ECO AIRLINES BEGINS OPERATING FROM BRISBANE TO THE CENTRAL PACIFIC
ECO Airlines will begin air services from Brisbane to the Central Pacific in February 2005, providing new jet passenger and cargo capacity to the region. Initially this service will be provided on a weekly-unscheduled charter basis.
ECO Airlines will be operating two routes. Brisbane to Pohnpei with a stopover in Honiara allowing passengers to enter the gateway to the Federal States of Micronesia. It is planned for this service to be extended to Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands.
The second service for ECO Airlines will take passengers from Brisbane to Tarawa, the main atoll of Kiribati and onto Majuro in the Marshall Islands and return.
The aircraft to be used is a Yak 42D combi. These aircraft were constructed to service major European centres and are as such, fully approved as stage 111 noise compliant plus it is equipped with all the latest avionics including TCAS, GWPS and GPS.
Business Class for Economy Prices
The large tri jet aircraft originally designed to carry more than 100 passengers is configured to offer a combination of 54 passenger seats and ten tonnes of cargo. With only 54 passenger seats to fill and so much space ECO Airlines have fitted Business Class seats with appropriate space but are only charging Economy airfares.
By offering convenient daylight departure times to the Pacific in conjunction with a premium economy class product the airline is looking to develop business, government and community traffic to and from the region. This is in addition to the leisure travel market catering specifically for the dive, surfing and eco tourism sectors. Pohnpei is a growing market for surfers and is the gateway to some of the most spectacular dive sites in the Pacific.
Passengers will also appreciate the three, turbo-fan jet engine safety offered by the Yak 12D when flying over such large tracts of ocean.
"Commercially, ECO Airlines will be providing a service transporting fresh Australian food products and high value materials into all destinations and returning with fresh seafood for our market in Australia and continuing onto Japan" says ECO Airlines General Manager, Clive Abbott.
The first YAK 12D tri jet arrives in Brisbane on the 25th Jan and it is planned that the airline will use up to 4 aircraft, depending upon demand. Airfreight capability is badly needed in the Pacific according to company sources and being a combi (convertible from passenger to freight) this allows for maximum flexibility for inter island operations.
Eco Airlines say that initially they will only operate out of Brisbane but over the next twelve months ECO Airlines plans to extend its network to include other destinations in Oceania, which will offer opportunities to expand trade links and develop tourism.
ECO Airlines Passenger enquiries:
Tel: +61 2 8080 5696
E-mail:
[email protected]
Cargo enquiries:
Queensland Cargo Service
Tel: +61 7 3860 4782
E-mail:
[email protected]
===========================================