Australia’s newest airline Bonza has put its Melbourne base on sale with some routes available to travel for Easter with 11 destinations added with prices starting from A$49 to A$89 per person one way.

Bonza now offers 17 destinations and 27 routes including its first flight to Victoria on Tuesday when the inaugural Sunshine Coast to Avalon took flight.

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“Today is a huge day for Aussie travellers as we deliver on our promise to make air travel accessible to the many, not the few,” said Carly Povey, Chief Commercial Officer at Bonza.

“Today millions more Aussies have the chance to book a low-cost flight to see a loved one or explore their own backyard. As a proud Melbournite, I’m very excited to have the opportunity to fly directly to regional destinations to catch some winter sun in Queensland or explore the wine region of Mildura,” added Povey. 

“The routes on sale today use our Melbourne-based crew and aircraft including our fourth plane, Malc, named after a dear legend who recently passed away,” said Povey. 

Travellers can book now for Easter, July and September school holidays with flights available until the end of October. The first flight from Melbourne Airport is confirmed for March 30, 2023.

Melbourne Airport Chief of Aviation Jim Parashos welcomed today’s news.

“Melbourne Airport is proud to be the only capital city destination on Bonza’s launch network as well as the airline’s second hub. Having Bonza’s brand new aircraft and crew based in Melbourne is a huge win for the local economy and means more jobs for the state’s aviation and tourism sectors.

“Many of the routes going on sale today are not currently flown and will give Victorians more travel options while also making it easier for regional Australians to visit the nation’s capital of food, sport and culture.”

Next, the airline will welcome its fifth aircraft which will also call Melbourne home. “After that, we focus on earning the right to grow. Our intention is to have up to eight aircraft in our first year of operation which will enable us to connect many more communities where travel right now often means impossibly long road trips or flights connecting through major city airports,” added Povey.