Tuesday, 21 November 2023: Jetstar has today revealed plans to significantly expand its network out of Perth in 2024, with new direct flights to Singapore, Phuket, and Bangkok offering West Australians more choice and low fares across Southeast Asia*.
As part of its West Australian expansion, Jetstar will open a new Perth pilot base for at least 60 pilots, and base four aircraft in the WA capital, including the newest aircraft in its fleet - the Airbus A321neo LR.
Basing pilots and aircraft in Perth will allow the low-fares airline to continually build on its domestic and international network out of the west, with more new routes to be confirmed in the coming months.
The decision to launch three more Southeast Asian routes supports West Australian's strong demand for low fares international leisure travel, with more than 400,000 customers flying on Jetstar flights from Perth to Bali in the past year.
Jetstar's investment in Perth has been facilitated by a pipeline of new NEO aircraft joining the airline's fleet, freeing up existing aircraft and creating new flying opportunities.
Jetstar Group CEO, Stephanie Tully, said this is one of Jetstar's most significant network expansions in recent years, and demonstrates a long-term commitment to providing more low fares to Western Australians.
"This is a huge investment in our Perth operations. Having pilots and aircraft based in the west gives us the ability to add hundreds of thousands more low-cost seats to exciting new destinations across both our international and domestic network.
"These three new routes will open up low-fares travel right across Southeast Asia for our west-coast customers, including easy connections via Singapore onto Jetstar Asia's extensive network to 13 destinations throughout Asia.
"We expect to see West Australian travel demand continue to grow as we add more flights, and we're excited to share more details of our Perth network expansion soon."
WA Tourism Minister, Rita Saffioti, said this was more fantastic news for local tourism in Western Australia and only bolsters the State's reputation as the Western Gateway to Australia.
"These new direct flights will provide another welcome boost to tourism operators here in Western Australia, and of course, also provide locals here with easier access to destinations across Southeast Asia.
"Direct flights form a really important part of our tourism strategy, as it brings more visitors into our State, injects valuable tourism dollars into our local economy and supports local jobs and businesses, so we very much welcome today's announcement from Jetstar."
*Subject to government and regulatory approval.
For TV news grabs with Jetstar Group CEO, Stephanie Tully, click here
