Originally Posted by
Lookleft
When did Newcastle get customs and international departure lounges put in?
Newcastle Airport international travel facilities unveiled
August 25 2017 Nick Bielby
Newcastle Airport will officially open its new international arrivals and departure facilities on Friday, in a major step towards offering overseas flights from the Williamtown transport hub. NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance will unveil the new $1.6 million facilities.
Security and IT equipment, passenger screening technology and furniture for border security agencies are among the upgrades.
While it’s understood Newcastle Airport has no imminent announcements about international routes from the Hunter, CEO Peter Cock said the upgrades meant the airport was “one step closer to offering direct international services”.
“I know our region is passionate about travel and there is an incredible desire for international travel,” Dr Cock said. “I know, because I’m asked almost every day that you want to be able to fly overseas from your local airport. I can assure you that my team and I are working tirelessly behind the scenes to make this a reality – our region certainly deserves to be able to fly to more destinations from their local airport. The completion of this project is incredibly exciting for our region. We deserve to have this infrastructure and we deserve to have direct international flights to our region. We’ve delivered the first to you and I assure you we’re working hard to deliver the latter too.”