Rex - Regional Express (ZL, Wagga Wagga) will begin operating E190 flights on the Adelaide - Perth International city pair, using wet-leased aircraft supplied by National Jet Express (JTE, Adelaide International). The flights will start on June 28. It will be the first time Rex has used Embraer types across its regular passenger network. It owns 50% of National Jet Express, with the other 50% belonging to joint venture partners, one of whom is Rex's chairman.
Australian government Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics figures show almost 630,000 passengers flew between Adelaide and Perth in 2023, with Qantas, Virgin Australia, and Jetstar Airways already flying the 2,130-kilometre sector. The National Jet Express-operated flights will be ticketed as Rex flights and will initially operate three times per week. Last week, Rex announced the start of Melbourne Tullamarine-Perth flights, also beginning on June 28, albeit using its own B737-800s.
Charters including ad hoc, closed contract cargo, and fly-in-fly-out (FIFO) work are the core business of National Jet Express. However, it is already operating some regular passenger transport flights on behalf of Rex, with one of its DHC-8-Q400s flying some frequencies between Perth and Carnarvon over the 2024 southern winter.
Since acquiring National Jet Express in mid 2022, Rex has expressed interest in using its subsidiary's assets to support its scheduled passenger operations, especially outside the FIFO morning and afternoon peaks. "We're looking at utilising the [National Jet] fleet in parts of the day when it's idle," Rex deputy chairman John Sharp told ch-aviation in 2023."We're doing a lot of work to see how we can go about it." The Adelaide-Perth route was flagged by Sharp as a good fit for the E190s.
