Wirraway
5th Nov 2004, 16:24
Sat "Weekend Australian"
Cheap fares encourage first-timers to take to the skies
Steve Creedy and Michael Davis
November 06, 2004
UP to one in 10 passengers on low-cost domestic airlines are thought to be first-time flyers as cheaper fares convince people to take to the air in record numbers.
Domestic passenger numbers in July rose 16.4 per cent from the same month last year to hit almost 3.44 million and establish a new monthly record.
The July high, hot on the heels of a bumper 2003-04 which included eight of the 10 busiest months in Australian aviation history, came as the Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics' discount air fare index hit the lowest level since it began in 2000. Ticket prices as low as $29 pushed the cheapest airfares to half the levels available before the launch of the low-cost carriers, helping to stimulate the market.
Jetstar said a survey of its passengers at Victoria's Avalon Airport showed 10 per cent were first-time flyers and 27per cent flew only once or twice a year.
"Clearly, they're people who want to travel and they've obviously been stimulated by our fare structure and the new point-to-point services we offer," said Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway.
About 170,000 passengers have passed through Avalon since it began operating five months ago and officials estimate this will hit 350,000 for the first full year.
That includes people such as retirees Gail and Alan Leury, from the Melbourne suburb of Keilor, who flew Jetstar for the first time this week to travel to Sydney for the birth of their grandchild.
Their $69 fare (one way) on Jetstar compared with the $250 they were quoted by Qantas, Mrs Leury said.
Tourism is also reaping the benefits of the cheaper fares and the industry is estimated to have gained $1 billion from a 13.3 per cent jump in passenger numbers in 2003-04.
The NSW coastal resort of Coffs Harbour took a battering after the collapse of Ansett. But it has seen a strong turnaround since the arrival of Virgin in July 2002.
Passenger traffic for 2002-03 was up 57 per cent on the previous year and rose a further 12.4 per cent in the year ending June 30.
Virgin spokeswoman Amanda Bolger argued the arrival of cheap fares had not only stimulated the market but was also changing the way people travel.
Ms Bolger said people were not planning as far ahead and were more likely to take advantage of fare sales and everyday low fares to take a short break.
"A lot of the tourism guys are really promoting the short-break concept," she said.
Not so happy are bus companies which are grappling with consolidation and a 25 per cent downturn in national routes in the past three years as a result of cheap airfares.
Greyhound Australia marketing manager Brian Clinton said the days of long-distance services were gone. The emphasis was now on regional services.
A bus trip from Sydney to Brisbane will see a seat filled two or three times by passengers travelling on different sectors. "What we're trying to do is to build our network and our frequency in the places the airlines don't go," Mr Clinton said.
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Cheap fares encourage first-timers to take to the skies
Steve Creedy and Michael Davis
November 06, 2004
UP to one in 10 passengers on low-cost domestic airlines are thought to be first-time flyers as cheaper fares convince people to take to the air in record numbers.
Domestic passenger numbers in July rose 16.4 per cent from the same month last year to hit almost 3.44 million and establish a new monthly record.
The July high, hot on the heels of a bumper 2003-04 which included eight of the 10 busiest months in Australian aviation history, came as the Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics' discount air fare index hit the lowest level since it began in 2000. Ticket prices as low as $29 pushed the cheapest airfares to half the levels available before the launch of the low-cost carriers, helping to stimulate the market.
Jetstar said a survey of its passengers at Victoria's Avalon Airport showed 10 per cent were first-time flyers and 27per cent flew only once or twice a year.
"Clearly, they're people who want to travel and they've obviously been stimulated by our fare structure and the new point-to-point services we offer," said Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway.
About 170,000 passengers have passed through Avalon since it began operating five months ago and officials estimate this will hit 350,000 for the first full year.
That includes people such as retirees Gail and Alan Leury, from the Melbourne suburb of Keilor, who flew Jetstar for the first time this week to travel to Sydney for the birth of their grandchild.
Their $69 fare (one way) on Jetstar compared with the $250 they were quoted by Qantas, Mrs Leury said.
Tourism is also reaping the benefits of the cheaper fares and the industry is estimated to have gained $1 billion from a 13.3 per cent jump in passenger numbers in 2003-04.
The NSW coastal resort of Coffs Harbour took a battering after the collapse of Ansett. But it has seen a strong turnaround since the arrival of Virgin in July 2002.
Passenger traffic for 2002-03 was up 57 per cent on the previous year and rose a further 12.4 per cent in the year ending June 30.
Virgin spokeswoman Amanda Bolger argued the arrival of cheap fares had not only stimulated the market but was also changing the way people travel.
Ms Bolger said people were not planning as far ahead and were more likely to take advantage of fare sales and everyday low fares to take a short break.
"A lot of the tourism guys are really promoting the short-break concept," she said.
Not so happy are bus companies which are grappling with consolidation and a 25 per cent downturn in national routes in the past three years as a result of cheap airfares.
Greyhound Australia marketing manager Brian Clinton said the days of long-distance services were gone. The emphasis was now on regional services.
A bus trip from Sydney to Brisbane will see a seat filled two or three times by passengers travelling on different sectors. "What we're trying to do is to build our network and our frequency in the places the airlines don't go," Mr Clinton said.
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