THE unfortunate reality of commercial competition is that sometimes there are losers.
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About three years after Jetgo’s first flight from Tamworth, the airline has announced it is ceasing operations along its Tamworth-Brisbane route and withdrawing from the city.
The news comes just months after rival regional airline Fly Corporate announced it was doubling the number of its flights to Brisbane, and upgrading the size of its aircraft.
There are roughly 1500 passengers who fly along the Tamworth-Brisbane route every month – a fraction of the traffic travelling the other way to Sydney.
With such a small market, it was always going to be difficult to sustain two airlines on the one route.
Tamworth councillor Juanita Wilson said it was important to pay credit to Jetgo for paving the way on the Tamworth to Brisbane route, particularly when many others had failed.
The city can take some small solace in the fact that while the competition is quite literally leaving town, the Tamworth to Brisbane route will remain.
There will be a drop in service without Jetgo, but Fly Corporate has 18 flights a week to the Queensland capital, which for the moment appears to be enough to cater for the growing market.
Fly Corporate has also suggested it will put on more flights if the market demands it.
Given that Tamworth Regional Airport continues to break records for annual passenger numbers – it’s expected to hit the 200,000 mark this year – there is little doubt the Brisbane flight traffic will increase at some point in the near future.
The airport terminal is also in the middle of a $3.97 million upgrade, which is expected to bring not only more passengers and business opportunities, but also another airline (and now it looks like there is an opening).
The ball is now firmly in Fly Corporate’s court. It has a monopoly on the Brisbane-Tamworth route, and without competition, could be tempted to raises ticket prices. While the airline says it has no plans to raise prices, it couldn’t rule out the impact of “market forces”.
It’s not all gloom and doom for our airport – in fact it’s quite the opposite. This is but a small hiccup in the history of what is fast becoming an economic powerhouse for the region.