22 12 ARABIAN FLIGHTS

Europe on radar in 2019 as airport talks with Emirates rev up

EUROPE could soon be within the flight path of Cairns under plans to establish an air route between Far North Queensland and the Middle East. Cairns Airport executives are understood to be in advanced discussions with Emirates about securing a direct service to the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Airport sources told the Cairns Post they were preparing for the highly-anticipated flights to start as early as 2019.

Emirates already has a presence at the airport, with its food and beverage arm, Emirates Leisure Retail, contracted earlier this year to roll out bars and cafes at the domestic and international terminals.

Emirates president Tim Clark has also spoken in previous years about Cairns as a future destination for the Dubai-based carrier.

A Cairns Airport spokeswoman said she could not comment on any discussions with the Middle Eastern aviation giant.

“We’re continuing our work with various airlines to secure new international services for Cairns and will definitely let you know when we are successful on any,” she said.

An Emirates spokesman said the airline had not made any announcement about Cairns flights and declined to comment on speculation.

However, Syrian developer Ghassan Aboud broached the subject during a tour of his new Crystalbrook Collection’s “Riley” redevelopment.

He revealed Cairns Airport officials had been in talks with Emirates, and to a lesser degree Qatar Airways, for the past six months.

With a $370 million investment over three hotel developments in Cairns, possibly a fourth on Grafton St, and a planned redevelopment of the Port Douglas marina, he was eager to target European and Middle Eastern tourists.

“The Middle East has problems and is broken and people in Europe don’t know where to go for holidays,” he said.

“Maybe this is the time to attract them to Cairns, to come to this part of the world to enjoy the sun, the sea, beach, Barrier Reef and rainforest.

“It will change the face of this corner (of the world), believe me.”

Mr Aboud said European visitors were dissuaded from a Far Northern sojourn by the difficulty of travel, requiring three flights to get to Cairns.

“It’s really pretty expensive now if you want to visit Sardegna or South France, at least per night around €2000, which is too much,” he said. “We should all support to catch this deal.

Cairns Mayor Bob Manning, who visited the Persian Gulf late last year to Qatar Airways, said an air connection between Europe and Cairns via UAE or Qatar made a lot of sense.

“These airlines are high quality and it would be a great coup for us,” he said.