TRAVEL HOT AND COLD
THOUSANDS have been flying into the Gold Coast to reunite with their families and Queensland Airport boss says the state is ready to live with the virus.
But the influx from late last week – with Gold Coast Airport’s biggest influx of passengers in seven months as 15,000 passed through the gates – was cold comfort to those who missed out.
Thousands of interstate travellers had their Christmas Eve flights axed including in and out of Gold Coast Airport.
Multiple airlines removed dozens of flights from Friday’s schedule, leaving interstate travellers in limbo.
Virgin scratched up to 12 flights on Australia’s busiest route between Melbourne and Sydney on December 24, while Jetstar called off 10 flights between the two cities. More than 20 flights between the major cities and Gold Coast, Adelaide and Brisbane have also been cancelled across both airlines.
A Jetstar spokeswoman said the late flight cancellations were a result of airline staff having to test for Covid-19 and isolate as close contacts.
Out of the 59 flights on the busy Thursday before the drama, 25 came
from Melbourne and 21 from Sydney.
Before the axings, a jubilant Queensland Airport CEO Chris Mills said the number of passengers landing on the Gold Coast was building: “We saw more passengers come through today (Thursday) compared to last Friday when the borders were due to open.
“We are not seeing any impacts in regards to testing. The numbers speak for themselves with 15,000 coming in (one day).”
Mr Mills wasn’t concerned that
some travellers weren’t getting tested when they landed.
“We are moving into the next phase of learning to live with the virus,” he said.
“We have high vaccination rates in Australia and Queensland, so the authorities are doing what they said they’d do.
“Random tests on the people coming through, which is a great signal that things are easing.”
Outside the airport grandparents Andrew and Anne Johnson were reunited with their grandchildren
Jacob, 8, and Maddie, 7, Richardson, who had flown in from Canberra.
Jacob, turning nine, said he had been tested for Covid six times in recent weeks, while his sister had been tested five times: “Someone at my school had Covid so we all had to get tested. Then I had to get more tests so I could fly.”
Mr Johnson was staggered by what his grandchildren had been through in recent weeks but said “it’s the way the world is now”.
An hour before Ocean Shores couple Tory Morris, 29, and Kelly
Goggin, 35, waited with their oneyear-old child Harlen for their delayed flight to Melbourne.
Mr Morris said he wasn’t worried about Covid and was looking forward to seeing family for Christmas.
Joshua Davies landed on the Gold Coast Thursday morning with a group of friends from Adelaide, who had planned a getaway to the Glitter Strip for months but were waiting for travel restrictions to ease.
He said testing wasn’t hard and he had no issues getting it done in time for the trip.