Batik Air is now flying between Canberra and Denpasar three times a week. Photo: Canberra Airport.
Canberra now has direct flights to the holiday haven of Bali, with the first Batik Air flight to Denpasar taking off this morning (Friday, 14 June).
Batik Air will fly three times a week between Canberra and Denpasar, becoming the second airline in the past 12 months to offer international flights from Canberra Airport.
The inaugural flight from Bali touched down at 7 am (Friday) and passengers on board the Boeing B737-800 received a traditional Welcome to Country, and were greeted by Canberra Airport, ACT Government and Indonesian Government representatives soon after landing.
Local Canberra gifts were provided to all incoming passengers.
Canberra Airport Head of Aviation Michael Thomson said it was exciting to bring yet another international carrier to the airport, offering Canberrans and those in the wider region not only direct flights to Indonesia, but also convenient connections to a large global network of destinations.
The arrival of Batik Air offered Canberrans, and a million others in the wider region, access to a global network of more than 50 destinations, including Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and India.
Batik Air group strategy director Chandran Rama Muthy said in February that the new link would provide travellers with easy access to one of Southeast Asia’s most popular destinations and, through Lion Air, other destinations.
“Our objective is not only to attract travellers from Canberra to Bali but also to unveil exciting opportunities for exploration in Indonesia’s diverse secondary destinations served by Lion Air,” he said.
“We are dedicated to enhance connectivity and making travel more accessible for passengers from Australia and Indonesia, and this new route reaffirms our dedication to that objective.”
From Denpasar, Batik Air hopes Canberrans will also access other destinations served by Lion Air, including Labuan Bajo, Lombok, Surabaya, Yogyakarta, Jakarta, Makassar, and Manado.
The aircraft departed for Denpasar at 8 am, with departing passengers escaping the chill of a Canberra winter for the warmth of Bali or beyond.
The Boeing B737-800 features a total of 162 seats, with 12 seats in business class and 150 seats in economy.
Canberra is Batik Air’s fifth Australian destination, and the airport’s second international airline, with Fiji Airways already offering a direct service to Nadi three times a week.
Flights from Denpasar will arrive in Canberra at 7 am each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, after departing Bali at 10:10 the night before.
Flights departing Canberra will leave at 8 am each Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
Last month, Canberra Airport unveiled an ambitious five-year Route Development Plan that could see Canberra travellers again flying direct to Doha, Singapore and New Zealand, as well as new destinations in China and Vietnam.
The airport plans to triple the number of carriers flying into and out of Canberra to 13 and the number of destinations to 22 by 2027-28.
That means six domestic and seven international carriers, including the return of Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines, and new airlines such as Air New Zealand, Cathay Pacific and VietJet Air.
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