Fears airlines will 'cherry pick' routes

A motion addressing the importance of regular public transport routes to towns and cities in regional WA, including Albany, was introduced into the Lower House last week.

Mining and Pastoral Region MP Jacqui Boydell introduced the motion to the Legislative Council to bring to the forefront the "implication of regulation and deregulation on regional aviation services".

The discussion was in light of the State Government's review into regulated air services in WA, and the decision by Virgin Australia to pull out of servicing air routes to areas such as Albany and Esperance.

Ms Boydell said the State Government, which is in negotiations to award a tender to a new airline to service its regulated routes, needed to be careful not to allow airlines to "cherry pick" regional air routes.

"(Airlines) do not want to have to service air routes that turn a lower profit," she said.

"We end up essentially with charter services delivering a regulated public transport service to large regional towns and that just does not work."

Ms Boydell said Carnarvon's regulated air route was serviced by charter company Skippers Aviation, which caused inconvenience for passengers as the service was not based at the main Perth Airport terminal and there was no connectivity for ongoing flights.

"I can only reiterate at this very critical stage, with Government having those negotiations with airlines about the regional routes and what we will end up with, that we should not allow airlines to cherry pick those routes and the people on the remaining air routes should not have a lesser service," she said.

The Department of Transport expects the winner of the tender to service the Albany to Perth route beyond February 28 will be announced before the end of the year.