Airport cops big hit COVID drags down Townsville passenger numbers
OWNERS of Townsville Airport have released figures revealing the massive impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on the business.
Queensland Airports Limited, which owns airports at Townsville, Mt Isa and the Gold Coast, revealed Townsville passenger numbers plummeted by 90.7 per cent at the height of the pandemic.
The passenger free fall is now starting to turn around with QAL CEO Chris Mills saying Queenslanders are moving freely around the state again.
He said July was the start of the uplift with the airport recording 58,490 passengers – more than the previous three months combined.
In February, before the COVID-19 shutdown, Mr Mills said Townsville was experiencing a boom with more passengers through the terminal than in the same month in 2019.
“In March, we dropped by over 30 per cent in passenger numbers,” he said.
“But what really
COWBOYS legend Matty Bowen is growing out his bristol batons for a program very close to his heart.
Bowen and other rugby league stalwarts from around Queensland have joined the Movember Ahead of the Game program, a sports-based mental fitness and resilience training program which helps adolescent boys, their parents and coaches better deal with mental health issues. hurt us were those really awful months in April and May.”
Mr Mills said despite the July uplift, there was just 37 per cent of the passengers passing through the airport compared with the same period in 2019.
“Across the last year, the last 12 months, we’re down on average 24 per cent but it has really been that April, May, June period that particularly hurt us,” he said.
“We’re seeing good traffic on the Brisbane to Townsville route, which is the main driver of passenger numbers at
T o w n s -
Movember has worked with youth suicide prevention organisation ALIVE to adapt the face-toface program into a new COVIDsafe format, delivering it locally in partnership with Queensland Rugby League and it’s U18 Mal Meninga Cup competition.
“When I first started playing, boys weren’t that open to talking about stuff that they’d been struggling with off the field,” said Bowen, coach of the Townsville Blackhawks U18 squad. ville Airport, but really, we’ve got a long way to go.”
Mr Mills said because Townsville’s main business was intrastate travel, it was not as heavily impacted as QAL’S Gold Coast Airport, which had been operating on less than 1 per cent of its normal passenger traffic since the pandemic began.
He said the tourism hotspot was struggling with the airport still operating at less than 2 per cent traffic.
“Townsville, in fact, compared to the Gold Coast is a success story,” Mr Mills said.
“You could pick up on how someone was doing by their body language, but now all the help is there.
“The more we can get on top of this stuff, the more it helps the younger generation. Sometimes it can be little things, like not getting picked in the team or not getting picked in representative sides.
“This program gives us (coaches) some more tools for dealing with issues like that.”
ALIVE founder and CEO Tamsyn
“Because the Gold Coast replies on interstate and international traffic to a rather large extent.
“It’s an industry that has been absolutely devastated and while we’re pleased to see some growth back in Townsville, it is a long way from being where we want it to be.”
Mr Mills said the Mount Isa Airport had not been as affected by the pandemic due to the resources sector.
“Out of our four airports, Mount Isa is the one that was impacted the least and recovered more strongly,” he said.
Rose said her team had observed a dramatic spike in young athletes’ depression and anxiety levels during the COVID-19 affected footy season.
“For the young men in the Mal Meninga Cup, everything that they worked so hard for was taken away because of the restrictions,” she said.
“For these young men to reengage with each other through Movember Ahead of the Game is incredibly valuable.” aheadofthegame.org.au