Summary
- Bonza’s recent nonstop service between the Sunshine Coast and Darwin is a game-changer for travelers, offering a low-cost option that did not exist before.
- In comparison with the Qantas/Jetstar combo, Bonza’s flights are significantly cheaper, with return prices starting at AU$298 ($200) and a shorter total travel time of 8:30 hours.
- CEO Tim Jordan believes that the brand new route won’t only make it easier for Australians to explore the Top End but in addition profit the Sunshine Coast tourism industry by attracting more visitors.
On Wednesday, Bonza launched its latest recent route, which also happened to be the first-ever nonstop connection between Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and Australia’s Top End and Northern Territory capital city, Darwin. While Bonza has posted many firsts because it rolled out its recent network during 2023, this route has the potential to be a real game-changer for travelers and communities at each ends of the service.
Is that this really a game-changer?
There are such a lot of overused words in aviation, and it’s commonplace to listen to that a brand new airline, aircraft or route can be a game-changer when it has nothing like that impact. So, to see why I actually have described Bonza’s latest service as a game-changer we want to resort to some facts.
Photo: Bonza
Bonza’s standard one-way lowest fare between the Sunshine Coast and Darwin is $149 ($100) with a nonstop flight time of 4:20 hours on a brand new Boeing 737 MAX 8, giving a return price of AU$298 ($200) and a visit time around 8:30 hours.
On the identical days, the bottom Qantas/Jetstar combo available on the Qantas website today has a return ticket for AU$2,369 ($1588) and a complete travel time of 25:50 hours. The outbound flight to Darwin is routed via Sydney with near a seven-hour stopover, while the return gets to the Sunshine Coast after transits in Alice Springs and Sydney, totaling seven and a half hours. The aircraft used on that odyssey are an Airbus A320, Boeing 737-800 and an Embraer E190, all of which have quite a couple of miles on the clock.
Photo: Bonza
The easy reality is that Bonza is now offering a service that didn’t exist before the low-cost carrier had the courage to launch it. A number of the costlier flights offered on the Qantas website today included a southbound flight from the Sunshine Coast to Melbourne after which doing a U-turn and heading northwards to Darwin, which might not be much fun for anyone, let alone a family with young children occurring holidays.
Creating something recent and inexpensive
The primary flight departed the Sunshine Coast at 19:49 and, after a 3:54-hour flight, landed at Darwin Airport (DRW) at 23:14. The return flight, AB646, left Darwin at 01:31 today and landed on the Sunshine Coast at 05:10, to be greeted with a welcoming breakfast as their Pyjama Party flight got here to an end.
Photo: Bonza
CEO Tim Jordan was on the inaugural flight and said he couldn’t consider a greater solution to launch Bonza’s entry into the NT than a primary flight from its home base. Jordan added:
“We all know the Top End is usually a bucket list destination and by introducing more cost-effective flights from $149 per person we’re making it easier for Aussies to explore more of their beautiful big backyard. Our latest route can also be more excellent news for the Sunshine Coast tourism industry as they welcome additional visitors ahead of the summer peak season.”
Bonza is now operating from bases in Melbourne, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, with a network of 38 routes to 21 destinations. As with this Darwin route, the airline focuses on unserved and underserved markets where low-cost travel is unavailable or is briefly supply. In its first 12 months of operation, Bonza has delivered greater than 300,000 additional seats into the Sunshine Coast region and the airport, now Australia’s fastest-growing airport.
The cakes carry on coming
Even in any case these recent routes and launches the novelty cakes keep reappearing, this time at Darwin Airport and one other one from the Sunshine Coast Airport. Here they’re:
Have you ever traveled on a Bonza flight yet? Allow us to find out about it within the comments.