Australia’s incentive travel industry helps fuel increased air charter demand
Next week sees the start of the Asia-Pacific Incentives & Meetings Expo (AIME) in Melbourne and the show’s international audience is an indicator of the region’s growing importance to the world travel market.
Travel professionals, meeting planners, corporate buyers and event organisers from Australia and around the world are expected to attend the show which will feature around 750 exhibitors.
Domestic event companies will compete alongside businesses from across Asia and further afield – all looking for a bigger piece of the lucrative Australian marketplace.
According to Cameron Pritchard, Business Development Manager at Chapman Freeborn Australia, there is now a growing appetite to travel both domestically and internationally which is helping to fuel demand for air charter services in 2014.
“We’re seeing increased demand for Australian groups flying to incentive destinations such as Bali, Tahiti, Singapore, Bangkok and Macau – as well as ongoing requirements for domestic air charter flights within Australia.
“Added to this, over the last decade Australia itself has become the destination of choice for a large number of mega-incentive groups flying in from Asia – particularly China. We work very closely with all of our global offices, and the Chapman Freeborn China team provides us with fantastic opportunities to continue to grow in this region.”
The incentive industry’s growing interest in Australia and the Asia-Pacific market is also reflected in recent aviation reports predicting soaring flight demand in the region in the next two decades.
Earlier this week, ahead of the Singapore Airshow, Boeing said the Asia-Pacific region will require almost 13,000 new aircraft over the next 20 years in order to meet flight demand.
If you’re heading to AIME 2014 or would like to find out more about Chapman Freeborn’s air charter services, please contact: +61 3 9374 5600 or email australia@chapman-freeborn.com.
AIME 2014 is held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, February 18-19 2014.
Photo: A Boeing 747-400 aircraft departs Melbourne Tullamarine Airport for Singapore.
