The Coalition Government will support at risk regional air routes with up to $30 million in loans from the Regional Infrastructure Fund for small passenger airlines, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones and Associate Transport Minister James Meager say.
“Reliable air services are critical for the economic and social wellbeing of regional New Zealand. They enable access to healthcare, education, business, and whānau, particularly in areas where other transport options are limited,” Mr Jones says.
“Small regional carriers are under pressure from rising costs, limited access to capital, and ongoing post-COVID disruptions. Without this support, some communities risk losing vital air links and potential regional development,” Mr Jones says.
A terrible decision. Why should taxpayers give or loan money to airlines? If not enough people in a region are willing to pay the cost of air connections, then they just have to get to the next closest airport.
David Farrar runs Curia Market Research, a specialist opinion polling and research agency, and the popular Kiwiblog where this article was sourced. He previously worked in the Parliament for eight years, serving two National Party Prime Ministers and three Opposition Leaders
3 comments:
I’m normally all for the free market- but airlines keep airports going and airports maintain runways….and without airlines operating the airport closes and then the runway disappears- the runways in remote harder to access areas are actually vital infrastructure- and it’s cheaper to throw a regional airline a (temporary) subsidy than it is for a govt to maintain or rebuild a runway - especially if it might need that runway in a hurry one day.
So this one makes sense.
(Think kapiti airport/palmerston north airport/dunedin airport/ Nelson airport….without this airline subsidy all of these airports are under threat too - yet they are all important infrastructure)
Obviously David you live in an area served by an airport. This is not a subsidy to make Arline's rich. It is to provide a service to remote areas to help people there. Queensland and PNG do a similar thing. There is a saying that if you want to make a small fortune, start with a big fortune then buy an airline.
PNG is a bit different as there is no road network between the southern coastal areas and the highlands. It's either a long and dangerous walk, a boat trip to Lae and then a journey up the perilous Highlands Highway, or a brief trip on a plane to get from the capital Port Moresby to highlands destinations.
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