Council v Rex soap opera continues
REX Airlines has scrapped a meeting between the airline and Dubbo Regional Council (DRC) scheduled for this month.
According to DRC, the meeting in Dubbo was to follow a meeting Mayor Ben Shields and DRC CEO Michael Mcmahon attended in Sydney in August.
“Dubbo Regional Council is disappointed Rex Airlines has chosen to withdraw from (this month’s) scheduled meeting to discuss options for better fares for flights between Dubbo and Sydney and ways to improve the relationship between Council and Rex,” a DRC spokesperson told
However, Rex said the decision to can the meeting was because of “legal action being taken against Rex by individual members of council” and they “did not feel continuing with the meeting would be appropriate under the circumstances”.
Council CEO Mr Mcmahon has confirmed that he and the five directors of Council are assessing what legal action may be taken against Rex in relation to comments made in a letter which was dropped in about 16,000 Dubbo mailboxes in early November.
“The Executive Leadership team at Dubbo Regional Council is currently seeking a retraction from Regional Express, about comments made in a letter that was sent out to the Dubbo community in a letterbox drop recently,” Mr Mcmahon said in a statement.
“All available and appropriate avenues are being considered to seek redress to correct the erroneous statements being made by Rex in our community.”
The scathing letter was titled “Rex exposes lies and falsehoods made by the Dubbo Regional Council” and accused the council of “ripping off the Dubbo travelling community of over $3 million every year through its outrageous airport head tax charges.”
The letter, signed by Rex executive chairman Lim Kim Hai, used strong and negative words to describe actions by the DRC.
The strained relationship between Rex and DRC over passenger fees and security screening has played out publicity in the media over recent months.
The stoush escalated when DRC backed its decision to increase the Dubbo airport head tax by $1.99 to $16.90 per passenger for the 2019-20 financial year to cover airport upgrades, but Rex claimed the fees were far more than similar regional terminals.
The airline is also forced to pay Dubbo airport to security screen its passengers, something it says it is not legally required to do under Federal Government legislation.
In October, Rex threatened to cancel or reduce its current 61 weekly flights between Dubbo and Sydney.
Asked on Tuesday whether a backup plan was in place if Rex did pull its services, Mayor of the Dubbo Region Ben Shields said the council is in “regular contact with potential business partners for the Dubbo City Regional Airport”.
In 2014, Mr Shields publicly called for Virgin Airlines to service the area, a sentiment he still stands by.
“The whole airport and its recent development is something I am extremely proud of being part of,” he said.
“We have been able to achieve great success at our airport because of our business acumen and our passionate desire to grow facilities even more.
“With that being the case, I would welcome any attempts by Virgin to start flying into Dubbo.”
Just last month, Dubbo City Regional Airport won the gong for best regional airport at the Australian Airports Association awards.