Jetstar adds Brisbane-Darwin-Bali service
JETSTAR has moved to further bolster its new international hub in Darwin by adding a daily Brisbane-Darwin-Denpasar service from December 3.
The move will provide one-stop Airbus A320 flights from the three big east coast cities and complements existing non-stop A330 services from Sydney and Melbourne, reports The Australian.
It sees frequencies between Brisbane and Darwin rise from six to 13 a week and brings to 69 the number of weekly domestic and international A320 services the low-cost carrier now operates out of the Northern Territory capital.
Jetstar spokesman Simon Westaway said the move would make Jetstar the strongest local carrier serving the Bali market from December.
Mr Westaway said the capacity was in addition to the six weekly A330 flights - two from Melbourne and four from Sydney - and said there was no intention of cancelling those services.
"This is part of our narrowbody strategy of developing Darwin as a legitimate domestic and international hub," he said. "Darwin gets a third Asian destination - we link it directly with Singapore and since September we've been operating to Ho Chi Minh City as well."
The move is part of a broader plan to use A320 and A321 aircraft to service Southeast Asian destinations through Darwin and Perth. The strategy, hatched after delays to the airline's 15 Boeing 787s, also saw Jetstar pull A330 services out of Vietnam and Malaysia and redeploy them to protect slots in Japan.
Mr Westaway said Perth was due to get an international boost late next month, with flights to Denpasar, Jakarta and Singapore.
He said this would be a first for the airline and would see Qantas move off the markets.