Opinion: Is Rex’s heart still in the country?

Can the airline still claim to be an underdog as it expands into jet services and the tough FIFO market?

Take a look at any Rex plane and you’ll see the slogan splashed across the side: “Our heart is in the country”. While it’s true that the bulk of Rex’s fleet remains its workhorse Saab turboprops serving regional destinations around the country, Australia’s third largest airline group has been undergoing something of a metamorphosis.

I recently had cause to ponder this when speaking to Alan Milne, CEO of Queensland-based regional airline Skytrans, about its decision to step up and fill the gap left behind by Rex pulling out of Cairns–Bamaga alongside a few other routes. Rex blamed the major airlines (particularly long-standing rival Qantas) for “relentless pillaging” of its pilots, but Milne was more philosophical.