Fleet issues prove to be too much of a hurdle for troubled Bonza

With Australian airline Bonza halting flights and considering its survival options, the LCC may never get the chance to prove whether its niche business model could have been successful in the longer term.

After struggling to secure enough aircraft to carry out its plans, and making significant network cutbacks, the airline grounded its fleet on 30-Apr-2024 and entered voluntary administration.

As of now, it is unclear whether Bonza will be able to restructure and continue in some form. It certainly faces some major hurdles if it is to do so.

Bonza said that "discussions are currently underway regarding the ongoing viability of the business". The airline said that it was "working as quickly as possible to determine a way forward that ensures there is ongoing competition in the Australian domestic market".

According to local media reports, some of Bonza's five Boeing 737 MAX aircraft have been repossessed by their lessor.

A major question is whether Bonza's current owner - US-based 777 Partners - had the resources, or the appetite, to adequately fund Bonza through its first years of development.

With any newcomer like Bonza, investors have to take the long view and accept a period of weak financial results while it builds to break-even point.

While it was unclear what that break-even point would be for Bonza, the airline is obviously nowhere near the fleet size that would provide the economies of scale to be profitable.

Bonza faced complications in gaining additional leased aircraft, which caused disruptions to its existing and planned network.

This was a major reason behind its current predicament.