Adelaide welcomes first direct Newcastle flight with FlyPelican

Adelaide Airport has welcomed today's arrival of FlyPelican's inaugural flight between Newcastle (NSW) and Adelaide - the first regular airline service between the two cities.

FlyPelican will operate three weekly flights per week on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday to service tourism and business markets.

Passengers on the inaugural service will include the Newcastle Jets A-League team and supporters travelling to Adelaide ahead of their clash with Adelaide United on Friday night.

Newcastle is a growing tourism destination on the edge of Sydney's northern suburbs and these new flights will capitalise on this market, providing increased access to Adelaide and its regions. 

FlyPelican has partnered with Alliance Airlines to operate the service, with the flight crew to be based in Adelaide.

Adelaide Airport Managing Director, Mark Young, said the new service was a welcome addition to Adelaide's growing domestic network.

"Newcastle has been one of our largest unserved markets and we've been keen to secure a service between our two cities for some time," Mr Young said.

"It is Australia's second largest regional city with many similarities to Adelaide, including its defence focus and proximity to the Hunter Valley wine region.

"It also provides a great alternative for passengers wanting to travel to and from the Central Coast, Hunter and North Coast regions without having to land in Sydney and find other transport options to get to Newcastle."

South Australian Tourism Commission, Chief Executive, Rodney Harrex said: "The new direct link from Newcastle is a welcome addition to South Australia's growing aviation success story.

"More visitors are choosing to come to South Australia than ever before, and we're committed to keeping this momentum by growing aviation and delivering great events and marketing campaigns to showcase our state as a sought after destination," Mr Harrex said. 

"In less than two and a half hours, visitors from Newcastle and Sydney's northern suburbs can be exploring our city or heading out to one of our world class tourism regions". 

FlyPelican CEO, Paul Graham, said: "As Newcastle's local airline, it is important to us to provide services the community needs.

"We are proud and excited to expand our network and give travellers greater choice with the new Adelaide direct route."

For more information and flight details visit www.flypelican.com.au.