Are international flights still on the radar for Townsville?
It’s been over a year since Townsville Airport announced they were looking into securing international flights “in the next two to five years” - but when will it actually happen? Here’s what we know.
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It’s been over a year since Townsville Airport announced it was looking into securing international flights to Bali, Singapore or New Zealand but a concrete agreement has yet to be reached.
When the plan was first floated the timing was estimated to be within the “next two to five years”.
But with mid-2025 right around the corner an update on the scheme has revealed its been delayed as airlines play hard to get, despite the airport’s confidence in its booming passenger numbers.
A Townsville Airport spokesperson assured the Townsville Bulletin re-establishing international flights remained a priority for the business – but couldn’t provide any updates.
“Our team is actively engaged with prospective airlines to secure new route opportunities and we’re confident that growth markets like Townsville will attract increasing interest,” the spokesperson said.
“Our team is working with all levels of government and our tourism partners to ensure Townsville is well positioned for the return of sustainable international services.”
Townsville has enjoyed international flights before - or more correctly, direct flights to Bali.
Strategic Airlines were the first to run Bali-Townsville flights, before they cut the route in 2011, changed their name to Air Australia, and promptly went into voluntary administration.
In 2015 Jetstar gamely opened its own Townsville-Bali route, flying three times a week, but axed the service in 2018 claiming the flights weren’t “economically viable”.
Covid was a hard time for airports (perhaps, an understatement), but in 2023 Townsville Airport recorded its second busiest month ever, and general manager Brendan Cook said at the time it’s “just been growth on growth and good months”.
In fact, 2023 ended up being Townsville Airport’s busiest year since 2012 with 1.6m travellers going through the Cowboys-adorned gates.
In 2024, the airport celebrated its busiest February ever on record and threw itself into opening 120 new car parks.
At the time, Mr Cook said they were looking into international flights but airlines weren’t exactly ready for new routes because there was “not a lot of spare aircraft in Australia”.
“But we know there are a number (of planes) entering the market soon, when Qantas gets their A220 Airbuses and Virgin some Boeing 737 Maxs,” he said.
Townsville Enterprise CEO and all-round North Queensland ambassador Claudia Brumme-Smith said TEL was still working on helping Townsville secure international flights.
“Aviation remains a challenging environment post-Covid, especially regarding plane availability,” Ms Brumme-Smith said.
“But we are working hard to put Townsville back on the map when it comes to international travel.”
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Originally published as Are international flights still on the radar for Townsville?
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