First freight-only flight to Singapore from Toowoomba’s Wellcamp Airport takes off

A regional airport has become home to the world’s only new regular flight route since the COVID crisis began.

New freight capabilities at Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport.

A regional Queensland airport has become home to the world’s only new regular flight route since the COVID-19 outbreak began.

Toowoomba’s Wellcamp Airport, which was famously built in just 19-months by owners, the Wagner family, saw off its first freight-only flight to Singapore last week, in a major milestone for the agriculture-rich region.

The service, operated by a Singapore Airlines’ A350-900, followed a doubling of cargo flights to Hong Kong by Cathay Pacific 777-300s, from one to two a week.

Each flight carries an estimated $800,000 worth of fresh produce including red meat, chicken, eggs and dairy, making Wellcamp Australia’s largest regional export hub and on par with Perth and Adelaide.

Toowoomba and Surat Basin Enterprise Food Leaders Australia general manager Bruce McConnell said they were hopeful of adding a second weekly flight to Singapore by the end of the year, and also saw opportunities in the Middle East.

“As a result of COVID-19 and the loss of so many international flights from Queensland, we’re still well below the freight capacity needed by exporters. We’re still well below 50 per cent,” said Mr McConnell.

“There’s still significant supply that needs to be created in the market to get back to normal trading situations.”

Sydney Airport research

New research by JP Morgan on Sydney Airport indicated it was expected to take longer than previously thought for “normal trading” to resume at Australia’s biggest gateway.

The analysis showed international travel was unlikely to return to pre-COVID levels until 2023-24, and domestic passenger numbers would not fully recover until 2022.

“Sydney’s challenges include the uncertain impact and duration of COVID-19, the viability of airlines and the likely re-basing of the 2020 financial year distribution,” said the report.

In April, the airport secured $850m in additional bank debt facilities to boost liquidity to $2.8bn following a 97 per cent fall in passenger numbers.

Last week, an ASX update said the airport was expecting the dramatic downturn in passenger numbers to continue until state and national borders reopened.

Although Sydney Airport was not expected to need to raise more equity, the report said the risk was increasing as a return to international travel was pushed out.

“Sydney Airport owns the most productive retail space in the country, although it may have to provide rent relief given the sharp fall in passenger numbers associated with COVID-19 and state and national border closures,” said the report.

“Its property business is fully let, delivering solid annual increases, it is accretively adding hotel rooms, and its carparking business delivers good margins, although the growth outlook is modest.”

A before tax loss of $62m was forecast for 2020, down from a pre-tax profit of $477m in 2019.