Gold Coast to Wuhan route to fly thanks to Chinese business deal with Dalian Wanda Group
A route from Gold Coast to Wuhan will be lauched on Sep. This year.
A Chinese conglomerate has helped fund two new weekly Queensland air services to Asia, with Qantas budget subsidiary Jetstar set to link the Gold Coast with the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
The route, which would begin services on September 29 subject to regulatory approval, would be serviced by a 335-seat Boeing 787 Dreamliner and be funded, in part, by a partnership with the Dalian Wanda Group.
The route would be driven by inbound travel, with Dalian Wanda Group selling integrated flight and holiday packages to the Gold Coast.
Jetstar Australia and New Zealand chief executive David Hall said China was an important tourism market for Australia.
"This new service opens up a direct link between South East Queensland and one of the largest travel markets in the world, delivering about 70,000 seats between China and the Gold Coast each year," he said.
The 9½-hour flights between the Gold Coast and Wuhan would operate on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
"We're expecting strong bookings throughout the week, as thousands of customers take the opportunity to travel to the sunny Gold Coast for a break during the long weekend," Mr Hall said.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the new service would provide seats for up to 35,000 passengers a year and add millions to the local economy.
"The new route represents an important aviation milestone for Queensland, marking the introduction of the first non-stop services from China into the Gold Coast," she said.
"Over two years the Wuhan-Gold Coast service has the potential to generate $53 million in visitor expenditure to the local economy, in turn supporting jobs and small business."
Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate said 60 per cent of all Chinese visitors to Queensland included the Gold Coast on their visit.
"City of Gold Coast has long recognised the opportunity of the Chinese market and working with Gold Coast Tourism has driven the push for direct flights," he said.
"Today's announcement is the culmination of a concerted campaign which will inject millions into the local economy and help create more local jobs."
Gold Coast Tourism chairman Paul Donovan said about 186,000 Chinese tourists visited the Gold Coast every year.
"China is Queensland's largest international market by visitor expenditure, with visitors spending $591 million in the year to September 2014," he said.
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