Adelaide Airport’s bold plan directly connecting SA with multiple capitals

Adelaide Airport hopes to offer 39 non-stop direct flights by 2050 as part of a bold plan to bring Adelaide closer to more major cities. See which routes are on the list.

• Price war for overseas fares from SA

Direct non-stop flights to Los Angeles, Tokyo and New Delhi could soon become a reality as part of an ambitious plan to bring Adelaide closer to dozens of hard to reach global cities.

A year since Adelaide Airport unveiled its Network Vision 2050 plan, airport boss Brenton Cox says the time is right for airlines to capitalise on the boom in international travel, with departures from Adelaide surging past pre-pandemic levels despite elevated fares.

Cheaper flights to Europe are also on their way, with Emirates’ return to Adelaide expected to spark a price war between rival airlines.

According to airport figures, every month more than 50,000 travellers, or more than 40 per cent of all international departures from Adelaide, are forced to stop off in another Australian city before heading overseas due to limited direct connections.

Mr Cox said the so-called “leakage” figures meant the state was missing out on valuable inbound tourism dollars to other Australian cities where direct flights were more accessible.

“What we do find is that when you do get a direct service it actually stimulates particularly that inbound market,” he said.

“At the moment only two thirds of people travelling (internationally) to and from Adelaide can go directly.

“A third of those people are having to go through another Australian capital city, predominantly Sydney and Melbourne.

“And that, quite frankly, is a loss of our market share.

“We are giving other capital cities our business and that is economic activity in terms of what happens on the ground – we’re feeding other cities and other states when we should be feeding our own.”

Network Vision 2050 identifies 39 global cities where the airport believes direct non-stop flights could be introduced by 2050 to satisfy passenger demand.

Adelaide Airport’s Network Vision 2050, connecting Adelaide non-stop with global 39 cities. Picture: Supplied by Adelaide Airport

The airport is working behind the scenes to lure back Cathay Pacific and China Southern, which suspended their direct flights to Hong Kong and Guangzhou during the onset of Covid-19.

Topping the list of target cities after that are Los Angeles, Tokyo and New Delhi, while London is also on the radar, although it would rely on developments in aircraft technology.

Mr Cox said the explosion in traffic from China following the introduction of direct flights to Guangzhou in 2016 showed the impact direct flights had on visitation flows into the state.

But the challenge was convincing airlines to expand capacity in Adelaide in favour of other cities vying for a limited fleet of global aircraft.

He said there was a chicken and egg dichotomy at play, in that airlines want demand to justify a direct service, but people are less likely to travel if a direct flight is not available in the first place.

“In terms of New Delhi, Tokyo and Los Angeles, they’re our three biggest markets or cities that are currently not directly served where you’ve got large flows of people travelling between already,” he said.

“They are destinations that we are absolutely confident would make money for those airlines tomorrow.

“The question for them is do they have the fleet to service that market and can they make more money in Adelaide than they can make elsewhere in the world? And that’s our job to try to encourage them to think that.

“The reality is that in the international airline game, every single city, state, country is in basically an arms race for aviation connectivity, particularly in a world where airlines have less fleet than they previously had before Covid – it is very competitive.”

The largest city markets for Adelaide travellers are being targeted for direct non-stop flights. Picture: Supplied by Adelaide Airport

States like Queensland have been aggressively chasing direct flights, luring airlines including US carriers United Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines with the support of a $200m state government aviation attraction fund.

Former South Australian Premier Steven Marshall had promised a similar fund worth $18m in the lead up to the 2022 election.

Mr Cox said Adelaide Airport had been well supported in its direct flights ambitions by both sides of politics, including in its current talks with US airlines to introduce direct flights to LA.

“Adelaide Airport puts significant packages up to attract airlines and we will continue to do that,” he said.

“And the SATC also supports airlines with co-marketing around those services, but governments do also provide other support to help airlines set up.

“We’ve always worked with and have shared our vision with key government and industry partners, but it just comes down to a full-court press, a whole of community momentum. We want to make sure we’re leaving no stone unturned.”

Adelaide Airport managing director Brenton Cox is hoping to lure back Cathay Pacific and China Southern before exploring other potential routes from Adelaide. Picture: Dean Martin

Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said the state government had “ambitious but focused” targets for the airlines and markets it chose to pursue.

“We recognise that supporting and growing a strong aviation industry in South Australia is fundamental to driving economic growth and vibrancy in our state,” she said.

“The state government is focused on airlines and routes which will directly benefit South Australia, bringing increased visitation and students as well as boosting trade and freight exports.

“Our priority is to re-establish routes from pre-Covid times, just as we have done with Emirates, and to develop new routes connecting our state to South East Asia, China, the United States and Japan.”

Echoing calls from Premier Peter Malinauskas late last year for Qantas to reinstate international services in Adelaide after a decade-long absence, Mr Cox said talks with the airline were ongoing, and he was confident of a return in the “medium term”.

The national carrier will add a third non-stop flight from Perth to Europe later this year, when Paris joins London and Rome as direct destinations from the West Australian capital, and the company has ambitions to fly non-stop to Europe from Sydney and Melbourne by 2026.

“We would absolutely love the national carrier flying internationally from the Adelaide market, and we do believe that Qantas itself would also love to be flying internationally from the Adelaide market,” Mr Cox said.

“Really what we’re waiting for at the moment, and what Qantas is waiting for, is new aircraft deliveries that will enable Adelaide to be served by Qantas more cost effectively and also in a way that is right-sized for our market.”

There have been calls for Qantas to reinstate international services in Adelaide after a decade-long absence. Picture: Ben Clark

A Qantas spokeswoman said the airline regularly reviewed demand across its international network, but would not comment on whether the airline had plans to resume services in Adelaide.

“Qantas welcomes the announcement from our partner, Emirates, on the resumption of direct flights from Adelaide to Dubai,” she said.

“Qantas customers in Adelaide can already fly one-stop to London and Rome via Perth, and to Paris from July.”

According to Mr Cox, international departures out of Adelaide are up to 109 per cent of pre-Covid levels, but the inbound market is lagging at just 78 per cent.

Just a third of international traffic through the airport comprises of inbound travel, but Mr Cox believes there’s an opportunity to turn that figure around and stimulate the local economy with more tourists, particularly from Asia.

Adelaide Airport managing director Brenton Cox. Picture: Dean Martin

“Even by 2050, as a city, we may still only have a population of just over 2 million, whereas the rest of the world should still have a population of in the order of 8 billion or more, so there should be more people who do want to come here,” he said.

“And we’re so lucky to be on the doorstep of Asia, and there is a burgeoning, emerging middle class.

“What we’ve found is that if you look at those economies with the highest disposable incomes, they also are those economies and cities and communities with the highest propensity to travel.”

StudyAdelaide chief executive Jane Johnston said she welcomed the prospect of more direct flights into Adelaide, which would drive visitation from relatives and friends of international students.

“Knowing that on an international plane 13 per cent of an average plane is made up of international students, means that they are a significant part of the capacity on a plane,” she said.

“We’re working really closely with people I know are building back that capacity. We work really closely with Adelaide Airport for example, to make sure when we are looking at how we can build back airline capacity, we are putting forward as strong a case as possible across all the different elements of what SA can offer.

“For visiting friends and relatives … we want to make sure that the international education sector is thriving because we know it contributes to a strong international tourism sector altogether.”

The prospect of more direct international flights out of Adelaide comes as rival airlines ramp up their capacity in the aftermath of Covid-19.

Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines are expanding their capacity in Adelaide later this year through additional services and larger aircraft, while Emirates confirmed in February that it would resume daily services in October, providing connections through Dubai to destinations including the UK, Europe, India, and the east coast of the US.

An Emirates spokeswoman said Europe had been a key destination for the airline’s South Australian passengers prior to the pandemic, and it expected similar demand following its return.

“With Dubai being a key global connection point, travellers are expected to venture outbound from Adelaide to London, Rome, Dubai, Paris, Amsterdam, Manchester, Athens, Dublin, Barcelona and Milan,” she said.

“The top inbound destinations are expected to be London, Manchester, Dubai, Birmingham, Paris, Amsterdam, Glasgow, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf.”

Originally published as Adelaide Airport’s bold plan directly connecting SA with multiple capitals