Article from BTNews 22 AUGUST 2016
Canberra international again
Australia’s capital, Canberra, will gain direct international air service for the first time in more than a decade next month when Singapore Airlines begins a four-a-week service linking its home base with the city and Wellington (New Zealand).
Previous attempts to establish international routes were abandoned after wrangles over road access and the development of Canberra Airport but the new agreement was sealed after lobbying by the Canberra government and creation of an AUS $1.1m co-operative marketing package.
The SIA operation, which begins on 21 September and has been dubbed the Capital Express route, will fly a retro-fitted Boeing 777-200, which will have more Business Class seats than usual and fewer in Economy Class.
Canberra Airport has built a new departure and arrival lounge at a cost of $25m as part of a $32m investment in facilities and has said it will offer more if other airlines follow SIA and offer international flights.
According to The Canberra Times, the absence of a night-time flight curfew was seen as a key attraction for the airport, with red-eye flights in both directions chosen to make them convenient for business and government travellers.
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