SILKAIR, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SIA), will introduce on March 26, 2012 direct air services between Singapore and Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory and the carrier’s first destination in Australia.

Flights will be operated four-weekly, departing on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, with next-day return flights. Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft will be deployed on the route, and will feature both business and economy-class cabins.

The new service will boost SilkAir’s presence in Australia, which is currently being served by SIA via five points: Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney.

“This is a very significant move for us and will complement our parent company’s ongoing efforts to better serve the Australian market,” said SilkAir CEO Marvin Tan.

Meanwhile, reciprocal frequent flyer arrangements between SIA and Virgin Australia, the next stage of a long-term alliance between (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 12) the two carriers, will start from December 10.

The arrangements will enable KrisFlyer members to earn and redeem frequent flyer points on Virgin Australia’s entire network, and Velocity members to earn and redeem frequent flyer points on SIA-operated flights.

The two airlines expect to commence codesharing on each other’s services from early 2012.