The Moree to Sydney air service will remain in safe hands for a further two years following the announcement that QantasLink has once again been awarded the two-year licence.
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Member for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall was in Moree on Friday to pass on the good news that Transport for NSW had granted QantasLink the exclusive two-year licence to provide air services between Moree and Sydney.
“This is absolutely brilliant news for the Moree community,” he said.
“This is something the community have wanted; they have a wonderful relationship with Qantaslink. It has been a great servant of the Moree community for many years and to see that service being able to continue is absolutely terrific.
“The Moree community have lobbied very hard to ensure that QantasLink remained here and I want to pay tribute to the community, to Moree Plains Shire Council and, in particular, mayor Katrina Humphries because this has been a really strong team effort.”
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Mr Marshall said the Moree to Sydney air route carries about 34,000 passengers a year and is a vital lifeline for businesses, health services, tourism and locals, with a catchment extending into southern Queensland and far western NSW.
Earlier this year, Transport for NSW announced the Moree to Sydney air route would remain regulated following the community’s fight against deregulation and since June the tender process for the two-year licence has been underway.
”There was a public tender process and there was a number of criteria that were looked at in terms of access to slots into Sydney and key times, track record of servicing regional communities, having the actual commercial viability to service this route, and, of course, how the community felt about the airline,” Mr Marshall said.
”And of course, on all that criteria, QantasLink scored absolutely off the charts which is no surprise because they’ve been successfully servicing this route for a number of year.”
While Mr Marshall is thrilled that the partnership between the Moree community and QantasLink will continue for a further two years, he plans to use this time to fight for the community to have the right to allow their favoured carrier to continue operating beyond the contract period without the need for a cumbersome and worrying tender process again.
“I want to make sure that we don’t have to go through this situation again in two years’ time,” he said.
“I’m absolutely committed to working with council and the community to see if we can change any of the regulations and rules to ensure the community is happy with the carrier and that council is happy with the carrier as the owner of the airport and that we don’t have to go through a very frustrating and very scary tender process.”
Moree mayor Katrina Humphries praised Mr Marshall for “going in to bat” for the community against the “ridiculous” tender process.
“We have a good partnership with Qantas and QantasLink and we’re very pleased as a community to have them back where they belong, not that they went very far, but this whole scenario just cannot play out again,” she said.
“It’s ridiculous. It should never have happened in the first place. We’ve had no say as a community in who gets our airline service and that’s wrong.”
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Cr Humphries slammed Transport for NSW for the lack of consultation throughout the tender process and called for a contract to be awarded to QantasLink for at least five years.
“I’m still bitterly disappointed with Transport for NSW,” she said.
“As always, we’ve had an ongoing battle with this; it’s taken up an inordinate amount of time, a lot of resources and has been a very, very frustrating time. Our community are bitter about it and they won’t forget it.
“Our community is smart enough, savvy enough and well-versed enough to know that if they don’t get in and fight for something passionately, they won’t get it.
“The community has been fabulous. They’ve given a heap of time, they’ve filled in surveys, they’ve written letters and they’ve left no-one in any doubt as to what they’d expect from an airline carrier.
“We’re immensely proud to have QantasLink back secure in Moree for another two years. Personally, I’d like to see a 10-year contract and we can all get on with our lives.”
Tourism Moree CEO Tammy Elbourne congratulated the Moree community on standing together to fight for the vital service.
“It’s a vital link for our economic stability, growth, health services and more,” she said.
“QantasLink is safe and reliable and, from a tourism perspective, that link is particularly important during tough times. Tourism and the corporate business market is what is assisting to drive revenue into the community while our primary industry is hurting.
“This is great news.”
QantasLink CEO John Gissing said the renewal of the licence to operate between Moree and Sydney is great news for local residents.
“QantasLink has proudly served the Moree community for 25 years; it is an important part of our regional network,” he said.
“Our Q200 and Q300 turboprop aircraft, which operate from Moree, are also being upgraded with a refreshed cabin to provide our travellers with greater comfort and an even better in-flight experience.”