Low Cost Carriers is a popular topic at the Australian Frequent Flyer. And for obvious reasons - we all love a bargain! But the problem with low cost carriers is that once you have paid for all the extras, you could end up paying more than a discounted ticket on a full service airline.
Update (October 2022): Bonza has launched a travel agent portal to allow travel agents to book Bonza flights. It remains the case that the only way to book direct will be through Bonza’s app. In October 2021, Bonza announced plans to launch a new Australian low-cost airline connecting regional Australia with Boeing 737 MAX jets. … Continued
The Qantas Group owns two distinct brands in the Australian market. Qantas is supposed to be the premium, full-service brand while Jetstar is positioned as the low-cost carrier with cheap fares but less service. Ironically though, the customer service provided by Jetstar at the moment is far superior to that of Qantas! The problems with Qantas … Continued
Over the past two years of border closures and COVID-related travel disruptions, there haven’t been many good deals on flights to Europe. But Singaporean low-cost carrier Scoot is trying to change this, with flights from Australia to Europe available now from as little as $606 return. The flights with Scoot are available from Gold Coast, … Continued
Sunshine Coast Airport will be the biggest winner when Bonza Airlines launches low-cost domestic flights in mid-2022. This week, Bonza revealed the 25 point-to-point routes to and from 16 Australian airports that the airline will serve using its initial fleet of five Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets. Bonza’s route map will be further expanded when … Continued
Bonza is a new Australian low-cost airline that plans to launch domestic flights in the second quarter of 2022. The start-up airline’s CEO Tim Jordan has big plans to carve its own niche out of the Australian aviation market! Operating a small fleet of Boeing 737-MAX 8s with 186 Economy seats each, Bonza won’t be … Continued
A new start-up airline is planning to launch low-cost flights to leisure and regional destinations across Australia from next year. Bonza, as the airline has been named, doesn’t plan to compete directly with Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin and Rex on routes with lots of business travellers. Flying a small fleet of new, single-class Boeing 737-8 aircraft … Continued
Jetstar has increased the amount of money its earns from add-ons, bundles and fees by a third during the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the Qantas Group’s financial results, Jetstar’s ancillary revenue increased by 33% in the 2020-21 financial year, compared to the “pre-COVID” 2018-19 financial year. Ancillary revenue refers to the income made from selling … Continued
Jetstar will begin flights to Canberra for the first time, with a 5x weekly Brisbane-Canberra service launching on 2 September 2021. The Jetstar A320 services between Brisbane and the nation’s capital will run every day except Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with the following schedule (flights arrive/depart Canberra one hour later during daylight savings): “We’re excited to … Continued
When flying domestically within New Zealand, there are two main airline choices: Air New Zealand or Jetstar. As you’d expect from a low-cost carrier, Jetstar offers typically low fares and a no-frills service. I recently found out what the Jetstar Airbus A320 Economy class experience in New Zealand is like on a short flight from Auckland … Continued
Virgin Australia has resumed actively weighing hand luggage to ensure passengers aren’t flouting the 7kg carry-on limit. Virgin is now randomly checking carry-on bags at boarding gates at some airports, including Melbourne and Sydney, as well as when passengers check in. Business class passengers and Velocity Platinum & Gold members are not immune, as these … Continued
If you’ve ever searched for flights on the Qantas website, you’ve probably noticed that flights on Qantas’ wholly-owned low-cost subsidiary, Jetstar, also appear in the results. Perhaps you’ve even been tempted to book a Jetstar flight that you found on the Qantas website. But this is often a rip-off, and you could be paying a … Continued
Regional Express (Rex) has begun selling seats on its new Boeing 737 jet services between Sydney and Melbourne at just $79 for Economy class and $299 for Business class. Rex plans to operate 9 daily return flights on the Sydney-Melbourne route from 1 March 2021. It will initially use three Boeing 737-800 aircraft to do … Continued