Hannah Dowling

Rex aims to rival Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia by expanding its network to service capital cities by early next year.

The new $298 million regional aviation bailout announced by the federal government on Saturday “ignores” the ground handling industry, according to Cabin Services Australia, dnata, Menzies Aviation and Swissport.

Regional Express (Rex) and the Airlines for Australia and New Zealand industry group have both welcomed Saturday’s $298 million government bailout for the regional airline industry.

On Thursday, Qantas announced that it would ‘stand down’ a majority of its 30,000 strong workforce, putting 20,000 workers into a state of flux until “at least” the end of May 2020.

As of today, Qantas has temporarily diverted its flagship route, the QF1 flight from Sydney to London, to fly via in Darwin rather than Singapore, as COVID-19 travel restrictions continue to affect the aviation services industry.

Qantas shifted forward two flights to Christchurch on Sunday to avoid the start of New Zealand’s self-isolation coronavirus restrictions, Australian Aviation can reveal.