Jake Nelson

The 5,000-square-metre facility, supported by an extra 4,000 square metres of surrounding land, will eventually be able to handle around 60,000 tonnes per year. It comes as the first cargo flights are slated to arrive at WSI from July, with passenger flights to start in October at the latest.

The newly-opened 78,000-square-metre Brisbane facility can process up to 250,000 parcels per day, while the 12,000-square-metre Hobart centre, set to open adjacent to the airport in 2027, will be able to sort up to 6,000 parcels per hour.

Qantas Group and Virgin Australia are discounting more than 3.5 million airfares between them in major domestic sales, with Justin Brownjohn, senior manager at RMIT Aviation Academy, saying the carriers are aiming to reshuffle capacity and offset losses.

Part of Launceston’s major terminal upgrade program, the project will see the construction of a new boarding gate, as well as a “complete renovation and modernisation” of Gates 3 and 4, and a 600-square-metre expansion of the gate area.

Funding injections of $3.8 million for the Inter-Regional Flight Network, operated by Nexus Airlines, and more than $1.3 million for two Kimberley services operated by Aviair, will be included in the 2026–27 budget to extend subsidies on the regional routes.

Dubbed “Built for what’s next”, a new campaign aims to spruik Bradfield as a centre for “innovative business models”, with ready access to skilled local workers as well as Western Sydney International Airport and the Advanced Manufacturing Readiness Facility.