Direct Darwin-China flights on cards in wake of $506 million Darwin Port sale

DIRECT air links between China and the Top End are being discussed in the wake of the $506 million Darwin Port sale, the NT News can reveal

China Southern Airlines' first A380 service arrived in Sydney this morning. The new plane will replace the A330-300 service and will have the capacity to bring 502 seats per flight into Sydney. Picture: Zerna Toby

DIRECT air links between China and the Top End are being discussed in the wake of the $506 million Darwin Port sale, the NT News can reveal.

Both Chief Minister Adam Giles and Mike Hughes, the Australian head of the Port’s new owner, Landbridge Group, are confident flights could begin in the near future.

The most likely link is to major cities Guangzhou or Shanghai, rather than Shandong Provence, which lies further north and is where Landbridge bases the majority of its business interests.

Mr Giles said flights would be a byproduct of the Port deal and would have flow-on benefits to the tourism sector.

“(To support direct flights) you need to get people up the front of the plane in business class, you need people up the back of the plane and you need trade happening underneath,” Mr Giles said.

Landbridge says the Port deal will create interest in the NT and Darwin in China. The company has ties to China Southern Airlines, headquartered in Guangzhou, but Mr Hughes said they would not necessarily operate any service. Regardless, he said the demand was there.

Mr Hughes told the NT News the Port was a “gateway” investment that would complement the company’s diverse business interests, which include onshore gas, tourism, real estate, petrochemicals, forestry and manufacturing.

“That’s definitely the way we’re looking at it (in Darwin),” Mr Hughes said. “The Port is the gateway. The Port facilitates what happens (in terms of growing trade between Australia and Asia).

“Landbridge has very broad networks in China. These relationships have the ability to create interest in China in the NT and Darwin.

“In my view the way we look at this is that anything that’s good for Landbridge is good for the NT economy is good for everyone.”

Skycity Darwin general manager Callum Mallett welcomed the potential of a direct link into mainland China. The South-East Asian market is a target area for high rollers for the casino.

“Australia, South-East Asia and Australasia have benefited from a surge in outbound Chinese tourism,” he said.

“For the Northern Territory to get a full service we would see it not only as beneficial for our business but all business in the Territory. The thing is, once someone starts coming then others will look as well.”

The company, backed by billionaire Cheng Ye, has spent $506 million on the Port and committed to spending an additional $200 million on upgrades.