Today, Australian startup Bonza Airline took delivery of its first aircraft, a Boeing 737 MAX-8, which landed at Sunshine Coast Airport at 9:34 local time. In doing so, the low-cost carrier took another step towards the start of its scheduled commercial operations, predicted for next month.
The aircraft, with manufacturer’s serial number (MSN) 62533 and registrated as VH-UJT, departed Seattle-Boeing Field (BFI) for Honolulu (HNL) on July 29th. The next day, it flew from Hawaii’s capital to Nadi (NAN), Fiji, where it stayed overnight. It finally completed its journey today, arriving in Sunshine Coast Airport (MCY) after a 3 hours and 54 minutes flight.
Last February, Bonza had announced that the airport would become one of its first two hubs, alongside Melbourne’s Tullamarine International Airport (MEL). Located 90 kilometres from the centre of Brisbane, it is the main air terminal in the South West Queensland region.
The first destinations available from Sunshine Coast will be Melbourne, Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, Whitsundays, Rockhampton, Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie, Newcastle, Albury, Tamworth, Avalon and Mildura.
Bonza aims to launch operations in September
While the company maintains its projections and expects to start commercial operations by the end of September, it has yet to complete the process of obtaining its Air Operator Certificate from the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). The receipt of the first aircraft is an important step in this direction and the second aircraft is expected to arrive in August.
«We are now one important step closer to connecting more Australians with convenient low cost travel options to more destinations for holidays and to visit loved ones», said Tim Jordan, the company’s CEO. Bonza will operate from 17 airports and offer 27 different routes. Of these, 93% will be unique to the airline, while up to 96% are not currently served by any low-cost carrier.
Its main investor, Miami-based 777 Partners, placed a total of four different orders for Boeing 737 MAX aircraft during 2021. Initially, eight will be destined for Bonza’s fleet.
