Regional Express (Rex), Australia’s largest independent regional airline, has been named the Sustainable Small Company of the Year by Ethical Investor magazine at the 7th Australian Sustainability Awards held in Melbourne on 30 November 2007.
Presenting Rex the award, Ms Brookes McTavish, Managing Director of ASSOB (Australian Small Scale Offerings Board), said Rex has picked up the pieces of what many saw as a failed industry and has now proven that its services can be profitable, sustainable and reliable.
Ms McTavish added that Rex “has largely used community and employee engagement to achieve this. It has re-established an essential service to regional areas at a lower cost.
“And few other small companies can boast multi-million dollar community support programs and a level of employee profit share and ownership, as is evident here.
“And despite being controlled overseas, it also retains a distinctly Australian governance structure/management and character.”
Rex Deputy Chairman, Mr John Sharp, said Rex was honoured to receive the award that confirms the Company’s strong social and moral values. “While one of the most profitable regional airlines in the world, Rex is still a small regional airline with its heart firmly in the country. This award recognises Rex’s immeasurable social and economical benefits to the rural communities it serves.
“Rex is able to operate on routes that are now impossible for the traditional regional airlines to service and hence provides the indispensable lifeline for these communities that need the vital link to the capital cities for their medical and educational facilities.
“We are proud of our many great achievements. Although Rex is the monopoly provider in 32 of its 39 routes, we have reduced fares by over 30% since our beginnings five years ago and increased the frequencies and passenger numbers by close to 80% for many of the routes.”
Mr Sharp commented that Rex’s latest award for Sustainable Small Company of the Year 2007 came on the back of other recent awards like Best Regional Airline 2007 from CAPA (Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation), the best domestic airline 2007 from the readers of Australia’s leading consumer magazine and also the ranking by Aviation Week and Space Technology in July 2007 as the world’s second best airline for the category of revenue below US $1 billion.
Rex is Australia’s largest independent regional airline operating a fleet of 36 Saab 340 aircraft on 1,300 flights weekly to 25 destinations from Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane. The Rex Group comprises Regional Express, air freight and charter operator Pel - Air Aviation and Dubbo based regional airline, Air Link.
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