STRONG support for Mildura’s first two Bonza routes is the reason for the addition of a new flightpath to the Gold Coast, the airline says.
Bonza yesterday announced the launch of 11 new routes, which will fly in and out of its third base at the Gold Coast Airport.
The direct route to and from Mildura will run twice a week, with tickets priced at $49 to $79 one way. Further details will be announced soon.
Bonza chief commercial officer Carly Povey said the introduction of the route was a “thank you” to the people of Mildura.
“This is the sign of not just our commitment to the Mildura region but a ‘thank you’ for the welcome they have given us,” she said.
“We have seen really strong demand and we are very confident that the Gold Coast will be very complementary to the existing services to the Sunshine Coast and Melbourne.”
Ms Povey said the new flights would not have been possible without the right local partnerships.
“To say Mayor Liam (Wood) has been supportive and engaged in Bonza’s journey is an understatement, but so has Trevor (Willcock), the airport team, the Mildura board, the council, everywhere we turn there has been support for us,” she said.
“It is really important that we say ‘thank you’ and reward that support with grace and with more opportunities to connect Mildura with other people in Australia.”
Ms Povey said it was “heart-warming” to see Mildura in discussions with destinations like the Sunshine Coast to further drive economic benefits.
She said more tourists would soon be on their way to Mildura.
“It shouldn’t be understated just how many people want to come to Mildura, as well as people from the region travelling on holidays,” she said.
“We have found that there is a really strong appetite to travel to places in regional Australia that haven’t been that well connected before.
“There were certainly lots of excited people in the Gold Coast this morning excited to come to regional Victoria direct and at low prices.”
Cr Wood said the route would provide even more tourism exposure for the region, opening up direct access to Mildura for thousands of new visitors.
“From a community perspective it’s also a massive win as it makes it easier than ever for our residents to access locations that would otherwise have either been impractical or simply not possible,” he said.
“We certainly welcome any new or additional direct air routes to Mildura, which can only benefit our region from both a community and economic perspective.”
By the end of the week, tickets will be on sale for the Christmas and school holiday period for flights travelling from Mildura to Melbourne, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast.
Ms Povey encouraged customers to sign up for the airline’s app to be the first to hear about tickets.
Bonza said additional routes and new destinations would be revealed “when the time was right”.
“We’ll be adding new destinations to our route map that will fly from the Gold Coast and we continue to welcome conversations with airports around the country as we fulfil our mission to connect communities,” Bonza chief executive officer Tim Jordan said.
“Our focus continues to be on unserved and under-served markets that we know would benefit from low-cost flights.”
The next phase of Bonza’s growth includes the addition of 70 new flights per week, almost 700,000 additional passenger seats a year and more than 100 direct jobs.
Two aircraft will operate from the Gold Coast Airport, subject to regulatory approval.
