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Billions of dollars worth of aircraft mothballed in the NT

BILLIONS of dollars worth of aircraft have touched down in Alice Springs where they will be held in ‘long-term storage’ as the coronavirus pandemic cripples the airline business.

<s1>The Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage in Alice Springs is parking billions of dollars worth of aircraft during the coronavirus pandemic. Picture: Dan Gerich</s1>
The Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage in Alice Springs is parking billions of dollars worth of aircraft during the coronavirus pandemic. Picture: Dan Gerich

BILLIONS of dollars worth of aircraft have touched down in Alice Springs where they will be held in “long-term storage” as the coronavirus pandemic cripples the airline business.

The number of aircraft being held in Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage at Alice Springs Airport has almost tripled in recent months to 25.

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Alice Springs Airport general manager Dave Batic said they were now tracking to accommodate as many as 100 aircraft by the end of the year.

“This is the most we’ve ever seen at the facility and it’s still expanding,” he said.

“We’ve got a couple of 777s arriving from Bangkok on Thursday. The low humidity here makes this an ideal climate for them.”

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There are currently Boeing 737 Max 8s belonging to Silk Air and Fiji Airways in storage at Alice Springs.

There are also four Singapore Airlines A380s and three 777s; four Scoot A320s, two NokScoot 777s and three Fokkers from Brisbane-based Alliance Airlines.

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Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/business/billions-of-dollars-worth-of-aircraft-mothballed-in-the-nt/news-story/1db94c7556eef41624dec07463b93816