Bush pilots offer US$16,000 outback adventures as Australian mines close

Sydney

THREE years ago, Scott McMillan bought a Fokker 70 jet to fly workers to sites including BHP Billiton Ltd's Olympic Dam, Australia's largest underground mine. He's now taking US retirees on outback adventures that cost almost US$16,000 a head.

Mr McMillan, managing director of Alliance Aviation Services Ltd, hopes tourism revenue will help reverse a slide in earnings since the company listed in 2011 as a provider of flights to the mining industry. He's thinking along the same lines as Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens, who hopes tourism can help offset slumping resources investment.