Airlines That Fly Within The Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a large territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. Tourists are drawn to the region to discover the ‘real outback’, including an iconic natural landscape, ancient Aboriginal culture, and unique wildlife.
Many tourists looking to explore the region will fly to Alice Springs, a remote town and popular gateway for exploring the ‘Red Centre’, the country's interior desert region. There are a few direct flights from the largest cities in Australia (Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, and Perth), but in many instances a connecting flight to Alice Springs will need to be made at Darwin.
If you’re looking for flights to some of the smaller and more remote towns and islands within the Northern Region, then you’ll want to land at Darwin, where you can then catch a flight with Airnorth or Air Tiwi — the only two airlines which operate scheduled passenger flights to the more remote communities within the territory.
Air Tiwi
Based at Darwin International Airport, Air Tiwi operates about 50 scheduled passenger flights a week, between Darwin and communities located on the Tiwi, South Goulburn and Croker islands, as well as a number of remote communities in the northern region of Arnhem Land.
Example routes:
Darwin ➡ Minjilang (Croker Island)
Darwin ➡ Maningrida
Darwin ➡ Warruwi (South Goulburn Island)
& many more!
Airnorth
Airnorth is an Australian regional airline. As well as operating flights to Australia’s other regions, Airnorth operates the most extensive list of flights to destinations in the Northern Territory. The airline flies to the following destinations within the Northern Territory: Alice Springs, Bootu Creek, Darwin, Elcho Island, Gove, Groote Eylandt, Katherine, Maningrida, McArthur River Mine, Milingimbi, Port Keats, Tennant Creek, and The Granites.
Example routes:
Darwin ➡ Tennant Creek
Darwin ➡ Milingimbi Island
Darwin ➡ Nhulunbuy
& many more!
Qantas and QantasLink
Qantas is one of the largest and most popular airlines in Australia. Within the Northern Territories, the airline operates the following (most popular) routes, Darwin to Alice Springs, Darwin to Ayers Rock, and Ayers Rock to Alice Springs. These flights may be operated by QantasLink, the regional subsidiary of the airline.
Routes:
Darwin ➡ Alice Springs
Darwin ➡ Ayers Rock
Ayers Rock ➡ Alice Springs
Virgin Australia and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines
Like Qantas, Virgin Australia is one of the largest airlines in Australia. The airline operates the most popular route within the Northern Territory, flying between Darwin and Alice Springs. These flights may be operated by Virgin Australia Regional Airlines, the regional subsidiary of the airline.
Routes:
Darwin ➡ Alice Springs