Qantas launches Brisbane-Karratha flights in November

In a sign of the times, Qantas will commence weekly flights between resources boom towns Brisbane and Karratha from November 6, which the company says will provide the first direct air access between the east coast and the Pilbara.

The full text of a Qantas announcement is pasted below

Qantas will commence a new Boeing 737-800 weekly service between Brisbane and Karratha in Western Australia from 6 November.

Qantas Regional General Manager Western Australia Ian Gay said the new flights would provide the first direct air access between the growing Pilbara region and the east-coast and would cater predominantly to the resources sector.

"With both Queensland and Western Australia in the midst of this country's resource boom, there is a significant market for these services," Mr Gay said.

Mr Gay said the services would also boost tourism opportunities, providing direct access to two important tourism gateways.

"The Pilbara is home to three national parks, the world's largest single open-cut iron ore mine, prized fishing spots on the coast and some of the country's most ancient Australian Aboriginal art.

"Brisbane is the main gateway to Queensland, which offers a huge range of travel options including the beaches of the Gold and Sunshine Coasts, the pristine waters of the Whitsunday's, the world-famous Great Barrier Reef and the tropical rainforests of the far north."

The Qantas Group currently operates 29 flights and more than 5900 seats in each direction each week between Queensland and Western Australia. Qantas first began services to Karratha from Perth in 1994.