Jetstar's Engine Room Takes Wing
Newcastle Herald
Friday March 2, 2007
LOW-cost carrier Jetstar could double operations at its new $29 million national maintenance base in Newcastle over the next five years, securing more high-skill aviation jobs.
NSW Premier Morris Iemma flew to Williamtown yesterday to open the aircraft engineering centre, next to Newcastle Airport, which will support the maintenance needs of Jetstar's fleet of 23 Airbus A320s.National tourism lobby group, Tourism and Transport Forum Australia hailed the opening of the hangar as a "shining example" of the economic benefits low-cost carriers were delivering to regional Australia.TTF Australia managing director Chris Brown said carriers such as Jetstar and Virgin Blue had not just expanded regional routes and capacity, they had also invested in regional infrastructure, creating jobs.Jetstar's maintenance base will create more than 50 engineering jobs, including eight apprenticeships, boosting the airline's workforce in the Hunter to 170.Jetstar chief executive Alan Joyce said the new facility had the capacity to support the maintenance needs of double the airline's present Airbus fleet while also carrying out maintenance for other airlines.He told The Herald Jetstar was looking at opportunities to increase its fleet of Airbus A320s in the next few months."Newcastle is a major investment for us, but it gives us plenty of capacity to grow," Mr Joyce said."The region will benefit also from the flow-on effects of the aerospace operations at Williamtown, with work going downstream to many local industries and suppliers," he said.Mr Iemma said Newcastle had been chosen by Jetstar ahead of competition from interstate and overseas to establish its maintenance base at Williamtown."The Hunter has become an aerospace hub, with Jetstar, Boeing and BAE all setting up facilities at Williamtown, creating some 3500 jobs."It's an indication that the Hunter can compete internationally in the aviation industry."
© 2007 Newcastle Herald