ON May 30, 2015, SilkAir will start direct flights between Singapore and Cairns in Australia, the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, the largest reef in the world.

Subject to regulatory approvals, Cairns will be the airline's second Australian destination after Darwin, which was launched in March 2012.

The regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SIA) plans to deploy its latest Boeing 737-800 aircraft for the Cairns service three times weekly on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, through circular routings with Darwin. SilkAir's chief executive, Leslie Thng, said: "This is an exciting development for SilkAir, to be able to expand our presence in the Australian market."

With the launch of Cairns, SilkAir, together with parent SIA, will serve a total of seven points in Australia, namely Cairns, Darwin, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.

Queensland's Minister for Tourism, Major Events, Small Business and the Commonwealth Games, Jann Stuckey, said: "SilkAir's new services into Cairns will bring an estimated 20,000 extra visitors annually into one of Australia's most desirable destinations.''