05 August 2008

Plans for new airport in Western Australia taking off

Two Sydney-based consultants have been hired by Tourism Western Australia to assess the need for an airport in the south west region of the state, reports MICEBTN.

The Busselton Shire Council, the Augusta Margaret River Shire Council and the State Government are funding the assessment, to see if demands for regular passenger services to the region would warrant a new airport.

Rick Thomas, Tourism Western Australia’s Executive Director, said local communities will benefit from the increased job opportunities and tourism development if a new airport was built.

“There is a real correlation between a destination having direct air services and its ability to build on the existing tourism market,” he said.

Recent statistics showed the Goldfields region of Western Australia, Esperance, and Kalgoorlie are all experiencing a boom in the tourism industry despite general downward trends around the state.

“Overall, holiday visitor numbers in all of WA fell 2.3 per cent in the 12 months to March 2008,” Australia’s Golden Outback’s chief executive Jac Eerbeck said.  “Australia’s Golden Outback went totally against this trend, with an overall increase of 12.8 per cent in holiday visitors for the entire region, over the same 12 months.”

The Australian Immigration Department has designed an electronic visa application process for all international visitors that has been coined the most efficient visa system in the world.  By using an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA), all stamps, visa labels, and application forms are replaced with an electronic authorisation which is attached to the visitor’s passport. 

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The Australian Visa Bureau is an independent consulting company specialising in helping people apply for an Australia visa.

Article by Jessica Bird, Australian Visa Bureau.