Balonne Shire residents call for Skytrans scheduling rethink

TRAVELLERS in the Balonne Shire are urging authorities to rethink the timing of Skytrans flights to and from St George.

The airline currently operates a regulated route from Brisbane to St George on Wednesdays and Sundays but residents the Balonne Beacon spoke to said they wanted to see a change in the scheduling of flights.

"If Skytrans had a flight from St George on a Friday afternoon, I guarantee you it would be chockers." - St George resident

One resident, who asked not to be named in the story, said they often travelled to Brisbane for the weekend but had to endure a 12-hour, 1100-kilometre round trip via road.

"Nobody around here can use Skytrans to go to Brisbane on weekends because the timing (of the flights) is ridiculous," they said.

"I think the pricing is okay but if you are working regular hours, flights on Wednesday and Sunday aren't going to work.

"If Skytrans had a flight from St George on a Friday afternoon, I guarantee you it would be chockers."

The current schedule has been in place for more than a decade and a Skytrans representative said the company was unable to provide detailed information on patronage.

"We are unable to provide detailed passenger and capacity data as this route is a regulated route on the Transport and Main Roads network," the representative said.

"With regards to the requirement for additional services beyond the current Wednesday and Sunday flights, we too have heard anecdotally that this may be required."

Skytrans will hold an air user group meeting - a consultative forum that provides feedback on regulated air services - in St George on Wednesday.

The Department of Transport and Main Roads had not responded to inquiries from the Balonne Beacon at the time of printing.