Regional Express has launched another blistering attack on the government as it accused Labor of being “hell-bent” on destroying regional aviation.
The criticism came as Rex reported a 45% fall in profits to $19.2 million in the 12 months to June 30. Passenger numbers tumbled almost 7%.
Rex chairman Lim Kim Hai said the results came amid “the most toxic environments ever to face aviation in Australia” with the carbon tax responsible for a “plunge” in sales immediately after its introduction in July last year.
“Minister Albanese’s claim that the impact of the carbon tax would be little more than the cost of a cup of coffee became the understatement of the aviation year, when both businesses and households cut back on flying due to the rising costs of the economy,” Lim said.
In addition to the carbon tax, the government was responsible for a "whole host of policies hostile" to regional aviation, he said,
While he described Rex as an "efficient, formidable and operationally excellent airline" whose earnings were “double that of Qantas”, Lim said there was little it could do in the face of a Federal Government “that appears to be hell-bent on destroying aviation and along with it, pretty much the rest of the economy”.
