State Air Monopoly Keeps Fares Up

Chronicle (Levin), 30 June 1949, Page 5

State Air Monopoly Keeps Fares Up

i ^^WVELLTXGTON, June ,29/ The desire of the Government to make the air services a Btate monopoly and the fact that the Bydney- Auckland flyingboat service eould -not compete with a land based Australia-Bouth Tsland service, were the reasons the Government had ' witlilield jiermission. for a private companv, Australian Xational Airways, to- start a service between Australia and Christchurch, said the Leader of tlie Opposition, Mr. Holluiid, today. This, said Mr. Holland, was the reason wliv the Goveriiinent was hedging 011 the proposition of declaring Harewood an iuternational airport. Australian National Airways were conviueed they eould operate a highly efllcient service between Australia and the South Island at approximatelv half the cost of tlie present flyingboat ser-vit-e between Australia and Auckland. A letter he had just received from Australian National Airways enclosed a copy of a communication the campany liad received from the Australian Direc-tor-General of Civil Aviation, who advised the company that its proposed Skymaster service between Australia and Xew Zealand eould not be granted beeause it was the general poliey of the Commonwealth Government not to desigjiate or endorse the operatiou of interiiational air Services originating in Australia, by other than its own nationally operated airline. Mr. Holland added that in an earlier letter from A.X.A., he had been told that the compaily had desired for many years to operate services betwTeen Eydney, Auckland and Wellington and between Melbourne and Christchurch. In the event of klelbourne not being declared an interiiational airport, the company was prepared to operate between Sydney and Christchurch with a coniiection to- klelbourne. "Xew Zealand Xational Airways Corporation is not in a position to inaiTgurate an international service," he said. "Private enterprise would put on a service witliin a week if it eould get permission' from both the Australian and Xew Zealand Governments. "