Thousands of Regional Express customers are struggling to find new flights after the airline entered voluntary administration and cancelled trips between major cities.
Rex’s regional flights are operating as normal and Virgin Australia has worked to help customers booked to capital cities access alternative flights free of charge.
Virgin Australia said 4,600 Rex customers had contacted them for assistance by early Wednesday and 500 had already booked new flights.
Rex’s Saab 340 regional flights were not affected and continue to operate, but 737 services, which serve major cities including the busy Sydney to Melbourne route which began operating in 2021, have been suspended.
All booking change requests to Virgin must be made by 14 August 2024.
Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka said Rex should have already contacted affected customers and Virgin staff were ready to try to ease their confusion.
“All they have to do is call and rebook their flight to prove they have a Rex booking reference number which gives them the ability to rebook with us,” he told ABC radio.
“We’re trying to accommodate people as close to their departure time as possible.”
Rex Airlines has entered voluntary administration and suspended all flights between major airports.
Affected Rex customers can also visit the Virgin Australia website to rebook their tickets.
Rex and Virgin Australia are exploring ways to support regional customers, including Virgin selling Rex’s regional services through codeshare or interline arrangements, and making Virgin’s frequent flyer benefits available.
A statement posted on Rex’s website late on Tuesday said the administration affected parent company Regional Express Holdings Limited and a number of its subsidiaries operating under the Rex Group name.
Samuel Freeman, Justin Walsh and Adam Nikitins of Ernst & Young Australia have been appointed as joint administrators by the board of directors of Rex.
Rex employs around 2,000 people and Virgin is offering staff affected by the grounding of the 737s the chance to apply for vacant positions via the airline’s website.
Transport Workers Union national secretary Michael Kaine said it was a tough day for Rex staff.
“We are back in this situation again… aviation seems to be in crisis,” he told ABC TV.
“What we want to do is figure out, through our efforts, what we can do to minimize their distress… Virgin is taking steps to get expressions of interest from the workforce, and that’s really critical.”
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said it was a “huge relief” that Rex was continuing to serve regional areas while under administration.
The federal government has been in talks with the airline about a support package, he added.
“Obviously there have been discussions but… we want to hear what the company has next,” Dr Chalmers told ABC TV.
“Our top priority is to ensure that we can continue to serve and deliver to regional communities and economies because we know how important it is – we are prepared to play a constructive role.”
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese questioned the airline’s expansion into major capital city routes.
He noted that Rex had received substantial public funding during the pandemic “without strings attached”.
“One of the things I raised concerns about was the lack of conditions, so Rex, for example, moved away from its traditional role of being a regional airline to offer flights, for example, from Sydney to Melbourne,” Albanese said.
Virgin Australia has offered passengers scheduled for Rex domestic 737 services a free rebooking, but they must rebook by 14 August.
National Senator Bridget McKenzie said Rex’s foray into the capital market, including a recent Melbourne to Perth route, had increased competition between aviation players, resulting in cheaper fares offered by Qantas.
“Let us not continue to pretend that Qantas’ behaviour is acceptable in the aviation industry,” Senator McKenzie said.
“Every time they are faced with a challenge, they look to emulate airlines like Rex… who have sought to provide Australians with another way to travel.”
Rex began service between Sydney and Melbourne, one of the world’s busiest routes, in 2021.
Many regional communities rely on the airline, which was created 22 years ago after the collapse of Ansett.
Unlike Bonza, which entered voluntary administration in April, Rex mostly owns its aircraft rather than leasing them.
Rex’s core fleet comprises 61 leased SAAB 340s and seven leased Boeing 737-800s, for a total of 123 aircraft.
Since the pandemic, Rex has struggled with profitability. In February, it reported a net loss of $3.2 million for the first half of the 2023/24 financial year.