Qantas will more than double the size of its existing Qantas Club in Darwin and upgrade the lounge facilities to cater for Business and premium leisure travel to the region.

Qantas Group Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce, who visited Darwin Airport to make the announcement, said the new facilities would provide Qantas customers travelling to and from Darwin with a seamless travel experience.

“Qantas had its early origins in the Northern Territory in the 1930s and that commitment to the region continues today,” Mr Joyce said.

“As our services have grown over recent years we have outgrown our existing space at Darwin Airport so we are extremely excited to be expanding and upgrading our Qantas Club here.

“Qantas award winning lounges are extremely popular with our customers and they are one of the reasons why Qantas continues to be best for business travellers.”

The expanded Qantas Club is due to open in mid-2014, as Darwin Airport completes the broader Airport expansion.

The Club will have additional seating, business facilities, meeting rooms, Wi-Fi, showers, family zone and new food and beverage areas. Qantas will look to use local influences where possible.

Mr Joyce also welcomed the investment by Darwin Airport in the terminal expansion.

“This is great news for locals and visitors using Darwin Airport. I think it will vastly improve the travel experience for customers of all airlines, including Qantas Group airlines Qantas, QantasLink and Jetstar and allow the region to grow,” he said.

“Qantas and Jetstar will also get new engineering administration and ground operations facilities as part of the redevelopment.

Qantas customers can use the Next Generation Check-In system which substantially reduces check-in times and enables customers to avoid unnecessary queues.

The Qantas Group operates around 80 per cent of all domestic flights to and within the Northern Territory. Jetstar has international services from Darwin to Singapore, Bali, Tokyo and Manila.

The Qantas Group directly employs more than 200 people in the Territory, and provides a further 100 indirect jobs.