Published Thursday, 19 July, 2007 at 04:33 PM
Premier and Minister for Trade
The Honourable Peter Beattie
PREMIER WELCOMES USS KITTY HAWK TO BRISBANE
Premier Peter Beattie was at Port of Brisbane today to welcome more than 5,500 sailors from the USS Kitty Hawk to Queensland’s shores.
During an inspection of the aircraft carrier, the oldest active ship in the US Navy, Mr Beattie said major shipping and cruise operations to Queensland were an extremely important economic contributor to the State.
“The USS Kitty Hawk’s scheduled five days in port will inject approximately $10 million into Queensland’s economy, with each passenger on board expected to spend around $300 a day,” Mr Beattie said.
“At the Kitty Hawk’s last port of call, Sydney, around 2,200 hotel nights and 1,800 tours were booked for the visit and we expect a similar response in Queensland.
“The crew will take advantage of their free time in South-East Queensland, enjoying world-class tourism attractions, shopping and nightlife.
“Our tourism, hospitality and retail industries will certainly be the big winners from the Kitty Hawk’s visit, which will provide a further boost to Queensland’s very healthy job market,” he said.
Due to its sheer size, the vessel will be berthed at Port of Brisbane, where larger cruise ships also berth when visiting Brisbane.
Mr Beattie said strategic public and private sector partnerships had helped make Queensland a world leader in cruise shipping.
“Cruise shipping brings more than 56,000 cruise tourists to Brisbane each year and generates almost $52 million for the Queensland economy each year,” he said.
“The recent investment by the State Government, in partnership with Multiplex, to produce the new $750 million Brisbane Cruise Ship Terminal at Portside Wharf is a demonstration of our commitment to this important industry.
“Thanks to the new world-class facilities and infrastructure, Brisbane is well positioned to drive expenditure and job opportunities for Queenslanders from cruise ship tourism,” he said.
Media contact: 3224 4500
During an inspection of the aircraft carrier, the oldest active ship in the US Navy, Mr Beattie said major shipping and cruise operations to Queensland were an extremely important economic contributor to the State.
“The USS Kitty Hawk’s scheduled five days in port will inject approximately $10 million into Queensland’s economy, with each passenger on board expected to spend around $300 a day,” Mr Beattie said.
“At the Kitty Hawk’s last port of call, Sydney, around 2,200 hotel nights and 1,800 tours were booked for the visit and we expect a similar response in Queensland.
“The crew will take advantage of their free time in South-East Queensland, enjoying world-class tourism attractions, shopping and nightlife.
“Our tourism, hospitality and retail industries will certainly be the big winners from the Kitty Hawk’s visit, which will provide a further boost to Queensland’s very healthy job market,” he said.
Due to its sheer size, the vessel will be berthed at Port of Brisbane, where larger cruise ships also berth when visiting Brisbane.
Mr Beattie said strategic public and private sector partnerships had helped make Queensland a world leader in cruise shipping.
“Cruise shipping brings more than 56,000 cruise tourists to Brisbane each year and generates almost $52 million for the Queensland economy each year,” he said.
“The recent investment by the State Government, in partnership with Multiplex, to produce the new $750 million Brisbane Cruise Ship Terminal at Portside Wharf is a demonstration of our commitment to this important industry.
“Thanks to the new world-class facilities and infrastructure, Brisbane is well positioned to drive expenditure and job opportunities for Queenslanders from cruise ship tourism,” he said.
Media contact: 3224 4500