A senate standing committee has recently handed down its report into the operation and regulation of air services in regional communities.

After a lengthy review, the senators have now called for a Productivity Commission review into airfare costs, and have flagged subsiding and regulating routes to address spiralling costs.

"The committee received overwhelming evidence that the high price of airfares in rural, regional and remote areas has a direct and detrimental effect on the lived experience of residents of these areas," the senate report said.

"A lack of access to affordable airfares reduces the opportunities for residents to, among other things, attend family events, medical appointments, sporting events or explore and develop business opportunities."

With three services operating out of Armidale, Mayor Simon Murray said airfare prices were very much a case of supply and demand for those airlines.

"To be honest, I'm not sure what the beneficial outcomes would be for Armidale Regional Council. We're fortunate that we have three airlines servicing Armidale Regional Airport," he said.

"When you do fly out of Armidale Airport, the number of vacant seats (the occupancy rate) is quite low.

"So, to me, this route would be reasonably attractive to the airlines."

Cr Murray said there were other smaller towns that had much lower occupancy rates.

"It is all about supply and demand. When I was a child, I used to have to fly from Brisbane out to Quilpie, and that was a 'milk run', where you landed at every town on the way out there," he said.

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"But, by the same token, when you got to Quilpie there might be only a couple of passengers on it. So, it does become expensive for the airlines.

"Should the government subsidise the airlines that are doing that? I think everyone should have the opportunity of flying the distances in Australia without paying exorbitant prices."

Cr Murray said it should also be remembered that the airlines were private businesses, and while we wanted them to remain, they also needed to be profitable.

The senate report found the scheduling of some flights on regional routes required residents to undertake several days of travel in order to attend a short appointment a metropolitan centre.

While the committee wanted to address the apparent rough deal regional passengers were getting, it also acknowledged evidence presented by airlines, which suggested lower passenger volumes ultimately resulted in higher individual costs, which would have devastating consequences for regional Australia.