Cobar's hopes of having air services restored have been dealt another blow after Regional Express announced on Friday that its subsidiary Air Link would not run an interim flight service between the town and Sydney.
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A statement from REX said "much delayed approval" from Transport for NSW was the reason for the decision and it would not "make any commercial sense" to run services that were approved only until March 21.
Air Link had originally agreed to run a daily service between Cobar and Sydney, and another between Mudgee and Sydney but said they were frustrated by the length of time it had taken for Transport for NSW to approve the interim service.
REX said Qantaslink had been approved for a similar service between Sydney and Moree more than a month earlier.
However Transport for NSW Deputy Director General of Policy and Regulation Tim Reardon said REX had indicated they wouldn't start running any services until February 24 and had set no deadline for a decision on the approval.
"Transport for NSW has been in discussions with REX about interim licence arrangements since December 2013 and at no time during those discussions did REX indicate either that a decision was required by a particular date or that it had an intention of not proceeding with the temporary licence," Mr Reardon said.
"Transport for NSW is disappointed with REX's decision to pull out of these regional air routes after it had waited for Air Link to respond to concerns regarding reliability, in particular how it would service two routes with only one aircraft, especially if it required maintenance," Mr Reardon said.
"Because REX did not intend to commence services until 24 February, Transport for NSW intended to make its decision by the end of January."
Transport for NSW called for applications for long term licences for Moree, Narrabri, Cobar, Mudgee and Cooma on January 23.
REX have confirmed Air Link are in discussions with Cobar Shire Council and Mid Western Regional Council and will make a decision about whether they will apply for permanent licences before the closing date of February 7. However REX said they will not apply for the Moree license.
