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New Delhi : Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha met Western Australian Tourism Minister Paul Papalia here on October 24, 2018, to receive further commitments from the Western Australian State Government to establish direct non-stop flights between India and Perth.

The two Ministers said the discussions were positive agreeing there would be benefits for both Western Australia and India if a direct service was established. Chairman and Managing Director of Air India Pradeep Kharola was also present at the meeting.

India is already a fast growing market for Western Australia with the number of visitors increasing by 38 per cent since the year ending December 2015 to the same period in 2017. The Western Australia Government recently committed funds to market the State to Indian consumers for the first time and has appointed a dedicated marketing representative based in Mumbai. Air India has agreed to explore the business case for the route.

Sinha said, “India and Australia share strong trade, investment, sporting and education ties. Direct connectivity between India and Australia has the potential to deepen these relationships.” He said, “India has a very open air service agreement with Australia. It encourages both Indian and Australian airlines to consider making use of the liberal arrangements to mount more flights between the two countries.” He added that many Indian carries are now permitted to fly on international routes and we hope to see many new direct flights and increased frequency between the two countries.

After the meeting, Paul Papalia said,“ Today’s meeting was extremely productive and significantly progressed our efforts towards establishing direct flights between India and Perth.”  He said, “ The Western Australian Government is serious about growing the number of visitors travelling to Western Australia from India, which is why we have committed marketing funds for the first time and appointed a market representative to work with travel trade and Tourism Australia to promote the State.” He said, “Perth boasts the best hotels in Australia with more than 3,000 new rooms opening in the past few years.

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