The inaugural Rex flight from Melbourne to Canberra touched down at Canberra Airport today after COVID-19 twice delayed its launch.
Rex was set to launch the route and land in the Territory on 10 June but it was delayed to 18 June due to the Melbourne lockdown.
The launch was delayed again to 24 June after the lockdown was extended.
Canberra Airport’s head of aviation Michael Thomson said the new service would boost tourism recovery in the ACT and give Canberrans an affordable holiday option to Melbourne.
“We are excited by Rex’s rapid growth in the Canberra market,” he said.
“We have seen previously that competitive fares can stimulate demand and an entirely new market of leisure travellers.”
The regional airline has launched the direct service with $69 one-way fares which include checked baggage and refreshments on board the Boeing 737-800NG aircraft.
“Today’s commencement of Rex flights between Melbourne and Canberra with our $69 fares demonstrates our determination to drive down the cost of air travel and grow markets despite the most challenging of times,” said Rex’s deputy chairman John Sharp.
Rex also began flying between the nation’s capital and Sydney in April, challenging Qantas as the only airline on the route since Virgin halted their service last year.
Canberra Airport has welcomed a number of new routes and announcements over the past year, with low-cost carrier Jetstar recently announcing it would service the ACT for the first time with direct flights to Brisbane from September.
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