Featured photo credit: Photo bySrikant Sahoo onUnsplash
Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Australia's New South Wales (NSW) government have partnered to rebuild tourism in Sydney and NSW. Through the partnership, the flag carrier will work with Destination NSW, the NSW government's tourism and major events agency, on initiatives such as advertising and marketing campaigns to drive visits to the Australian state.
The new agreement, which was sealed through the NSW Government’s A$60 million (S$58 million) Aviation Attraction Fund, will facilitate marketing activities across Singapore, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, UK, Germany and France to stimulate demand and drive visitation to NSW. It was signed during a Memorandum of Understanding ceremony on July 25.
"Singapore Airlines, with the support of the NSW government, is currently operating four daily flights to Sydney, which is estimated to deliver over A$232 million (S$223.5 million) in visitor expenditure to NSW up until July 2023 and support more than 1,200 jobs," said New South Wales Minister for Sport and Tourism Stuart Ayres, who is also the Minister for Enterprise, Investment and Trade, and Minister for Western Sydney.
The fund is part of a Covid-19 economic recovery plan and aims to build aviation capacity across NSW by supporting airlines to return to the state's airports. Tourism is one of Australia's biggest industries, worth more than A$60 billion (S$58 billion) and employing about 5 per cent of the country's workforce. But the sector was crippled after the country shut its borders in March 2020.
Australia fully reopened its international borders in February to vaccinated travellers.
With the agreement, Ayres said there is a good opportunity to increase the number of flights to Sydney eventually.
"This is a great start and a really strong indication of the confidence of flying between Singapore and Sydney. We do hope that this will lead to more aircraft coming into Sydney and that's great for Singapore and great for New South Wales," he said.
In 2019, NSW welcomed more than 126,000 Singaporean visitors, who stayed more than one million nights Singapore is also a high-traffic hub for passengers from around the globe travelling to NSW.
Singapore Airlines Executive Vice President Commercial Lee Lik Hsi said that the carrier remains committed to the Australian market.
“Singapore Airlines’ global network, as well as our dedication to providing safe travels to all of our customers, allow us to work closely with the NSW Government to increase visitor arrivals into NSW,” he said.
Lee added that this year marks 55 years since Singapore Airlines’ first flight into Australia, and the partnership reflects the airline’s long-standing commitment to keeping the country connected to the world and bringing travel to new heights.
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