The first of Jetstar’s direct flights bound for Gold Coast Airport in Coolangatta, Queensland, is scheduled to leave the runway at Dunedin Airport tomorrow.
The new thrice-weekly service marks the return of regular direct international flights at the airport, which has been without transtasman services since early 2020.
With a flight time of about three and a-half hours, the service will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, using Jetstar’s Airbus A320ceo and A320neo aircraft, delivering up to 58,000 seats annually between the two cities.
Dunedin Airport chief executive Daniel De Bono said it had taken years of hard work, detailed modelling and relationship-building to secure the service.
"We’ve had to be persistent and a bit creative to get this over the line, and I couldn’t be prouder of what’s been achieved together.
"We’ve kept our international facilities ready to go, but we’ve also refreshed key aspects of the customer journey."
The service would open the door for international guests to rediscover Dunedin and southern attractions, and showed the airport was serious about building its place in the international network, Mr De Bono said.
To mark the inaugural flight’s arrival in Dunedin tomorrow, landmarks including Tōitu Otago Settlers Museum, Tūhura Otago Museum, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Dunedin Railway Station’s clock face will be lit up in Jetstar orange.
Direct travel between Dunedin and Australia was severed when Virgin Australia suspended its New Zealand services at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, having previously offered two to three weekly flights from the city.
Dunedin Airport had since offered a couple of one-off chartered international flights, including three Qantas flights for last year’s Pink concert and a Fiji Airlines flight, which transported the supporters of the Fijian Drua to watch their team’s match against the Highlanders. — APL
