A day after the Labour government announced the possibility of nationalizing sick regional airlines, a political party in a country says it would be too expensive.
The Catters Australia Party (KAP) in rural Queensland is asking the federal government to reconsider its idea of nationalizing diseased regional airline Rex.
The party says that if they take on an airline with an aging fleet, they will fail to give taxpayers the value of their money. Instead, KAP suggests that the government should consider taking up new or new airlines.
The Prime Minister proposed the idea of a federal acquisition of airlines, highlighting the importance of service availability and affordability.
However, KAP leader and Traeger MP Robbie Katter will be working for airlines that serve numerous rural and regional routes in Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia. said it will handle airlines.
Catter described the airline as “dead horses” with fleets that are inappropriate for the hot North Australian situation.
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The turboprop of the Saab 340B, noted by Katter, performs better in cooler Northern Hemisphere climates and is not suitable for Australia’s tropical and remote challenges.
Lobby cutters at Mount Isa Airport. Photo: Courtesy Robbie Katter
Private pilot Catter also criticized Rex’s poor performance for a decline in performance over the past decade.
He argued that rather than competing on major urban routes with airlines such as Virgin and Qantas, Rex should have focused on fleet upgrades and prioritizing rural services.
Katter also mentioned the $67 million government incentive that received Rex during Covid Pandemic, the $80 million relief granted in November 2024, and the $50 million purchase of airline debt.
“Given that it has already invested in the government’s wasteful investment in Rex, the federal government aims to sink more money into this failed business with an old aircraft that is not worthy of purpose in hot Northern conditions. It seems like a very questionable approach to being there,” Katter said.
KAP has long supported the return of nationalized airlines to Australian taxpayers. Kennedy member Bob Katar said the past 30 years of a fully privatised airline have been an unbearable abnormality.
“For almost everything about the country’s history in aviation, we had an airline that was owned by people, at least the police officers who keep the other mobs a little honest,” he said.
“It is absolutely essential that Australia returns to its roots alongside government-owned airlines.
“Oligopoly in this area remains our reality, but it continues to cost residents in one or more ways.”
