Flights full of promise
CAIRNS Airport executives hope the city becomes to Chinese tourists what the Indonesian island of Bali is to Australians.
The touchdown of the first of China Southern Airlines’ triweekly services today heralds the beginning of a new era of connectivity between the two countries.
Cairns Aiport chief executive Norris Carter said the new direct flights meant travelling between Guangzhou and Cairns will now take half the time it used to.
“Currently, if you want to fly to Guangzhou, it is a 14hour trip because you have to fly down to Brisbane and then back up to China,” he said.
“Now it’s down to seven hours so that means it’s easier for people to go on trips, so they’ll go on more trips.
“And those trips could be around tourism, so suddenly we become in range of a three or four-day holiday. Kind of like we go to Bali or could go to Singapore for the weekend from Cairns.”
The new routes could also open up opportunities for students and business.
“There are a lot of people in China who are hungry for good food,” Mr Carter said.
“We already export live coral trout up through Hong Kong, and tropical fruit. You think about the opportunity for dairy, beef, coffee, chocolate, nuts, all the stuff they grow up on the Tablelands.
“We’re still working on getting our heads around that but we’ve got a suspicion that, like passengers, it’s actually heading south to fly north.
“To the extent we can enable the faster processing and transport of goods, your fish is going to be a lot fresher then.”
China Southern Airlines has plans for a major hub with flights to other parts of Asia, North America and Europe, which could also benefit Far North Queensland residents.
“We’ve got a great network out of Cairns, down to Townsville and all across Cape York, so we can feed into from the whole of Northern Queensland,” Mr Carter said.
“It’s a great opportunity for locals to get new routes to new, exciting parts of the world.”
CURRENTLY, IF YOU WANT TO FLY TO GUANGZHOU, IT IS A 14HOUR TRIP BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO FLY DOWN TO BRISBANE AND THEN BACK UP TO CHINA
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