Virgin Australia has announced new services between Townsville and Sydney and Melbourne, boosting services on the routes from 27 July and 17 August respectively.

Queensland Airports Limited CEO Chris Mills said the extra flights were great news for North Queensland tourism operators and Townsville residents looking to fly to Melbourne or Sydney for a holiday or business reasons.

“We have been working closely with Virgin Australia to secure additional flights for Townsville Airport,” he said.

“These extra Townsville-Melbourne and Townsville-Sydney services will deliver another 70,000 seats into the region from July and August.

“This will take Townsville Airport another step closer to pre-COVID-19 capacity levels and is another milestone in the airport’s recovery.”

The existing Brisbane-Townsville route will also increase from 20 up to 31 return flights per week by October.