Jetstar flight from Hamilton lands at the Gold Coast airport for the first time in years
Australian airline passengers, from a popular international destination, have touched down on the Gold Coast for the first time in years amid confidence in a foreign flights bounce back.
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A $30 million injection for the economy touched down at Gold Coast Airport on Wednesday via a new direct international route - amid confidence foreign flights will bounce back.
More than 30 years after becoming the Gold Coast’s first international route, direct flights from Hamilton in New Zealand returned to Coolangatta as Jetstar flight JQ164 hit the tarmac shortly after 2pm.
It is one of two new New Zealand-bound services from Jetstar, with flights to Dunedin beginning on Tuesday next week - and comes as former Gold Coast Tourism chairman Paul Donovan expressed confidence international air traffic would return to the city.
Queensland Airports Limited CEO Amelia Evans said the Hamilton service would pump millions into the Gold Coast economy.
“We know New Zealanders have a longstanding love affair with this region,” she said.
“Our current New Zealand services are always very busy, with more than 80 per cent of seats booked on average.
“We’ve welcomed more than half a million travellers on one of our four existing New Zealand routes in the last 12 months.
“The Hamilton service will add another connection, further strengthening our trans-Tasman ties and making it even easer for friends and family to reunite, holiday or explore our region.”
Jetstar’s head of networks Ted Knight said the connection would “unlock” more than 58,000 new low fares seats each year.
“(It will provide) a huge boost to tourism on both sides of the Tasman, while helping to connect the Gold Coast’s large population of Kiwi ex-pats to their home country,” Mr Knight said.
Hamilton and the soon-to-begin Dunedin service join Auckland, Wellington, Queenstown and Christchurch on the list of New Zealand destinations directly served by Jetstar from Gold Coast Airport.
Experience Gold Coast CEO John Warn said the return of the Hamilton route was a “meaningful” one for the city.
“It reconnects us with one of the Gold Coast’s earliest international links and is a powerful reminder of the deep cultural, family and tourism ties we’ve long shared with New Zealand,” he said.
“We’re excited to welcome even more visitors from the Waikato region to experience the energy, warmth and world-class offerings of the Gold Coast.”
Queensland Minister for Tourism Andrew Powell said the return of the route was a step in the right direction to improve the services at Gold Coast International Airport.
“This new route strengthens our ties with New Zealand, where more of our international visitors come from than anywhere else, and opens the door for more Kiwis to experiences our world-class events, natural wonders, and vibrant communities,” he said.
“As we continue to build on our green and gold runway towards the 2032 Olympics and Paralympic Games, every new connection like this helps us build a stronger, more resilient visitor economy for the decades ahead.”
Despite surging traffic on domestic routes Gold Coast Airport has struggled to lure overseas carriers back following the Covid-19 pandemic. However former Gold Coast Tourism chairman Paul Donovan said the routes would continue to return.
“I think that the fact that the Gold Coast doesn’t have the international airlines we once had is more a perception problem than a financial problem,” he said.
“You’ve got to look at Brisbane as being a good feeder until some of the second-tier carriers are brought back into the Gold Coast.
“They will come back, but Brisbane is now the feeder for internationals. But internationally they haven’t got their capacity back that we had pre-Covid but it’s coming back slowly and I think we’re about 70 per cent at the moment.”
Jetstar’s new Dunedin service will run Wednesday, Friday, Sunday and one-way fares are from $179.
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