MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

In a move that gives Victorians more holiday choice, Indonesian low cost airline, Citilink Indonesia, will begin daily flights between Melbourne (Avalon) and Denpasar Bali from 24 January 2020.

Citilink is a subsidiary of highly regarded parent company Garuda Indonesia Airlines. It was established in 2001 as a low cost shuttle service between cities in Indonesia and expanded in 2012 to become an independent business entity. It began flying between Perth and Bali in November 2019, but this will be their first operation to the eastern states.

The state of the art Airbus A320NEO, carrying 178 passengers and cargo will depart Avalon Melbourne daily at 12:50pm Local Time, with the return flight landing at Avalon Melbourne at 8:50am Local Time each day. The flight times have been carefully scheduled to ensure the perfect arrival into Bali of 4.20pm Local Time, and also provide great connections throughout other parts of Asia through the Citilink network.

Bali is one of the most popular tourist destinations for Australians, with an annual visitation of almost 1.2 million per year. Famous for its luxury resorts, beaches, temples, warm hospitality, shopping and surf, Australians flock to the Indonesian holiday spot each year.

“We’re excited to be able to make one of Australia’s most beloved holiday destinations a more affordable and easier experience for people wanting a great escape. Bali is our most requested international destination and one that we have been actively pursuing for some time,” said Avalon Airport CEO Justin Giddings.

“Citilink has been fantastic to work with, and are highly regarded in the industry. It’s an honour to introduce this airline to the region, and make Bali more assessable for Melbourne, Geelong and Regional Victoria in particular . We’re certain the flights will be hugely successful.”

Citilink Indonesia CEO Juliandra said, "We are thrilled to launch our new route connecting between Denpasar and Melbourne. Citilink has become the first airline serving Denpasar and Avalon Airport route and we hope this will provide more options for people who want to visit Denpasar and vice versa".

He added that Australian has the second highest number of visits to Indonesia in 2019. Thus Citilink is optimistic to reach its Seat Load Factor (SLF) target of 70% in Denpasar-Melbourne (Avalon) route.

The partnership begins an exciting year for Avalon Airport, which recently announced the commencement of flights to Vietnam with Vietjet, celebrated its one year anniversary with AirAsia, and took out Australian Airports Association Major Airport of the Year Award.