In the air for an historic flight: What it was like being on the first-ever Nexus flight

Being on the first-ever flight for a new airline is not something many people get the chance to do, but I was lucky enough to have a seat on Nexus Airlines’ maiden flight out of Geraldton on Monday.

Flying is something that I have done my entire life, I have been fortunate enough to explore different parts of the world and have experienced multiple different planes.

I was excited at the chance to travel from Geraldton to Karratha, a place I had never been before. Like many people in Geraldton, Nexus opens an easier path for many people to visit and explore the Pilbara and Kimberley.

When boarding the plane, the immediate thing I noticed was the comfort. Being a tall person at 6’3” (190cm) means that long flights in cramped planes can be my worst nightmare, but I was delighted to be greeted with comfortable seats and noticeable leg room.

There was an obvious buzz before take-off and while the plane was not full for the flight, the excitement in the atmosphere was certainly felt by everyone.

The assigned seats seemed optional for this special flight, with people up and about as soon as the seat belt sign went off, many taking photos or wanting to have a chat with the passengers.

The most memorable being Nexus managing director Michael McConachy using the line to address all of us on the plane, thanking the crew and everyone in Nexus for their hard work, showing his relief that the first flight had taken off without a hitch.

The 76 seats are split in rows of two so no matter what seat you get, it will always be a window or aisle seat, and while I am much more of an aisle seat person, I could not pass up the window seat for take-off on the maiden flight.

The cabin crew on the flight were very accommodating, with the in-flight food offered in the morning flight being coconut or Greek yogurt with a choice of fruit, along with coffee or tea.

The food on the return flight the next day was even better and made me feel like this was really catering to be a regional airline, as I was given a choice of regular, spinach and ricotta or bacon and cheese sausage rolls with a serving of tomato sauce.

The trip from Geraldton to Karratha takes just under two hours, taking off and landing on schedule.

So while I cannot tell if this will be routine for the company, I am certainly optimistic that the airline will provide much-needed competition for regional travellers.

This was one time when clapping on the plane’s landing was acceptable, with the crowd cheering when it touched down in Karratha, capping off a successful first flight.

Fraser Williams was an invited guest of Nexus for the inaugural flights.