AIRLINE Emirates yesterday revealed it has cut the travel time for passengers travelling from the North-East to Australia by almost eight hours.

The Dubai-based airline, which operates a daily service from Newcastle International Airport to the Emirates, has scheduled a service which departs from Dubai for Sydney 75 minutes after the flight arrives from the North-East.

The move, from December 1, will cut travel time, including waiting for connections, from more than 30 hours to 22 hours and 20 minutes.

Travel to Australia is popular among the tourist and business community, and comes as a further indication of the success of the Newcastle to Dubai route, which has carried more than 250,000 passengers and three million tonnes of cargo in the two years it has been operating.

Earlier this year, awardwinning airline Emirates introduced additional services from Dubai to Melbourne and Brisbane, shortening journey times from Newcastle to 23 hours and 25 hours 35 minutes respectively. Emirates’ fourth Australian destination, Perth, is only 20 hours from Newcastle.

Laurie Berryman, Emirates’ manager for the UK North, said: “Australia is a key destination for business and leisure passengers travelling with us from the North-East, and our new Sydney service makes flying Down Under quicker than ever before.”