The prices of Qantas and Rex flights out of Albury, Griffith and Wagga are sky-high. Photo: Griffith City Council.
Albury Mayor Kevin Mack says the NSW Government should consider subsidising key regional air routes, warning flights from Wagga and Albury are becoming so expensive that flying is now the “domain of the rich”.
Mayor Mack and Wagga Mayor Dallas Tout gave evidence at a Senate inquiry hearing into regional travel in Albury this week.
Scrapping of Melbourne flights
Both mayors told the hearing that Qantas’s recent decision to axe its Melbourne routes from Wagga and Albury was having a devastating impact on their communities.
There are now no flights at all between Albury and Melbourne, Mayor Mack said, forcing travellers onto an overstretched rail service where some passengers have been left sitting on the floor.
“Next, they’ll be sitting on the roof, as they do in other countries,” he said.
Rex Airlines is still operating flights from Wagga to Melbourne, but there are only five per week, with Mayor Tout describing the service as “very limited”.
Flying becoming ‘domain of the rich and famous’
Prices on remaining Qantas routes have surged to the point where many people can no longer afford to fly, Mayor Mack said, with return fares to Sydney reaching as high as $666.
Asked whether the NSW Government should subsidise regional flights, he said assistance should be expanded.
“They already do subsidise some routes across western NSW, but I think for more important regional routes they should be considering subsidisation,” he said.
“It’s about socialisation, it’s about access to health appointments, it’s all those things that regional customers should not be sacrificing their lifestyle for. We don’t want to go back to the days where … [flying] was the domain of the rich and famous.”
Mayor Tout said he would prefer government support be directed toward airport infrastructure rather than directly subsidising fares.
Cheaper ‘to fly overseas’
Regional Cities NSW, a peak body representing councils including Albury, Wagga and Griffith, said airfares to many smaller centres had increased by “more than 100 per cent” since 2019.
“This impacts local tourism operators, as it’s often cheaper to travel overseas,” the organisation said in a recent submission.
“High and volatile fares restrict access to essential services, limit workforce mobility and undermine the competitiveness of regional cities.”
There are no longer any flights between Griffith and Melbourne, with return flights to Sydney booked at short notice costing well over $1000.
“Prices just keep going up; I’ve heard of a friend who flew return Sydney to Fiji for $700, but we are paying more than that. We really are at the mercy of these airlines – it’s price gouging. It just shows how disadvantaged country people are,” nutritionist Cass Irvin said.
