Abbott expected to dump proposal
The Abbott government are expected to favour Qantas and Virgin and quash a proposal to allow foreign airlines to fly domestic routes in Australia’s Top End.
According to a report in SMH, the plan spearheaded by Trade Minister Andrew Robb to allow foreign airlines to operate between Cairns, Darwin, Broome and Port Hedland to boost development in Northern Australia, was expected to have been moved aside in a meeting yesterday with government officials.
“They will quash it [at the meeting on Tuesday]. They will consider it and deal with it and move on,” a source told the paper.
Virgin warned last week that if the government relaxed air rules and adopted the plan, the airline would be forced to reconsider flying marginal routes in Northern Australia.
“There is a reason no other country allows this, because it decimates local industry and indeed in the long term it is not sustainable,” Virgin boss John Borghetti said, per the report.
Former Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon weighed into the debate last week saying it was “a step too far even for northern Australia” and the plan could “seriously undermine” local carriers.
Image: Sbs.com.au
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storm in a teacup. Most of the possible routes would have very little flights by OZ or New Zealand carriers anyway.
yeh it’s bad enough to allow kiwi airlines to fly in OZ unrestricted.