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Bonza Boeing 737 MAX 8
Booking the Flight & Cost of the Flight
To book a flight on Bonza, I had the 'Fly Bonza' application downloaded on my phone and booked this flight a couple of months in advance. While Bonza does have a website, flights can only be booked on their phone application. The 'Flight Only' option, the cheapest fare type, cost $79 and included a carry-on bag. I paid $108.90 in the 'Flight + Bag + Seat' fare type, which included a carry-on bag, 15 kilograms of checked baggage and 10 percent off seat selection. I found the booking process with Bonza very straightforward and very easy to navigate, and mere minutes after searching for the flight, I had the confirmation email already sent through to me almost instantly after payment went through. The Bonza application was not overcrowded with advertisements for different services, which is the case on some other low-cost carriers do with their websites.
Operating Aircraft
The aircraft to operate the very first Bonza flight from the Sunshine Coast to Mildura was Boeing 737 MAX 8 VH-UJK, which is named Sheila. VH-UJK was the 7551st Boeing 737 built by Boeing, and was built in May 2019. Originally made for LOT Polish Airlines as SP-LVI, the aircraft was put in long-term storage during the grounding of the global Boeing 737 MAX fleet following safety concerns, the aircraft was not taken up by LOT Polish Airlines, and new Australian startup airline Bonza secured the aircraft in August 2022 and was delivered to Bonza in Australia in December 2022, entering service in February 2023. At the time of this flight the aircraft was just shy of 4 years old. The aircraft is powered by two CFM International LEAP-1B27 engines. The aircraft was very clean and had been very well looked-after. It still had the new-aircraft smell and vibe to it.
Cabin
The cabin was about three-quarters full with a few spare seat here and there. The atmosphere onboard was very festive with this flight being an inaugural service. The aircraft features the Boeing Sky Interior. It was very nice and clean and in very good condition. The mood lighting was quite a nice look inside the cabin.
Seating
I pre-paid for a seat on this flight, seat 7F. In the event of a seat not being paid for, the airline randomly assigns a seat free of charge. Bonza's Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft feature 186 leather seats in an all-economy class layout in a 3-3 configuration with 31 rows onboard. They are black with purple headrests with Bonza's logo marked in the headrests. Seats in rows 1, 14 and 15 are branded as 'Stretch Plus' and cost about $17 to book. Seats in rows 2-4 are 'Stretch' seats and cost $13 to book. Seats in rows 5-13 are 'Prime' seats and selectable for a fee of $9, and the remaining seats in rows 16 to 31 are 'Pick' seats and cost $5 to book. All of the aforementioned prices mentioned were what seats cost for my flight, they may differ on other Bonza services. Seats offer a seat pitch of 29 inches and a width of 17 inches, and recline to about three inches. Seat 7F was very comfortable and in fact had more legroom than I have had on a Qantas Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
Inflight Customer Service
Bonza flight attendants, called Bonza Legends, carried out the inflight service. They carried out the service with outgoing and very friendly attitudes. All of the crew were fantastic and were more than happy to chat with passengers and accommodate requests. Well done to the crew on this flight.
Inflight Entertainment
The seat pocket contained the safety card and air sickness bags. There is no inflight magazine. Bonza does not provide any electronic means of entertainment in the form of personal entertainment systems, but does offer streaming to one's own device where flight information, movies and the onboard food, drinks and merchandising menu can be accessed. Electronic inflight entertainment is purely on a bring-your-own basis, which is standard on low-cost carriers. I found the inflight entertainment on my phone easy to navigate; I screen-recorded my phone while looking through the offering. Movies and games are offered which is good, however I just photographed outside the window and chatted with the flight attendants, that was just as good for me.
Photos
The operating aircraft on bay 16 at Sunshine Coast Airport waiting to operate its first flight of the day
Inaugural flight banner
Photo with Tim Jordan, Bonza Chief Executive Officer
Scenes whilst boarding
Economy class seats
Seat 7F
Just after pushback
Takeoff from runway 13
Cabin
Inflight at 38,000 feet
Boeing 737 MAX 8 winglet
Inflight snacks (Mama Kaz's mixed berry muffin and Brazen Brownies' chocolate brownie) and Bonza budgie smugglers
Inflight entertainment lookthrough
Descending into Mildura Airport
Landing on runway 09
Docked on bay 4
Cockpit
Scenes whilst disembarking
Commemorative balloons in the arrivals hall
Celebrations continue for the plane's inaugural departure with Mildura Airport giving out showbags with Mildura Airport merchandising
VH-UJK now heading back to the Sunshine Coast operating the inaugural flight; AB600
Closing Statements
This was Bonza's first flight into Mildura on their network as they continue to expand (the airline has only been in operation since late January 2023). Not only was it Bonza's first Mildura flight but it was the first Boeing 737 MAX flight into Mildura, and the first scheduled low-cost airline flight into Mildura. My first impressions of Bonza were phenomenal. I cannot see a single fault with the airline or this flight. Their application was easy to use, the crew were amazing from start to finish, the aircraft is very comfortable, the snacks that I had were delicious and the flight went very well. I must give a shoutout to the airline and its crew for an amazing morning, and I hope the airline does very well as it expands.
Some personal remarks I want to note down as well; it was quite heart-warming hearing the feedback on everyone's thoughts of Bonza and their operations while I was on the Sunshine Coast and it was quite emotional on this arrival. It had been many months since I have been able to see family in Mildura, and Bonza managed to safely bring me back to them, and for a very cheap price as well. On top of this, Bonza's very ambitious but interesting routes map gives many new communities the connectivity and opportunities that no airline has even bothered to give a go at. Bonza has a very good niche and organisational culture that sets them apart from other airlines and I do see these guys doing very well moving forward. I would definitely put Bonza up there with one of, if not, THE best airline I have ever flown with, and I cannot recommend them enough. I look forward to my next flight with this little new Australian low-cost carrier.
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