Virgin Australia has criticised the federal authorities for blocking further Qatar Airways flights, saying worldwide airfares will stay sky excessive and the tourism sector will undergo.
The authorities final month rejected Qatar’s bid to run extra flights to Australia, with Transport Minister Catherine King saying the request was not within the nationwide curiosity.
Qatar Airways is owned by the Qatari authorities, which has been accused of human rights abuses.
But in a video message to employees, Virgin Australia chief government Jayne Hrdlicka stated the federal authorities’s choice was disappointing and complicated.
“There’s no understandable reason why they were denied those rights,” she stated.
“They’re our partner, they served Australia well throughout COVID, and they’re trying to continue to support Australians.”
Opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie accused the federal government of operating a “protection racket” for Qantas by refusing to extend competitors with the Qatar flights.
Qantas chief government Alan Joyce has confirmed the corporate made a submission to the federal government in search of to dam the Qatar flights however defended the transfer, saying different carriers had added a “massive amount” of capability to the market.
Ms Hrdlicka stated a scarcity of competitors and flight capability was retaining worldwide airfares excessive.
“Prices have been as high as two times 2019 levels,” she stated.
“Qatar is one of the only airlines in the world that could overnight put four additional services per day into Australia and for some reason they were denied.”
The chief government stated extra Qatar flights would have introduced an extra $500 million to Australia’s tourism sector, particularly in Queensland.
“This decision means less jobs, less opportunity, and denied growth for a part of the economy that suffered most during COVID,” Ms Hrdlicka stated.
A Virgin Australia spokeswoman confirmed the video was despatched to employees on Thursday, including it was necessary to extend aviation capability between Australia and the remainder of the world.
“We look forward to working with the federal government and other key stakeholders to find a way to understand and resolve the underlying issues,” the spokeswoman stated in a press release to AAP.
Mr Joyce will on Monday seem earlier than a Senate committee on the rising price of dwelling.
Competition within the airline business is predicted to function throughout questioning.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
