VAQ threatens to pull out of BNE.

[harvyk]

Don't know if this is just an empty threat or if VA actually intends on going through with this but I wouldn't want to be a VA flyer from BNE right now -> No Cookies | The Courier-Mail

VIRGIN Australia has again threatened to pull out of Queensland after discovering it was locked out of a route for fly-in, fly-out mine workers, allowing Qantas a monopoly.

Do'h, stupid typos in the title. Could a mod please fix...

 

[MarcB]

From the article:

He (Borghetti) said the decision had confirmed his view that: “Virgin Australia’s contribution to the state was not valued”.

“This will be taken into account in our future investment and network decisions,” Mr Borghetti warned..."

So all of Queensland gets punished because of the decision of one department. Sounds a little childish - perhaps just a way to justify exiting routes and probably moving the HQ back to Sydney where he lives.

 

[eastwest101]

I think this is the telling part of the article:

Mr Newman did not respond until April 1, after a new tender process for regulated routes had begun. The only explanation he offered was “the Government needed to consider a range of advice and stakeholder views about the BRC flight route”.
LNP Member for Warrego Howard Hobbs said yesterday it was he who insisted deregulation would disadvantage the people of Charleville.
Mr Hobbs said the Premier decided against deregulation based on his advice, rather than that of Department of Transport advisers.
“They don’t live out here, they’ve got no idea,” Mr Hobbs said.
“I told the Premier somebody needed to be reamed out over (the decision).”
He said if the route was deregulated, airlines would cut the number of flights to Charleville and concentrate on the busier and more lucrative Brisbane-Roma route.

So the theory seems to be that the good folk of Roma, other passengers flying between Brisbane and Roma and the taxpayers or QLD end up paying more than usual, in order to provide an air service to Charleville?

Did no-one consider the possibility of deregulating the Brisbane-Roma route, while maintaining regulation on the Charleville-Brisbane route?

 

[TomVexille]

.
So the theory seems to be that the good folk of Roma, other passengers flying between Brisbane and Roma and the taxpayers or QLD end up paying more than usual, in order to provide an air service to Charleville?

Did no-one consider the possibility or deregulating the Brisbane-Roma route and maintaining regulation on the Charleville-Brisbane route?

That's pretty much how I understood it.

 

[UP4014]

Remember Brindeaella in NSW, they still went bust on regulated routes but did overload themselves with debt.

But, I am annoyed when CEOs make threats like pulling out, just pull out if you don't like it then the QLD will know perhaps they made the wrong decision. The hollowman.

Actually if JB wanted serious action he would announce they are cutting a couple of destinations in QLD and show he means bussiness.

Matt

 

[esquire]

VA have the monopoly in southwest WA (via their purchase of SkyWest) and the results are similar - high fares and locals wanting deregulation. Of course in the case of Roma it is the lucrative FIFO $ but a media aimed dummy spit / threat to Qld is poor form from Mr Borghetti.

 

[Moopere]

“This will be taken into account in our future investment and network decisions,” Mr Borghetti warned.

I must be misreading or missing something, but that little snippet doesn't tell me that VA are pulling out of Queensland or anything close to that.

What it sounds like to me is a statement of frustration that probably goes a lot deeper then this single route and is a form of coded warning to the governement of QLD that they are too difficult to do business with (or thats perhaps the perception) and that future investment from VA will probably suffer as a result.

This doesn't at all say to me that they are pulling out of the state - but, for example, if they were to do good on the 'threat' and say ... create a new call centre then it would probably not be built and staffed in qld ... and yes, as someone mentioned already, if there was a proposed move of the HQ then it could leave the state ... and HQ of large companies is something that all Premiers seem to covet for some reason.

 

[harvyk]

I must be misreading or missing something, but that little snippet doesn't tell me that VA are pulling out of Queensland or anything close to that.

The title of the article specifically states that "Virgin Australia threatens to pull out of Brisbane after State Cabinet backflip favoured Qantas".

Now I suspect it's a combination of a frustrated Mr Borghetti coupled with a writer / editor who is wanting to use click bait titles. But it does say it right in the title none the less.

 

[Jleno]

Doesn't matter what they say. All I know is, if a particular route in Qld is profitable for VA, they won't pull it.

 

[under the radar]

From the article:

He (Borghetti) said the decision had confirmed his view that: “Virgin Australia’s contribution to the state was not valued”.

“This will be taken into account in our future investment and network decisions,” Mr Borghetti warned..."

.

"gee these grapes are sour"!!

 

[gwilli1]

For some reason I read it in the way that VA would not necessary pullout of QLD from a flying perspective , that would be ridiculous . I saw it from the perspective is that VA may move there H/O @ Bowen Hills out of QLD & relocate elsewhere , that potentially could see 1000+ QLD'ers out of work or having to relocate , which would be a political kick in the guts to the Newman government

 

[docjames]

I think it's in term of hq, not all routes in qld. Sounds poorly handled by the qld government - like most things they "handle".


Any major company will move their hq if it benefits the company overall - VA would be no exception.

 

[lovestotravel]

VA will start pulling out of QLD, a matter of time before they start handing over more routes to Tiger, in fact, already happening at OOL

 

[arbo]

For some reason I read it in the way that VA would not necessary pullout of QLD from a flying perspective , that would be ridiculous . I saw it from the perspective is that VA may move there H/O @ Bowen Hills out of QLD & relocate elsewhere , that potentially could see 1000+ QLD'ers out of work or having to relocate , which would be a political kick in the guts to the Newman government

Agree it relates to their H/O. Remember they were given considerable financial concessions from the Government of the day to set up in Brisbane. I presume that theses have expired? It might also be a ploy to receive some new financial incentives to remain in Brisbane.

 

[Jousams]

LOL. Anyone who thinks it will mean VA will stop/reduce flying in QLD should not be allowed on the internet.

It is clearly a statement referring to their corporate offices which have been something VA has (covertly through the media) done before in order to get the attention of the government.


(If I lived in Roma. I would be pretty pissed about the decision)