More Virgin Australia flights from Perth to Port Hedland, Karratha

IN BRIEF | Virgin Australia is adding extra flights to Western Australia's Pilbara region from Perth, with extra flights to Port Hedland and Karratha from next month.

That's a boon for business travellers in the WA mining sector, who will now see a total of three daily return flights between Perth and Port Hedland during the week.

Karratha passengers also get an extra return flight on Wednesdays and Thursdays, for a total of three returns daily.

The extra flights are scheduled from 21 November through March 2012.

Both Virgin and Qantas are focussing their efforts on the resources sector, especially in Western Australia and Queensland.

Virgin announced a boost to QLD flights with a new route to Emerald, while QantasLink is adding several new services and a regional lounge.

John Walton

Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.