South Australian airlines to shut down
Two South Australian regional airlines have announced thay will cease trading within the next week, citing significant financial losses.
Airlines of South Australia and Emu Airways, owned by Capiteq Ltd, will both cease operations on Wednesday November 9.
Airlines of South Australia flies to Port Lincoln and Port Augusta, while Emu Airways serves Kangaroo Island.
Capiteq chief executive Michael Bridge said the airlines had been “making significant losses” in the past two years and the company had sought to buy other airlines to increase its market share or find another airline to fly on its behalf.
“Neither of these options have come to fruition and we are therefore left with little alternative other than to cease operations and reduce the losses that would otherwise be incurred,” he said in a statement.
Mr Bridge said passengers who have paid for tickets would be entitled to a full refund or would be transferred to other services.
A Qantas spokeswoman said Monday that its regional arm, Qantaslink, would establish new services to Port Lincoln and Kingscote, on Kangaroo Island, from December 18, a decision welcomed by rival Regional Express.
“The entry of Qantaslink into SA will not change our approach and we will continue our strategy of making regional air travel reliable and affordable,” managing director Geoff Breust said.
“We aim to further grow our markets by building on the successes we have been able to achieve over the past three years.”
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