Alliance Airlines will significantly grow its operations in Adelaide with the expansion of its maintenance facilities there, and the basing a Fokker 100 jet in the South Australian capital.
Alliance already bases, and performs line and heavy maintenance on, its fleet of five Fokker 50s in Adelaide, but the airline will hire an additional 10 maintenance engineers and will perform maintenance on its Fokker 100 and Fokker 70 jet fleet there as well.
“Our national operations have increased so substantially that our core maintenance facility in Brisbane will soon be fully utilised, and we need to establish a second major base to support our growing fleet of jets, which recently increased from 16 to 20,” said Alliance Airlines managing director Scott McMillan.
“We are close to securing regulatory approval to expand our Adelaide capabilities to include jet maintenance, and will advertise nationally this week for 10 more aircraft engineers.”
Two Fokker 100s are due to arrive in Adelaide from Europe in early August where they will undergo major maintenance before entering service with Alliance, with the airline saying one Fokker 100 will be based there from the fourth quarter.
Alliance says it has also expanded into the tourism market, winning contracts to fly tourism charter flights to South Australian tourism destinations including Kangaroo Island, the Flinders Ranges, Lake Eyre and Coober Pedy.
Alliance first opened its Adelaide base in 2007, and today employs 74 South Australian based staff.
