ON THE BUBBLE
GC-Queenstown private jet trips plan
A US-born developer is launching a private jet service linking tourism meccas Gold Coast and Queenstown so people can avoid crowded airport terminals as travel across the ditch opens up. With the first New Zealand flight into Brisbane landing today, ambitious Kevin Carlin has set February 3 as a tentative date for the debut flight of Private Jets Ltd. It will whisk groups of up to 12 between the Australian and NZ tourism capitals with gourmet food and champagne mid-flight. Mr Carlin called restrictions in NZ “silly” and damaging both economies.
A US-BORN developer is launching a private jet service linking the tourism meccas of the Gold Coast and Queenstown, so people can avoid crowded public terminals as travel across the ditch opens up.
Ambitious Kevin Carlin has set February 3 as a tentative date for the first flight of Private Jets Ltd – a firm that will whisk groups of up to 12 clients between the tourism capitals, with gourmet food and champagne on tap.
Mr Carlin, who is building two luxury hotels in the Kiwi ski resort town of Queenstown, called quarantine restrictions in place in New Zealand “silly” and damaging to both economies.
“The governments have a duty to return tourism to the people. We have so many businesses struggling right now desperate for tourists, on the Gold Coast and in New Zealand. Both locations need people staying in hotels and dining in restaurants and going to theme parks.
“It is really a bit silly at the moment. What do we have – 18 cases here in Queensland? What are the chances that somebody is going to take the bug to New Zealand?”
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern last year announced the possibility of a travel bubble with Australia in early 2021 if certain conditions are met, including 28 consecutive days without community transmission across Australia. Under existing rules travellers to New Zealand must quarantine for 14 days and bring with them a managed isolation voucher.
Mr Carlin said the current conditions made it unviable for the vast majority of people to travel to Queenstown, although he had four people lined up for the hoped-for February 3 flight.
“When there is an Australian-New Zealand travel bubble – hopefully come April, May – we have a list of people waiting to travel with us because they have holiday homes in Queenstown they haven’t seen in a year.”
Mr Carlin said he would travel to New Zealand next week to finish construction of his six-star The Carlin Hotel and supervise its pre-opening.
He said he conceived of the idea for Private Jets Ltd when he became sick of travelling between the Gold Coast and Queenstown regularly. Mr Carlin said COVID-19 had only made private travel more appealing.
“You don’t enter the main terminal where COVID could be in abundance but go to the private terminal where Customs come to us.
“The jet is sanitised before you climb aboard. We go through the same protocols as commercial aircraft where we check temperatures, we ask for a vaccine certificate or health certificate and there are sanitisers on each tray table.
“It is a three hour 20 minute flight, high quality food and brand name champagnes on board.”
Mr Carlin said Private Jets Ltd’s licence did not allow it to accept single passengers – only groups between two and 12 people.
He said the flights were not just for wealthy people, saying that a group of 12 people would pay $3000 each (one way) for the flight.
That includes in-flight food and drinks, Customs charges and transport between airports.
Private Jets Ltd works with a network of small jet operators. Its main aircraft is the 13seat Falcon 900.
GOVERNMENTS HAVE A DUTY TO RETURN TOURISM TO THE PEOPLE. WE HAVE SO MANY BUSINESSES STRUGGLING, DESPERATE FOR TOURISTS
KEVIN CARLIN