The Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) has backed moves to repeal the 1992 Qantas Sale Act (QSA).
In a media release the RAAA said the QSA “unfairly restricted” Qantas which it says is an “historical anachronism needing to be removed in order to keep competition on an even playing field.”
But the RAAA was critical of the government’s plans to provide a debt guarantee to Qantas, saying “Qantas should not be handicapped in its ability to raise funds but neither should it be given an unfair advantage,” and adding that “a government-backed debt guarantee would have the effect of distorting the Australian regional aviation market by providing Qantas subsidiaries with a commercial advantage over other regional operators.”
“Any commercial advantage provided by the government through a debt guarantee to Qantas will distort the market and put more pressure on regional operators that are already doing it tough,” RAAA chairman Jim Davis said.
