Hannah Dowling

Western Australia has announced that soon NSW travellers allowed into the state will need to show proof of vaccination and a negative COVID test prior to travel, in the state’s toughest border restrictions to date.

The airline is now looking to bring forward the deployment of its E190 aircraft, and suggested it will continue to hire new pilots, cabin crew and ground staff to support the speedy deployment.

The aircraft was chartered from Russian airline Volga-Dnepr by Sunshine Coast company McDermott Aviation, just days after Greece’s government requested its assistance in combating the nation’s extensive wildfires.

The New Zealand PM announced on Thursday that the country is preparing to re-open quarantine-free travel for vaccinated people from countries considered low risk by March 2022.

Tourism operator Sydney Seaplanes will begin offering “significant discounts” to vaccinated Australians, in an effort to drive up local immunisation rates and re-open international borders.

It’s rumoured that hundreds of staff across the airline’s network could be affected, with the employees supporting Rex’s new Boeing 737 operations expected to be hit the hardest.