In today’s supply-chain-disrupted world getting hold of passenger aircraft and bringing them into service is not a simple operation. Finding the aircraft of your dreams is hard enough, but then finding the slots to have aircraft serviced and repainted can be even more tricky, particularly if the aircraft has been parked for any length of time.
Up to nine 737-800s and more to follow
The good news for Australian domestic travelers is that Rex has again managed to navigate that process, with the airline today announcing it has signed leases for two more Boeing 737-800NG aircraft. Last month Rex added its latest domestic route, connecting Adelaide to Sydney, and next month will launch services between Melbourne and Hobart, the capital city of Tasmania.
Photo: Rex
The Rex domestic network now covers six destinations, Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide and the Gold Coast. With Hobart soon to join, the current fleet of seven Boeing 737-800s might be starting to feel the strain of maintaining Rex’s impeccable reliability performance, so the arrival of two more will be a welcome sight.
Rex Deputy Chairman John Sharp said that the arrival of the new aircraft is another step in the airline’s ambition to fly to and between every capital city in Australia. He added:
“We believe it’s best way to grow in a measured way, ensuring capacity meets demand. But we also need to be flexible as aviation is a dynamic industry where the only constant is change.
“Rex currently has flights to Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Canberra, as well to the Gold Coast and we invite expressions of interest from other cities who want a share of Rex’s trademark reliability and country hospitality at affordable fares.”
This one is not from Virgin Australia
Rex, Australia’s largest independent regional and domestic airline, expects the first 737 to arrive by the end of this month and enter service in time for the Hobart launch on August 17th, while the second will come in mid-September. The Melbourne to Hobart route will operate daily and be Rex’s fourth destination in Tasmania, complementing the Saab 340 regional services to other parts of the state.
Rex has gathered its seven 737-800s from aircraft previously operated by Virgin Australia, but it seems the new arrivals are coming from different stock. Rex posted a photo of one of the airplanes in Rex livery in Singapore, where it is going through maintenance checks, which shows a registration of 9V-MGA.
According to Flightradar24.com, that registration is on a Singapore Airlines 737-800 carrying MSN 44217, which was withdrawn from service and stored at Singapore Changi Airport in May 2022. The 737 was first delivered to Silk Air in February 2014 and moved to the Singapore Airlines fleet in February 2021. Today it took a two-hour flight out and back from Changi, which was its first since May 2022.
Rex operates to 57 destinations across all states in Australia, serving its regional routes with a fleet of 58 Saab 340 turboprops. The Rex Group includes wholly-owned subsidiaries Pel-Air Aviation, the Australian Airline Pilot Academy and Australian Aerospace Propeller Maintenance. It is also a 50% shareholder of National Jet Express, a leading Fly-In-Fly-Out charter and freight operator.
Have you flown on a Rex 737? Let us know in the comments.
Boeing
- Stock Code:
- BA
- Business Type:
- Planemaker
- Date Founded:
- 1916-07-15
- CEO:
- Dave Calhoun
- Headquarters Location:
- Chicago, USA
- Key Product Lines:
- Boeing 737, Boeing 747, Boeing 757, Boeing 767, Boeing 777, Boeing 787
