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Flight Centre boss Graham \u201cSkroo\u201d Turner has accused Transport Minister Catherine King of being responsible for higher airfares and criticised the slow return of seats on international flights for Australian travellers.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the company\u2019s annual general meeting in Brisbane on Wednesday, Turner said the lack of airline capacity and competition was stifling the travel agency\u2019s recovery.<\/p>\n
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Flight Centre managing director Graham \u2018Skroo\u2019 Turner called Catherine King the \u201cminister for higher airfares\u201d.<\/span>Credit: <\/span>Dan Peled<\/cite><\/p>\n He reiterated Flight Centre\u2019s \u201cstrong support\u201d for Turkish Airlines\u2019 and Qatar Airways\u2019 bids for additional flights to and from Australia.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are still concerned about the lack of available seats on services between Australia and Europe via the Middle East,\u201d he said, claiming that \u201cthe transport minister is now known as the minister for higher airfares\u201d within the travel industry.<\/p>\n Turner\u2019s comments at the AGM were not his first on the matter: in July, he described King\u2019s rejection of Qatar\u2019s bid to double flights to and from Australia as \u201cthe most ridiculous decision [he\u2019d] ever seen\u201d.<\/p>\n King\u2019s rejection was widely criticised by key groups in the aviation, travel and tourism industry \u2013 including Virgin chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka, airport chief executives and the Productivity Commission. Critics said the move to deny Qatar\u2019s request for more flights would result in higher airfares for passengers and constrain the flow of international travellers.<\/p>\n King\u2019s office has been contacted for comment.<\/p>\n Virgin has a codeshare partnership with Qatar Airways, which means it would have profited from the additional bilateral air rights. Virgin\u2019s market share on the Australia, Europe and Middle East routes would have risen from 25 per cent to 27 per cent.<\/p>\n King\u2019s decision sparked a Senate inquiry that recommended the government review its decision, with Qantas being the sole voice in urging the federal government to stand firm.<\/p>\n In September, Turner told the Senate inquiry that the government should consider introducing more \u201copen skies\u201d agreements with other countries to encourage airlines to increase the number of services to the country, which would lower airfares.<\/p>\n The inquiry, chaired by National Party senator Bridget McKenzie, attempted to call for King to appear, but she accused the Coalition of staging a political stunt.<\/p>\n Flight Centre, one of the biggest travel booking companies in the world, recorded $301.6 million in underlying earnings in the year to June 30, representing a turnaround of nearly half a billion dollars from its loss of $183.1 million in 2022.<\/p>\n For the first quarter of the 2024 fiscal year, the travel agency revealed $6 billion in total transaction value, a 20 per cent increase on the same period last year, and a 38 per cent revenue uplift.<\/p>\n Corporate travel represented $3.1 billion, while leisure travel continued to recover, coming to nearly $2.7 billion in total transaction value, an improvement of 20 per cent.<\/p>\n Turner said ongoing demand in leisure travel is coming from baby boomers and luxury travellers who are less affected by mortgage stress.<\/p>\n \u201cA relatively widely-held customer view [is] that travel is non-discretionary \u2013 a priority product they are prepared to budget for and invest in every year.\u201d<\/p>\n The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion.<\/i><\/b> Sign up to get it every weekday morning<\/i><\/b>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\nMost Viewed in Business<\/h2>\n
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