Australia's Bonza, Canada's Flair in reciprocal ACMI deal

Bonza (AB, Sunshine Coast) will wet-lease two B737-8s from fellow 777 Partners-backed carrier Flair Airlines (F8, Kelowna) to kickstart flights from its Gold Coast Coolangatta base. The "strategic partnership" will see the Canadian operator send aircraft to Australia during the Northern Hemisphere's slower winter season, while in the future, the Australian start-up will return the favour during its down season.

"At a time where aircraft demand is high and supply chain challenges reign, Bonza is benefiting from a strategic partnership with Flair Airlines in Canada," said Bonza CEO Tim Jordan. "The Canadian ultra-low-cost carrier reached out to support the commencement of operations at Bonza’s Gold Coast base pre Christmas - a partnership that recognises the differing seasonal peaks between the two airlines. This is a reciprocal partnership that both airlines intend to leverage for many years to come."

Bonza presently flies four B737-8s, all sourced from owner 777 Partners. However, the US investment fund has reneged on promises to deliver additional aircraft, determining that they have higher priorities elsewhere. Consequently, Bonza's four aircraft have struggled to ply a network of 25 routes servicing 17 airports. A planned fifth aircraft, designed to act as a spare and provide some redundancy, was diverted to Flair Airlines after that carrier had four planes repossessed earlier this year. 777 Partners is also the largest singular Flair shareholder with a 25% stake. Bonza had initially intended to secure eight B737-8s from 777 Partners in its first 12 months of operations.

Reliability issues forced Bonze to recently readjust its existing schedules, including trimming services on some routes and axing services altogether on others. However, the arrival of the two Flair aircraft will see Bonza open 11 new routes from Gold Coast Coolangatta Airport, providing around 70 roundtrips each week, specifically;

• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Albury from November 20;
• Twice weekly roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Bundaberg from December 4;
• Five times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Cairns from December 4;
• Twice weekly roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Gladstone from December 6;
• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Mackay from November 16;
• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Rockhampton from November 20;
• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Townsville from November 15;
• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Proserpine from December 7;
• Four times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Melbourne Tullamarine from November 16;
• Three times a week roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Melbourne Avalon from December 5; and
• Twice weekly roundtrips between Gold Coast Coolangatta and Mildura from December 6.

A Bonza spokesperson did not respond to a question about how long the wet leases were for. The airline has also not recently provided any updates about any anticipated incoming aircraft from 777 Partners.