The FINANCIAL — Sydney Airport welcomed the commencement of Qantas’ new direct Sydney-Osaka service today, marking a new route for the airport.
The three-weekly service will operate on an Airbus A330 aircraft, adding 92,000 seats annually, according to Sydney Airport.
Sydney Airport Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Kerrie Mather said the new route would provide additional capacity to meet growing demand from travellers.
“We’re thrilled that Qantas has recognised the strength of this growing market with its new service,” Ms Mather said.
“This new Qantas service is a fantastic boost for tourism, as it’s expected to bring in an additional 24,000 Japanese visitors and $50 million in additional visitor expenditure per year for NSW,” Ms Mather said.
“Japan is also one of the most popular destinations for Australian travellers. Osaka is our largest unserved market and Sydneysiders will be excited to now have a direct route to Osaka in time for the busy holiday period.
“The city of Osaka offers a new gateway for Australians to explore Japan, particularly the beautiful Kansai region, the neighbouring historic city of Kyoto, and its great shopping, restaurants and nightlife.”
Japan is Sydney Airport’s sixth largest origin and destination market, growing 15% in the past year.
Minister for Tourism and Major Events Adam Marshall said the NSW Government is working with Qantas and travel trade partners to further promote the new year-round service.
“Sydney is undisputedly the gateway to our great State and we are delighted to be welcoming the new Qantas service, set to encourage more Japanese visitors to explore our sparkling Harbour City, iconic attractions and beautiful rural and regional destinations,” Mr Marshall said.
“With record numbers of visitors flying into Sydney and travelling beyond into rural and regional NSW, we look forward to boosting the State’s visitor economy as a result of this new service and ensuring NSW is the number one choice for Japanese travellers.”
Tourism Australia Managing Director John O’Sullivan said Tourism Australia was already working closely with Qantas to promote the new Osaka service in Japan, including supporting a party of Japanese media travelling to Australia on the inaugural flight.
“The travel trade in market are really excited about the new service. As we’ve seen in the past few years, improved air access has really helped turn around the Japan market. Being able to fly direct to Australia from Osaka is hugely significant. When combined with the high-speed rail network that serves the airport, this new service effectively opens up a huge catchment area of potential holidaymakers for Australia across southern and western Japan,” Mr O’Sullivan said.
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