Staff will be guaranteed eight hour’s work weekly

Geraldton Airport will see at least two weekly return flights to Perth as of next week.

Besides being a massive inconvenience to regular travellers, closing the airport due to COVID-19 meant the City of Greater Geraldton stood to lose $4 million annual revenue.

Mayor Shane Van Styn said the City was now working on the logistics of operating the airport part-time.

“It is a function of passenger numbers and those numbers determine how many security staff we need but we are yet to see the detail,” he said.

“If we are getting five or six people on a plane and we have five or six security staff screening people, we just don’t know.”

Mr Van Styn said they had to guarantee airport security staff at least four hours’ pay per shift, so they would have a minimum eight hours’ employment per week.

“You are actually competing against the dole,” he said.

Federal Transport minister Michael McCormack said the subsidy would last for an initial eight weeks with a review mechanism in place.

“The Government will continue to monitor the market and determine if further action is required,” he said.

“As Australians are asked to stay home unless absolutely necessary, we are ensuring secure and affordable access for passengers who need to travel.”

Mr McCormack said the subsidy also allowed essential workers such as frontline medical personnel and defence personnel to travel, as well as essential freight such as critical medicine and personal protective equipment.