A Bonza passenger stranded at Melbourne’s Tullamarine airport has broken down in tears after she revealed she was on the way to visit family following the death of her father.
Tracy Hilbert was due to fly out of Melbourne this morning following the passing of her father overnight.
However, instead of being with her mother and brother, she instead spent the day stuck inside the airport after a fellow passenger informed her their flight had been cancelled with no warning.
“I text my husband. He said, ‘yes, it’s been cancelled’ and sent me all the details,” Ms Hilbert told the Today show.
“Then the crew came in and about a 5.45am they said that it’s been cancelled.”
It comes as the budget airline slashed flights across its network this morning including departures from Melbourne Airport to Gladstone and Rockhampton, leaving thousands stranded.
“I’ve actually had my father pass away last night,” a devastated Ms Hilbert told hosts Karl Stefanovic and Sarah Abo as she fought back tears.
“So I needed to get up there because my brother text me and said that he’s not in a good way.”
Ms Hilbert’s husband quickly booked her a flight with the budget airline last night – not realising that as of this morning, services will be “temporarily suspended”.
“I’ve never had this problem with them before,” Ms Hilbert said. “It’s only a two-hour flight but now it’s going to take me all day to get up there.”
She said she is glad Jetstar and Virgin have come to her aid, with Virgin revealing on Tuesday they would assist any passengers in need of a seat or who have been left stranded by the Bonza cancellations.
“We are aware of the temporary suspension of Bonza flights,” the airline posted on X.
“We will immediately support any passengers stranded mid-journey by offering complimentary seats on Virgin Australia-operated flights to the airport nearest to their final planned Bonza destination.”
Ms Hilbert said she is hoping Bonza reimburses her not just for the ticket, but are held accountable for the out pocket she’s also had to pay.
She said the only communication she’s received is to look out for an email regarding a refund.
“[But] you can’t talk to anybody, it’s all through emails.”
Ms Hilbert said it’s all been “very hard” as she should have been with her mother, brother and other family now.
“Oh, sweetheart. Hey, Tracy, we’ll let you go,” Karl quickly responded as Ms Hilbert continued to break down in tears.
“Obviously there’s going to be a lot of people who are inconvenienced. You’re inconvenienced in a whole lot more emotional away. And it’s such a big thing for you to be handling right now. And we’re so sorry for your loss.”
Karl hit out at the airline saying the very least they can do is communicate.
“It’s not good enough just to say something is cancelled. They might be going through the most, you know, horrible business morning of their lives, but that shouldn’t stop you from communicating with people.
“It’s just a basic human necessity. And especially for people like Tracy.”
On Tuesday morning, the airline’s CEO Tim Jordan said services will be “temporarily suspended” while discussions surrounding the “viability of the business” take place.
“Bonza has temporarily suspended services due to be operated today, as discussions are currently underway regarding the ongoing viability of the business,” Mr Jordan said in a statement.
In a further statement sent to news.com.au, Mr Burton apologised to customers impacted by the airline’s sudden wave of cancellations.
“We apologise to our customers who are impacted by this and we are working as quickly as possible to determine a way forward that ensures there is ongoing competition in the Australian aviation market.”