Travellers between Melbourne and Perth will benefit from more choice, reliable service and more competitive fares with Rex adding the popular route to its Boeing 737 domestic schedule. Australia’s Airline of the Year winner will fly five days-a-week between the two cities from Friday 28 June.
Rex General Manager Network Strategy, Warrick Lodge said the new service will add close to 90,000 seats to one of the nation’s busiest routes, which is great news for business, trade, tourism and travellers. “When more airlines compete on a particular route, consumers benefit and our record in the domestic markets speaks for itself – Rex delivers terrific value for money,” Lodge said. “Rex consistently outshines its domestic rivals in on-time performance and cancellation rates, and when travellers are booking a route of this distance and duration, reliability is paramount. Our competitors cancelled 57 flights in total on this route in the first four months of 2024, while their combined on-time arrival and departure performance was only around 72 percent.”
The new Melboure – Perth route is Rex’s 11th domestic service with its Boeing 737 fleet flying to major capital cities and popular destinations including Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart and the Gold Coast.
Victorian Government Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos said: “We are delighted with the news of extra flights between Melbourne and Perth and look forward to welcoming even more visitors from Perth to experience all the wonderful things Victoria has to offer.”
Victorian Government Minister for Jobs and Industry Natalie Hutchins said: “This is fantastic news for Victoria, having direct flights between Melbourne and Perth with Rex will create local jobs and increase our capacity on a key flight route, while bringing more visitors to our great state.”
Western Australia Deputy Premier, Treasurer and Minister for Tourism and Transport Rita Saffioiti said it was another win for Western Australian tourism. “We always love welcoming Victorian friends to the west coast, so this is a fantastic announcement for tourism and our local industry here in Western Australia. There’s so much to see, do and enjoy in our beautiful State all year round, so I certainly encourage Victorians to make the most of these new flights and book their next holiday to WA.”
Melbourne Airport Chief Executive Officer Lorie Argus said Rex’s five weekly service to Perth is great news for the airport’s passenger traffic, travellers, and for tourism in both states. “We’re excited to see Rex expanding its offering from Melbourne because we know that more choice is great for consumers. Having a third airline group flying between Perth and Melbourne will increase competition and allow more people to reconnect with family and friends or explore Victoria’s fantastic tourism offering.”
Perth Airport set a record in 2023 for the number of passengers travelling through its terminals. Perth Airport’s Chief Commercial and Aviation Officer Kate Holsgrove said that it is great to see Rex Airlines expand their route offerings to the Western Australian market. “Currently Rex operate four successful regional services within Western Australia. The introduction of Rex’s first interstate routes from our Terminal 2 is a sure sign of their confidence in the Perth market. This gives Western Australians more options for travel and we look forward to working with the Rex Airline team to ensure the new routes are successful.”
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