Flights take off again
Avalon Airport welcomes cargo return
INTERNATIONAL flying resumed at Avalon Airport on the weekend for the first time in months after flights were put on hold amid the coronavirus crisis.
An AirAsia cargo flight landed at Avalon from Malaysia on Saturday with a shipment of flowers, before departing yesterday morning with dairy products and seafood.
AirAsia X CEO Benyamin
Ismail said it was “great” to welcome the first AirAsia flight to Avalon since the COVID-19 fleet hibernation began.
“It’s a challenging time for the aviation industry, but we’re working hard with our local partners such as Avalon Airport to continue to service our network where possible,” he said.
Mr Ismail said the airline has a dedicated logistics subsidiary, Teleport, to enable it to offer cargo flights in lieu of its usual passenger services.
Avalon Airport CEO Justin Giddings said he was “very happy” to see the resumption of cargo flights to and from the airport.
“It’s nice to have a plane coming in again and delivering product,” he said.
“It’s good to have them, albeit one flight, but we’re hopeful there will be more cargo flights to come through to the airport.
“I do think there is a big need for cargo to come to Australia — it’s really important it can continue and become a pretty regular thing.”
International flights in and out of Avalon Airport were suspended in March to slow down the spread of the coronavirus.
Mr Giddings said he hoped to see the resumption of passenger flights to Asia before early next year, but he said it was impossible for anyone to know the time frames at this stage.
“It will still be some time away, the first step will be domestic flights hopefully in a couple of months, and then New Zealand the next one, before Asia flights later down the track,” he said.
“We’ve done a lot of work in the terminal with new security and upgrades that is all waiting for the resumption of international flights.
“We can’t wait to see our passengers again.”
While all existing overseas routes in and out of Avalon are to Asia, Mr Giddings previously said New Zealand was “an opportunity” for the airport and one of the most requested flight paths from travellers in the region.