• The nonstop journey between Perth and Rome will take a little over 16 hours.
• The route is anticipated to produce around 7.7 million Australian dollars (about 5.4 million U.S. dollars) and attract more than 3,700 additional visitors to Perth over the next two years.
• WA Premier Mark McGowan will watch the first flight leave on Saturday.

SYDNEY: This week, the government of Western Australia (WA) is arranging the first-ever non-stop service between Australia and Continental Europe, in the hopes that the link will open up new tourism opportunities for the state.

The nonstop journey between Perth and Rome will take a little over 16 hours and will begin with a test flight on Wednesday, followed by the start of regular service on Saturday, with three weekly flights between June and October.

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This flight was made possible by the state’s Reconnect WA package, which has given 195 million Australian dollars (about 136 million U.S. dollars) to help the state’s tourism industry recover from the damage caused by Covid-19.

“The direct service between Perth and Rome will create many new opportunities between Western Australia and Continental Europe, including a huge boost for our tourism industry, which will further diversify the economy and support jobs, investment, and business opportunities,” McGowan said on Tuesday.

The seasonal route is anticipated to produce around 7.7 million Australian dollars (roughly 5.4 million U.S. dollars) and attract more than 3,700 additional visitors to Perth over the next two years.

Prior to the epidemic, almost 150,000 Europeans visited Washington State annually; however, the state’s stringent border barriers prohibited foreign tourism.

Since opening its borders at the beginning of March, the state has endeavoured to resuscitate its tourism economy, which in 2019 earned 11 billion Australian dollars (about 7.7 billion U.S. dollars) and supported more than 100,000 local jobs.

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“Continental Europe is an important tourism market for Western Australia … The launch affirms Perth as the Western gateway to our country and is an important new connection to improve international access to the state,” stated Cook.