier has confirmed it never applied for any slots. However, Jordan mentioned conversations had occurred between Bonza and SYD; however, they were told they would not get the necessary slots required to make the base viable. The airline CEO explained:
“We were told we would not get the necessary slots to base aircraft, so [why] apply through the formal process when you know the outcome isn’t worthwhile? It was made absolutely clear to us that if we wanted to operate to Sydney, we could fly in the middle of the day. If you want to base aircraft there, having the option to only fly in the middle of the day is not optimal.”
Not all doom and gloom down under
While it’s clear that Bonza would like a slice of the pie in Sydney, the airline is persevering with other route expansions across Australia. The airline recently announced its intentions to establish its third base in the sunny Gold Coast, a popular tourist hotspot in Southern Queensland. From here, it will serve up to 14 routes.
Photo: Bonza
Darwin and Mount Isa are also set to welcome their first visit from Bonza before Christmas. The ULCC’s first foray into the Northern Territories (Darwin) will take flight from both the Sunshine Coast (MCY) and Gold Coast (OOL) from November 29th and December 1st, respectively.
Sources: ch-aviation
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The two A380s at Sydney Airport waiting to take off. Photo: Qantas Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport
- IATA/ICAO Code:
- SYD/YSSY
- Country:
- Australia
- CEO:
- Geoff Culbert
- Passenger Count :
- 44,446,838 (2019)
- Runways :
- 07/25 – 2,530m (8,300ft) |16L/34R – 2,438m (8,000ft) |16R/34L – 3,962m (13,000ft)
- Terminals:
- Terminal 1 |Terminal 2 |Terminal 3
