Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) officials, and a delegation of government, civic and business leaders from Dallas and Fort Worth began a week-long air service development mission to Western Australia and Sydney today. The Delegation’s purpose is to promote the Qantas route to DFW from Australia as the premier entry point into the United States for Western Australians.
The 14-member delegation, led by Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, DFW Board Vice Chair Sam Coats and DFW Airport CEO Sean Donohue, begins its mission in Western Australia and Perth with meetings and participation in the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) Conference before moving on to Sydney. The trip marks DFW’s third air service development mission to Australia, which accounts for $2.9 billion in annual trade with Texas.
“We timed our visit to Western Australia to support Qantas and the promotion of the DFW route with the Australian oil, gas and exploration industry executives at the APPEA Conference in Perth,” said Sean Donohue, DFW CEO. “With the Qantas to Perth route from DFW the shortest in the industry in both nautical miles and time, those are factors important to this business audience. Couple that, with the fact that DFW is the largest oneworld™ Alliance hub in the world which means customers have more connectivity to major markets in the U.S., more quickly and easily every day.”
DFW offers nonstop service to 56 international destinations and 147 cities in the U.S. with every major city in the U.S., Canada and Mexico within a four-hour flight. DFW also hosts oneworld™ service, multiple times each day to major markets. Specific to the oil and gas business, once the Qantas flight lands in early afternoon at DFW, there are still more than 20 departures to 12 key oil and gas markets in Texas and in the central and coastal United States. For Qantas customers, DFW provides the best routing to more than 100 destinations in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
APPEA is expected to attract more than 1000 oil and gas exploration companies and associated industries to Perth during the four-day event. Qantas, along with DFW Airport are co-sponsors of the APPEA hospitality area and will be conducting meetings with APPEA attendees to discuss the DFW route as the best alternative for companies in Western Australia with ties to the U.S. to more expeditiously conduct business and travel to the U.S.
“The DFW region is the largest and fastest growing region in the United States,” said Mayor Betsy Price, City of Fort Worth. “DFW Airport is strategically positioned as the gateway to the U.S., mid-continent, and has been a leading factor in our region’s diverse industry cluster, which includes petroleum, chemical products and energy. Many corporations in Fort Worth and Dallas came to our region because of DFW Airport. So, we’re here to generate more business for DFW, and that will mean more business for our region.”
There are more than 50 Texas energy companies with ties to Western Australia, and of the 100 Australian companies that have investment ties with the U.S., 51 of their affiliate offices are located in Texas.
In addition to DFW Airport executives, the DFW Delegation includes representatives from the Dallas Regional Chamber, Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau and World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth. The group is scheduled to meet with various government, business and civic representatives in Western Australia, including the Lord Mayor of Perth, the U.S. Consulate and the Perth Chamber of Commerce and Industries.
North Texas and Western Australia share significant parallels in economic engines and their resulting growth projections. Many North Texas Fortune 500 companies have vested interests and operations in Western Australia. The regions’ oil and gas industries are of particular interest, as Western Australia and North Texas represent opportunities for energy resource exploration and industry development. Other parallel industries include textiles and information technology.
“Our air service development mission to Australia establishes and expands on the many opportunities to strengthen the synergies between North Texas and Western Australia, especially in the growing energy sector,” said Mayor Price. “North Texas’ economy outpaces the rest of the country, with our excellent infrastructure, broad industry base and superb connectivity. We recognize similar economic growth in Western Australia and are excited to learn more about how both regions can best work together for the mutual benefit of both communities.”
The resilience of the North Texas economy can be attributed to several similarities with Western Australia – modern, vibrant cities, desirable lifestyle, great geographic location, attractive investment opportunities, people and a pioneering spirit that has created a diverse workforce and diversity of business sectors in the region, sectors that are similar between the two regions.
“There is great potential for North Texas to attract Australian businesses seeking North American headquarters,” said Mayor Price, “and to facilitate robust business and trade opportunities throughout the US, North and South America and beyond thanks to DFW.”
DFW is situated to link Australia to the Americas with an extensive international route network including 56 international destinations on five continents, and 147 U.S. nonstop destinations. DFW participates in the U.S. Global Entry program, which is a reciprocal partner of Australia’s SmartGate, offering trusted travelers expedient customs clearance at both ends of their journey. Additionally, DFW is a leading innovator in customer service and support with new programs implemented to expedite the Customs and Border Protection process.
“Our goal at DFW is for the vast majority of international arriving customers to clear Customs process in less than 30 minutes,” said CEO Donohue.
Last October, DFW introduced Automated Passport Control (APC) a proprietary system that moves U.S. and Canadian citizens to a separate line allowing the Customs officers to attend to international passenger arrivals. DFW also announced the expansion of APC and other services for Australian passengers beginning in May 2014 when the service will be extended to visa waiver countries, including Australia. Besides this, DFW has established a dedicated APC lane for customers with no checked luggage. In addition, DFW has also committed up to $3 million to increase staffing hours for U.S. Customs officers at DFW.
“Qantas and DFW have responded to significant year-over-year demand and growth in the passenger and cargo traffic between Australia and North Texas with service expansion and route development,” said Donohue. “With DFW poised in the center of this great regional synergy, we hope to foster and grow our relationships with Western Australia. Our air service development mission to Perth represents a great opportunity to do just that.”
The regional economic impact of Qantas air service expansion is estimated at $200 million annually, a 65 percent increase since service began in 2011. The airline started its DFW route with service four times a week and currently operates daily nonstop service from Sydney to Dallas/Fort Worth. Returning, the Qantas DFW flight stops in Brisbane, allowing for an easy connection to Perth. Unlike other carriers serving Australia, the Qantas route to DFW has no major layovers, and what could be a three-day journey on another carrier to get to Western Australia, is a two-day travel journey with Qantas. Additionally, DFW Airport is the home base for Qantas’ oneworld™ Alliance partner American Airlines and offers more connections than any other American hub worldwide.
In its 40 years, DFW Airport has grown into one of the world’s preeminent global hubs, now serving 60 million passengers annually and consistently ranking among the world’s best large airports for customer service. Customer-centric features such as free Wi-Fi, a yoga studio and newly-added lounges, eateries and entertainment choices for customers have kept DFW as a top choice for both business and leisure passengers. The Airport is home to the world’s largest airline, American Airlines, and DFW contributes more than $31 billion annually for the Dallas/Fort Worth region’s economy, supporting 143,000 jobs in North Texas. Home to a large Foreign Trade Zone, DFW is positioned as a key destination for both domestic and international businesses.
Source:- DFW Airport
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