Hong Kong Airlines lands more flights in Queensland

HONG KONG – Hong Kong Airlines announced to extend its flight service to Queensland from seasonal flight to year-round flight, commencing on 27 March 2016. The new triangular service operating from Hong Kong to the Gold Coast, and continuing to Cairns enroute back to Hong Kong on every Tuesday and Saturday.
 

The flight schedule for the year-round Gold Coast/ Cairns route is as follows:

Flight no.#	Route	Departure/Arrival time*	Frequency
HX015	Hong Kong to  Gold Coast	21:50/ 08:30+1	Every Tuesday and Saturday
HX016	Gold Coast to Cairns	10:00/ 12:30	Every Wednesday and Sunday
HX016	Cairns to Hong Kong	13:45/ 19:10

*All local time; subject to regulatory approval

#Tax and fuel surcharges not included
 

Minister for Tourism and Major Events, Kate Jones, welcomed the news after Hong Kong Airlines’ first seasonal service touched down on the Gold Coast in January.
 

“Hong Kong Airlines will complete its seasonal service in March and step up immediately to a twice-weekly, year-round service from late March on the same direct route to the Gold Coast, returning via Cairns,” Minister Jones said.
 

“The new year-round service will open the door to as many as 13,000 extra travellers to the state each year, generating up to $32 million in overnight visitor expenditure.“
 

“That means in our first year, the Palaszczuk Government has secured additional international flights expected to bring 200,000 more visitors to Queensland and up to $287 million for our economy.“
 

Ms Jones said the Palaszczuk Government’s $10 million Attracting Aviation Investment Fund (AAIF) supported the Hong Kong Airlines service in partnership with Gold Coast Tourism, Cairns Airport, Tourism Tropical North Queensland, Tourism Australia and Gold Coast Airport.
 

“AAIF is part of the Palaszczuk Government’s Working Queensland commitment to drive employment growth and stimulate regional economies,” she said.
 

“We continue to work with international airlines, Tourism Australia, major airports and regional tourism organisations to increase the number of incoming flights from major global ports to Queensland.“
 

“China in particular is an important international tourism market and has the largest visitor expenditure for Queensland. Greater Chinese visitors, including those from Hong Kong and Taiwan, spent almost $1.2 billion in Queensland in the year to September 2015.“
 

“This in turn reflects the Palaszczuk Government’s commitment to growing the industry which provides jobs for Queenslanders across the state.“
 

Mr. Li Dianchun, Chief Commercial Officer of Hong Kong Airlines, said: “Hong Kong Airlines is honoured to have the full support of Tourism and Events Queensland in extending the flight service from Hong Kong to the Gold Coast and Cairns.“
 

“Queensland is undoubtedly a wonderful destination for travellers and overwhelming response have been received since its launch in January,” he said.
 

“We firmly believe the year-round service will further enhance the cultural, tourism and business exchange between China, Asia and Australia via our strong international hub Hong Kong, bringing into full play our connectivity in this part of the world.“
 

Tourism Australia (TA) Managing Director John O’Sullivan said TA planned joint marketing initiatives with Hong Kong Airlines and had earmarked significant funding over the next two years towards targeting North Asia’s rapidly growing market of free and independent travellers.
 

“This is great news for Australian tourism, and a very significant further step towards encouraging greater numbers of our Greater Chinese visitors to disperse more widely across our country,” Mr O’Sullivan said.
 

“It’s also very timely, with the onset of Chinese New Year once again highlighting the critical importance of China to our industry.“