NOVOCASTRIANS will be able to fly direct to the Sunshine Coast this summer with flights between Williamtown and the Queensland holiday destination to launch in the new year.
Hunter airline Fly Pelican will begin flying three return services a week between Newcastle Airport and the Sunshine Coast on January 4.
The flights will run on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, departing Newcastle at 10.20am. The return flight departs the Sunshine Coast at 12.25pm local time.
A one-way ticket will cost from $199 with the flight time 1 hour and 55 minutes.
The flights will operate for 12 weeks only at this stage, but Fly Pelican CEO Marty Hawley said he was optimistic the route would become a "year-round" offering.
"It is really exciting to launch this new service, linking Newcastle directly to the Sunshine Coast for the first time ever," he said.
"We encourage locals at both ends to explore a beautiful part of Australia, support the service and help make it a long-term proposition.
"Whilst this route is commencing as a 12-week service, we hope it will develop into a year-round offering relatively quickly."
Fly Pelican will use a 19-seat Jetstream 32 turboprop aircraft on the route, which will provide the Hunter with a third Queensland destination alongside Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Newcastle Airport CEO Dr Peter Cock said the route was just reward for the region given it had been outperforming most other airports across the country since the easing of travel restrictions.
"We have found ourselves in several discussions regarding new route opportunities in the last couple of months and it's no surprise the Sunshine Coast has emerged as a new service," he said.
"We know many people from our region enjoy holidaying on the Sunshine Coast.
"Iconic destinations like Noosa, Coolum and Maroochydore are regularly on our 'to do' list."
The route announcement comes after Port Macquarie-based airline Eastern Air Services launched a direct link between Williamtown and Lord Howe Island and Canberra-owned Link Airways began operating flights from the ACT.
But it may not be the last unveiled this year. Dr Cock said other routes were "in the works" and one could be announced within weeks.
"We're really pushing an airline to make an announcement pre-Christmas," he said.
The Sunshine Coast route announcement follows the resumption of Melbourne flights last month and both Brisbane and Gold Coast services a few weeks earlier.
Dr Cock said Newcastle Airport's domestic seat capacity this month was 88 per cent of what it was last December, a figure higher than the capital cities and other regional airports like Townsville and Launceston.
He said November passenger numbers would be released within days and most flights in December had been well booked.
"We've seen a strong demand for both inbound and outbound leisure travel since borders reopened," he said.
"Forecasts suggest our region is outperforming most others in terms of air travel and we hope to see this demand continue to climb in the lead up to Christmas."
Prior to COVID-19, the Airport facilitated 250 flights per week. The only route yet to resume is Regional Express's service between Newcastle and Sydney.
It continues to lobby for a runway upgrade to coincide with Department of Defence resurfacing works next year.
The upgrade to allow for international aviation, which requires about $55 million, would create 4500 jobs and generate an estimated $12.7 billion in economic benefits.
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