Wait on Bonza flights

Bonza customers have been told there won’t be any flights until Wednesday at the earliest as negotiations continue over the airline’s grounded fleet. Five Boeing 737 Max 8s remain parked at Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Melbourne airports after being repossessed by leasing company AIP Capital early on Tuesday.

The move prompted Bonza to enter voluntary administration, appointing Hall Chadwick to try to navigate a way out of its financial predicament and back into the air.

Initially, customers were told there was no chance of flights resuming before Friday with the repossession in force until at least midnight on Thursday.

But an update from Hall Chadwick said talks with the lessor and relevant parties regarding the resumption of operations were continuing.

As a result, administrators were unable to resume flight operations from Friday up to and including Tuesday, Hall Chadwick said.

“Customers with bookings during this period are advised not to travel to the airport,” it said.

“Customers scheduled to travel during this time are requested to make alternative arrangements with other airline carriers.”

More than 180 Bonza flights had been scheduled over the next week, carrying as many as 33,000 people.

After trawling through Bonza’s financial details, Hall Chadwick said on Wednesday it would not be possible to process or issue refunds to customers at the moment.

The announcement was a blow to passengers who had been told via text messages on Tuesday they would receive a full refund for cancelled flights.

Jetstar, Qantas and Virgin Australia indicated they would continue to accommodate Bonza passengers whose flights had been cancelled, at no cost, as long as seats were available.