Business
5 April, 2024
Airport’s game-changer
THE arrival of a larger Singapore Airlines aircraft operating four times a week between Cairns and Singapore is for three years in a deal sealed with the airline, Cairns Airport and the Queensland Government.
The aim of the agreement is to extend the frequency of flights as well as the freight carrying capacity.
The Airbus A350-900 touched down in Cairns on Sunday for the first time at 5pm, with 85 per cent of the 303-seats filled.
Cairns Airport chief executive Richard Barker said all stakeholders appreciated the airline’s confidence by adding the larger jet to the route.
He said the airline could have chosen to fly the $500 million plane anywhere in the world or to other destinations in Australia who were fiercely competing for their business.
‘It shows confidence about our tourism products and the potential export markets,” he said.
The bigger aircraft meant thousands of extra tonnes in freight capacity and 23,000 passenger seats a year.
“Singapore Airlines already supports 13 per cent of international demand for Cairns travellers, and the new services and increased cargo capacity are a welcome investment in the continuing growth of regional tourism,” Mr Barker said
Singapore Airlines south-west Pacific regional vice-president Louis Arul said the upgrade to a larger aircraft on the Singapore-Cairns route showed the airline’s confidence in the tropical north Queensland market.
“The introduction of the Airbus A350 is a significant investment in the future of this direct major tourism and cargo route, reflecting our confidence in North Queensland’s tourism and trade market,” he said.
Mr Arul said the previously operated 737 had been running at 95 per cent capacity and the upgrade meant 60 per cent more seats into Cairns and 10 times more freight capability.
He said about 40 per cent of the freight payload left Cairns on Monday, mainly with seafood aboard.
Mr Arul said there was a huge appetite for fresh seafood and produce from the Tablelands in Vietnam, Thailand and China.
He said the airline was able to deliver the fresh produce to markets much faster from Cairns.
Mr Barker revealed that the airline had sent their freight team to the region to speak to growers on the Tablelands to ascertain what was the best produce to put on the plane.
He said the airport was determined to ensure the success of the route and already forward bookings were “looking quite strong”.
Mr Barker said the airport was talking to other airlines –not competitors of Singapore Airlines – about new routes but the emphasis was on “a small number of high-quality partnerships”.
Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive officer Mark Olsen said the A350 service would bring a $26.5 million boost to the region’s economy. “The more than 8300 business class seats a year on the Singapore Airlines flights to Cairns will attract high-value travellers including the all-important business events sector which brings even stronger economic benefits to the destination,” he said.
“There is strong interest in this route from European travellers who have been constrained by seat capacity, which has now increased by 50 per cent.”
Tourism Minister Michael Healy said the new service was another successful outcome of the joint government and industry $200m aviation incentive fund.
