Flight data shows Canberra is still being taken for a ride

Well-heeled. Government-paid. No competition. That’s the Canberra air travel market.

It’s no wonder that many Canberra travellers prefer to get on the bus to fly out of Sydney Airport, from which airfares can be considerably cheaper.

Last week’s flight performance data and the ACCC’s Domestic Airline Competition Report show that the national capital is being taken for an expensive ride, mainly by the national carrier.

Qantas’s recalcitrance on cancellations, particularly on the busy Canberra-Sydney and Canberra-Melbourne routes, continues to play havoc with travel plans and connections.

Earlier in the year, it appeared the Flying Kangaroo had got the message, but in recent months the no-shows have surged again to give travellers the yips.

Obviously, Canberra customers come a poor second to other management needs.

Then, of course, there’s the fallen Rex. Without that third operator, the trip to Melbourne just got more expensive.

The competition watchdog says that since Rex suspended operations on its services between metropolitan cities on 31 July, the average airfare on all major city routes has increased by 13.3 per cent to September 2024, despite falling fuel costs.

We don’t fly often, but having had the recent dubious pleasure of booking holiday flights, not only is it more expensive, but the fare structures themselves are questionable.

From baggage fees to extortionate flexibility and insurance add-ons that should be basic consumer rights, booking is hard to navigate and an exercise in risk management. And often tinged with buyer’s remorse.

Even booking well in advance didn’t afford a discount. But what can you do? Risk picking up a sale closer to departure?

Last week, Qantas announced a 72-hour sale for customers, with over one million seats discounted to more than 60 destinations around Australia. Canberra figured once – if you wanted to go to Melbourne.

The cheaper fares that suck you in usually mean only taking carry-on luggage. But that doesn’t stop some people from carting luggage on board and dumping it in the overhead lockers so that when you want to put your small backpack or shoulder bag up top, there is no room.

It’s a free-for-all that airlines don’t seem to want to police.

Canberra has a great airport that is a dream to fly out of and a joy to come home to. Price pressure shouldn’t drive travellers elsewhere, yet there are few carrots or sticks to make flying more competitive or reliable for Canberrans.

However, there is hope that Qatar Airways’ bid to purchase a 25 per cent stake in Virgin Australia will eventually lead to more vigorous domestic competition, if the ACCC gives it the nod.

Qantas enjoys a near-monopoly on government and business travel that politicians and mandarins do not want to disrupt, but their penchant for the Chairman’s Lounge is costing everybody else.

When it comes to efficiency and productivity and all the other buzzwords, it’s about time they were applied to them as well.

The ACCC can put out report after report, but without baring some teeth – penalties and enforcement – nothing will change.

Flying remains a consumer minefield and Canberra a milch cow.

It is an industry ripe for reform.