Flying high: Adelaide Airport expects millions more passengers in 2026
New routes connecting SA with the world in 2025 gave the sector a boost, with Adelaide Airport expecting more than 9 million passengers to come through next year. See all the flights that are making it happen.
Adelaide Airport expects more than 9 million passengers to come through in 2026, according to its managing director, after a record year that included 13 major announcements.
Adelaide Airport Managing Director Brenton Cox said it was the airport’s “biggest year yet for airline activity”.
“The airport is pumping with record numbers of people flying in and out of Adelaide. In 2026 we’ll exceed 9 million passengers a year,” he said.
Over the Christmas and New Year period, the airport expected more than 800,000 passengers on more than 6000 flights.
The suite of global flights introduced in 2025 saw a 32 per cent increase in inbound seats with 1.14 million international passengers arriving at Adelaide Airport – 18.3 per cent more than in 2024.
The state’s international visitor expenditure has hit a record $1.6 billion, according to the state government, with new direct flights expected to see the figure continue to grow.
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2025 also saw the return of all international airlines that were operating in Adelaide prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and some, like United Airlines, began servicing SA for the first time.
Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said the new international flights introduced to Adelaide in 2025 “is a massive vote of confidence in our state as a visitor destination and as a place to do business”.
“South Australia is more globally connected than ever before, providing a wealth of opportunity to entice our key international markets – such as the United States, China, and New Zealand – to commit to a trip and discover our abundance of simple pleasures,” she said.
“We have a lofty goal to grow South Australia’s international market to $2.2 billion by 2030 and increase weekly international airline seats to 20,200 – which is why we will continue to strengthen connections with these and other key airlines globally.”
Adelaide’s 2025 flight announcements
This year, United Airlines connected SA to the USA for the first time with direct flights between Adelaide and San Francisco.
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In another first, China Eastern announced it would open a direct route between Shanghai and Adelaide, with a three-times weekly seasonal service to launch in mid-2026.
From March 2026, China Southern will expand its seasonal service from Guangzhou to a year-round service.
Air New Zealand launched a new route providing the first direct service from New Zealand’s South Island with flights to and from Adelaide’s sister-city, Christchurch.
Returning services included Cathay Pacific, which recommenced direct services between Hong Kong and Adelaide after pausing them during the pandemic.
Qantas also resumed its international services for the first time in over a decade, bringing in direct flights between Adelaide and Auckland and a one-stop connection from New York.
Indonesia’s AirAsia would also service direct flights between Denpasar and Adelaide.
Emirates also chose its Dubai to Adelaide route as the first in its global network to use the ultra-long-range Airbus A350 and introduced Emirates’ new Premium Economy cabin to Adelaide.
The international flights to Adelaide in 2026
By mid-2026, 13 international airlines would service Adelaide from 12 international locations.
- Indonesia AirAsia, from Denpasar
- Air New Zealand, from Auckland, and from Christchurch (seasonal)
- United Airlines, from San Francisco (seasonal)
- Qatar Airways, from Doha
- Singapore Airlines, from Singapore
- Malaysia Airlines, from Kuala Lumpur
- Fiji Airways, from Nadi
- Jetstar, from Denpasar
- China Southern Airlines, from Guangzhou (year-round from March 2026)
- Emirates, from Dubai
- Qantas, from Auckland (seasonal)
- Cathay Pacific, from Hong Kong (seasonal)
- China Eastern Airlines, from Shanghai (seasonal service starts mid 2026).
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