New Australian airline Bonza has revealed the name of its third aircraft: Sheila. The low-cost carrier allowed the public to vote for the name of the new plane across its social media platforms.
“As voted by you legends, we’re excited to announce the winning name for our third aircraft is … Sheila,” Bonza said on social media.
Sheila joins the airline’s two other jets, Shazza and Bazza, in the Bonza fleet, which consists of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.
The new name has gone down well with some of Bonza’s followers on social media.
“It’s almost our private family fleet, I’m Shazza and my sister’s middle name is Sheila! Woohoo, love it!” wrote one person on Facebook.
Others were less enthusiastic about the moniker.
“Sheila is not consistent with the theme of the other two. Could have gone Planey McPlaneface after all. What a waisted [sic] opportunity.”
Another simply wrote, “OMG such a terrible name for a plane”.
One person pointed to a potential problem with the decision.
‘Bit sexiest isn’t it? How about bloke?’ they said in reference to the word ‘sheila’, which was adopted by some Australians as slang for ‘woman’.
No word yet on start date
On Instagram, many people were more concerned about when the budget airline would commence flying, as the fledging carrier has still not been granted a license to operate.
Though the airline could not respond on social media, Bonza CEO Tim Jordan told The Australian last Monday that positive steps were being made towards regulatory approval, but it was a “complex process”.
Bonza’s first plane, Shazza, touched down at Sunshine Coast Airport in early August, while its second aircraft Bazza arrived in late October.
Two weeks ago, Bonza launched a dedicated travel agent portal, welcoming advisors and trade partners to register online before the airline starts selling flights.
Visit the Bonza website or the airline’s trade portal for more information.
