Regional Express (Rex) and the District Council of Coober Pedy have agreed to renew the partnership to further improve the Coober Pedy to Adelaide air service and grow passenger numbers to record levels. The new three year partnership will commence from the 1st July 2007.
“We have had a partnership with the District Council since 2003 and this has successfully enabled Rex to keep fares affordable, double the passengers using the service and replace all 19 seat Metro 23 operations with our 34 seat Saab 340 aircraft. Fares today inclusive of the fuel levy are 25% cheaper than 4 years ago and 45% cheaper if we take out the fuel levy portion,” Geoff Breust, Rex’s Managing Director said.
Rex currently operates a single Saab 340 return service from Sunday to Friday.
“Under the new arrangement a new Saturday service will be added if certain load factor conditions are met.”
The partnership agreement calls for both council and Rex to invest in building up the air services and passenger numbers with both parties sharing the benefits of the outcome. This is a win for all the stakeholders – the community because of the continued affordable fares and increased seat capacity, the council because of the eventual increase in revenue due to the stimulation of the market and Rex because of the greater returns resulting from higher load factors.
“Without the partnership we would not have achieved the results so far nor the transition to the larger, more comfortable Saab service we provide today,” Mr Breust said.
Commenting on the partnership, the Mayor of Coober Pedy, Mr Steve Baines said the results of the partnership speak for themselves.
“We now have the 34 seat Saab 340 aircraft, affordable fares and passenger numbers at record levels. This is a win for our local community and for Rex. A quality, reliable and affordable air service is critical for Coober Pedy and we will continue to work closely with Rex to further improve the service,” Mr Baines said.
Fares between Coober Pedy and Adelaide start from as low as $182 one-way. Bookings can be made be contacting Rex directly through its Customer Contact Centre on 13 17 13 or through its website on www.rex.com.au.
Rex is Australia’s largest independent regional airline operating a fleet of 31 Saab 340 aircraft for over 1,300 flights weekly to 33 destinations from Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Rex recently announced the arrival of the first of 25 latest generation Saab 340 B Plus aircraft which it has acquired for delivery over the next three years. The aircraft will be used for fleet replacement and expansion opportunities.
Media contact: 0402 438 361 – Rex Corporate Communications
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