Cairns Airport could see an influx of additional arrivals after a deal between China and Australia allows airlines to sell up to 2,500 extra seats from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Perth as long as they stopover at regional airports such as Cairns.

Cairns Airport Pty Ltd (CAPL) chief executive officer, Stephen Gregg, said the announcement was very encouraging.

“This will add even more weight to the business case for Chinese services into Cairns and give us opportunities to further tap into that growth market,” Mr Gregg said.
 
“CAPL is working closely with TTNQ and Tourism Queensland on this, with delegates currently travelling to China to follow up on earlier meetings with Chinese carriers.”

The deal comes at a time when it has been revealed that Chinese visitors are the most economically valuable to Australia having spent $3.1 billion last year alone.

Meanwhile, Cairns Airport figures for February 2011 have been released which show domestic arrivals on par with 2010 levels at 105,146 (just 27 more than last year), and 411 more international arrivals than this time last year with 24,255.