Over the past year, airberlin has seen a 46 percent rise in passengers booking flights to Australia. Since 2012, bookings on the joint service operated with codeshare partner Etihad have grown steadily. The route operates 39 times weekly and includes a single stop in Abu Dhabi (AUH) before continuing to one of four Australian destinations.
To mark the growing demand, airberlin partnered with Tourism Australia to unveil the #seeaustralia Airbus. The aircraft will carry a kangaroo motif on its fuselage and will operate on short- and medium-haul airberlin routes for the coming year.
“The kangaroo is synonymous with our country,” said John O’Sullivan, Managing Director of Tourism Australia. “It has always played an important role in how we promote Australia to the world, so we couldn’t be happier that airberlin has given us the opportunity for our very own ‘skippy’ to welcome German passengers as they step on board.”
As part of the promotion, airberlin is offering special fares to Australia through March 14 and running a Facebook giveaway for a vacation for two to Australia. Together with Etihad Airways, airberlin currently serves Melbourne (MEL), Sydney (SYD), Brisbane (BNE) and Perth (PER).
“Australia is booming and we are proud that, together with Etihad Airways, we can offer the fastest one‑stop connection to Sydney from Berlin,” said Stefan Pichler, CEO of airberlin. “The continuous increase in demand for travel to Australia in recent years reflects a very dynamic travel market. Our long‑haul flights with Etihad, combined with around 500 weekly codeshare flights with Virgin Australia on 14 domestic routes, give our passengers ample options for comfortable travel across the continent.”