Bonza may have taken a knock recently, but it did so on the chin, announcing it would be axing some routes and scaling back others in an open and frank letter to customers.
In the letter, Bonza chief commercial officer Carly Povey said the carrier would be taking a “step back” to improve reliability at the airline.
But Bonza has since won the support of countless flyers on social media, for its transparency as well as its service in the sky and on the ground.
Some praised the airline for making a sound business decision. Others offered messages of support for existing routes, while many suggested the airline consider new routes.
Here is just some of the commentary Bonza customers posted on the airline’s Facebook page:
- [We flew] Mackay to Tulla return and can’t fault ya’s atm. My kids, especially my 5 year old, is loving Bonza.
- Whatever changes you make, Bonza is ok by me, the main thing is for you guys to remain viable and maintain these valuable routes. There will always be complainers… comes with the territory. Look forward to my next flight.
- Great Aussie honesty and a proactive approach. Thank you so much for continuing the Bundaberg flight, we’ve long begged for this service.
- I love the transparent communication and the changes, which make good business sense to be able to provide a reliable long-term brand. Flying with Bonza regularly is a great experience. Keep up the great work and see you again this afternoon on our flight to the Whitsundays.
- Great airline, … Have flown a few times from Gladstone to Melbourne. What I loved is, one flight was running an hour late, I wake up in the morning, turn my phone on and already there is a text message informing me of the delay, the reason and the new time. Which allowed me to restructure my morning and arrive at the airport for the flight. Compared to Qantas who have no communications until you arrive at the airport, stuck there for hours.
- Thank you – clear, honest communication and a totally understandable approach to ensuring that Bonza can go the distance. Looking forward to my next Port to Melbourne return flights!
- Good call. I hope to see Bonza thrive into the future.
- Being a resident of Mackay, I am sad they are dropping the Cairns to Mackay flights. However I am not mad because they are putting more flights on for the routes with the demand. This is reasonable.
- Excellent customer service. You guys have definitely shook up the others..ONYA !!!!
- Already done a return flight MKY to CNS. The next one is booked & another coming up after that too!
- Love, love, love the direct flights & amazing prices & Bonza Aussie options onboard.
- Every airline has times when flights are delayed – at this price, & for the minimal changes in schedule, you have my thumbs up!
- I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Carly on board during your inaugural flight to Toowoomba & and have since used Bonza several more times, allowing me an affordable and an effective way for me to visit family regularly in Toowoomba from Melbourne.
- We understand changes to schedule are inevitable, especially for a new airline. Whilst there’ll be an inconvenience for some customers the good thing is these changes should see a more reliable & sustainable airline long term. Hard decisions sometimes have to be made in business, and I feel Bonza has a great team making those decisions so that we Aussies can continue experiencing the Bonza way! Thanks Legends!
- Great communication, have done a few trips Mildura-Sunshine Coast also Mildura-Melbourne with no worries at all.
- My step-daughter (16) did Mackay to Melbourne and return. She had zero issues. The flight attendants checked on her a few times being younger and on her own, so she felt well looked after.
- Thank you for the communication about changes and reasons for them.
- Just love the flights from Albury to Sunshine. Awesome planes, crew, just all round BONZA legends. You are doing an awesome job.
- Thank you for your open communication. Just flew Melbourne to Bundaberg. A full flight!
- Apart from being rescheduled twice, the flight was great. Looking forward to more journeys with you.
- Flown 4 times already and had a great experience. Thanks for the update.
- I go to Port Macquarie from Melb quite a few times a year for business, loving the Bonza direct flights, so quick, only take carry on so it’s off the plane and out the front door of PM airport.
- I appreciate the reflections and the changes; having been negatively impacted in the past two days it is welcoming to hear that the seriousness of this situation is known. Personally I will be following along to see if the changes are receiving positive feedback before reconsidering Bonza.
- Disappointing but not surprising given the low load factors. Seems like routes out of Melbourne are performing better. Looking forward to being able to fly them again.
In an interview with Karryon, Bonza chief executive Tim Jordan said the airline could ‘initially’ fly to up to 20 destinations out of Sydney if it could obtain slots out of Australia’s busiest airport.
Jordan added that the carrier had “more than 1,000 travel agents sign up” with the airline.
