Regional puzzle

Finding pieces that fit Australian regional aviation from other regional markets

Australia’s regional airlines and the country they serve are unique. Geography, population density (or lack of) and resource exploitation have developed a finely balanced structure of supply and demand across the country, and the airlines that have grown to meet that demand – and the very Australian constraints placed upon them, like intrastate regulation – are unusual as well.

Yet there are things to be learned from overseas. Other countries have Australia’s population density, and other countries’ airlines have Australia’s airlines’ problems. In particular, Europe and the United States hold examples that could look like the future of regional aviation in Australia.