The Cairns Post: It's High Time to Invest...

The Far North is in prime position to capitalise on Asia's aviation boom, writes Barry Jackson, president of the Australian and International Pilots Association.

I SPENT the early part of my aviation career in North Queensland working on cattle stations, and the experience left me with a lifelong wonder as the enormous potential of this vast area of Australia.

The natural potential of water and soil are well known. But what is mentioned less is how this part of our nation is some 3000km closer to Asia than the southern states.

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It is high time for Australia to look at diversifying away from the populated southeast states and investing in regional Australia. One of the most logical and effective means of doing this is through the development of aviation infrastructure and the construction of airports.

When it comes to new airports, the southern states are hopelessly hamstrung by politics and the cost of land. Sydney, for example, has been tying itself in knots for decades over where to put a second airport.

Well, maybe it is time to look at the advantages of building airports away from these populous areas.

Regional America provides a salient example. The construction of "superhubs", like the Dallas/Fort Worth and Memphis airports has provided an enormous boost to the local and national economy.

The mighty Federal Express is able to base itself out of Memphis, with 200 FedEx flights a night carrying about 3.3 million packages.

The Memphis distribution centre is a wonderful example of the power of the "build it and they will come" mentality, which is so unfashionable in modern Australia. The parallels with our situation are obvious. The Memphis Superhub was developed because of it's relative proximity to Europe - North Queensland and Asia are our nation's equivalents.

The latest International Civil Aviation Organisation data shows that for every dollar generated by an airport or airline, three more are generated in revenue to the region by services and businesses supporting the facility. With Dallas/Fort Worth airport generating about $US16.6 billion ($15.8 billion) a year, the advantages to the local economy are obvious. Think of the jobs that could be created in North Queensland by a development of this sort. A major airport would generate enormous benefits for generations.

I note that the potential for establishing a strategic hub has not gone completely unrecognised in this part of the country. Grazier Brian Henry, for example, is planning a major airport development at his pastoral station, Sugarbag, at Mt Garnet.

This strategic development, if constructed, would see live and processed cattle, sheep and goats flown directly to Asia. If sufficient volume is generated, this could become a viable way of feeding the massive population to our north and reaping economic benefits.

A strategic hub would also obviously assist access to North Queensland's myriad tourist attractions, which would be of obvious interest to the growing Asian middle class, millions of whom are increasingly able to afford international travel.

And what better escape from the hustle and bustle of the growing Asian cities than the Great Barrier Reef and North Queensland's national parks?

The cost of flying has dropped markedly in recent times, and advancing technology and furl efficiency should assist this process to continue.

We must ensure North Queensland develops the necessary infrastructure to be part of this looming boom.

Article printed by The Cairns Weekend Post - Saturday 8th December 2012

Peter Musso licensed real estate agent at Ray White Smithfield selling property in Cairns' beautiful northern beach suburbs including Trinity Beach, Kewarra Beach, Clifton Beach, Palm Cove, Trinity Park, Smithfield, Yorkeys Knob, Holloways Beach, Machans Beach, Caravonica, Kamerunga and surrounds.