Melbourne Airport Totally Explained

Everything about Melbourne Airport totally explained

Melbourne Airport (also known as Tullamarine Airport) is the busiest airport serving Melbourne and the second busiest airport in Australia after Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport. The airport is home base for passenger airlines Jetstar and Tiger Airways Australia and cargo airlines Australian air Express and Toll Priority and is a major hub for Qantas and Virgin Blue. The airport has its own suburb boundaries with the area officially named Melbourne Airport and the postcode 3045. Melbourne Airport is the recipient of the IATA Eagle Award, two National Tourism Awards and has been ranked in the top five airports worldwide numerous times.
Located 20 km to the northwest of Melbourne's CBD, and adjacent to the suburb of Tullamarine, Victoria, Australia, the airport has two runways and four terminals. With over 50 destinations and over 25 airlines, the airport handled over 22 million passengers with 180,500 aircraft movements during 2006-2007 financial year. Since 2004, Melbourne Airport has faced competition from Avalon Airport, located 50 km to the southwest of Melbourne's CBD, for domestic operations, and for international operations additionally which could commence in the near future. A second commercial airport is unique among any Australian city.

History

The airport was built to replace the nearby, outdated Essendon Airport, which didn't have runways or terminals able to accommodate large aircraft such as the Boeing 747 and McDonnell Douglas DC-10 which were due to enter service in the early 1970s. The airport opened on 1 July 1970, with the first international flights arriving. Domestic flights were transferred from Essendon the following year. Melbourne Airport was originally called "Tullamarine Airport" and locals still commonly refer to it by that name or simply as 'Tulla'. Tullamarine is also used to distinguish the airport from Melbourne Avalon Airport.
In 1995, the Australian Government announced the privatisation of its airports around Australia. In 1997, Melbourne Airport was privatised, the Federal Government leasing the airport to Australia Pacific Airports Corporation Limited, a company largely owned by a group of infrastructure investment funds, for 50 years with options for a further 49. Significant refurbishment of the rather dated terminals has been undertaken since privatisation and the airport now boasts a wide array of shops and food outlets. Popular food outlets include Hungry Jacks, Krispy Kreme, Boost Juice, Hudsons Coffee, Nando's and McDonalds.

Awards and accolades

Since Melbourne Airport's establishment, it has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades.
In sheer airport rankings;

In 1997 and 1998, Melbourne Airport was ranked in the top five airports worldwide by the IATA.
In 1999, the airport was named "Airport of the Year" by the Australian Airport Association.
In 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000, Melbourne Airport was ranked in the top ten for World's Best Airports by Business Traveller Magazine. In 2000, it made the top five.
In 2001, Melbourne Airport was ranked in the Top Ten Overseas Airports by UK magazine Wanderlust.
In 2003, Melbourne Airport received the IATA Eagle Award. Melbourne Airport is the first, and one of only two, Australian airports to receive the award.
In 2008, Melbourne Airport was ranked in the top five for airports that handle between 15 and 25 million passengers, by Airports Council International.

On a tourism and development note;

In 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000, Melbourne Airport received recognition from Keep Australia Beautiful.

In 1997 and 1998, Melbourne Airport won the Property Council's Public Building of the Year award.

In 1998, 1999 and 2000, the airport was named in the Victorian Tourism Awards.

In 1998 and 2000, Melbourne Airport won the National Tourism Award for General Tourism Services at the Australian Tourism Awards

In 1999, the airport won the Melbourne Award, from the Committee of Melbourne.

In 2000, the airport was instated in the Victorian Tourism Awards Hall of Fame.

In 2002, Singapore Airlines presented the airport with Singapore Airlines Service Partner Award.

In 2004, Singapore Airlines presented Melbourne Airport with the Premier Business Partner award.

In 2004, Melbourne Airport's Environmental Management System was accredited ISO 14001, the world's best practice standard. The airport is the first in Australia to receive such accreditation.

In 2005, Melbourne Airport won the Industry Innovation and Best Practice award at the Tourism and Transport Forum Australia.

In 2006, Melbourne Airport won the Australian Construction Achievement Award for the runway widening project, calling it, "the most outstanding example of construction excellence for 2006."

Accidents and incidents

On May 29 2003, Qantas Flight 1737 en route to Launceston Airport was hijacked shortly after takeoff. The flight attendants and passengers managed to subdue and restrain the hijacker, and the plane landed safely at Melbourne.

On February 21 2005, an evacuation and closure of what was then the South Terminal occurred due to a mystery illness. The incident began at 7:10 am when a female collapsed in the terminal building. The terminal was closed at 10:10 am due to several individuals exhibiting symptoms and being hospitalised. In all, 57 individuals were seen by ambulance officers and of which 47 were hospitalised. All flights landing at the affected terminal were bused to the Patrick Freight facility and unloaded. The South Terminal reopened at 6 pm. The mystery illness was never determined.

Today

Melbourne Airport is currently the second busiest airport in Australia after Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney. The airport is curfew-free and operates 24 hours a day, although in practice there are few aircraft movements between 2 a.m and 4 a.m, except freight aircraft.

New Services

Northern Winter 2007/2008

Korean Air commenced operations at the airport on September 22, with a thrice-weekly service to Seoul-Incheon.

Cathay Pacific increased its services to Hong Kong to triple daily, from twice daily, starting October.

Norfolk Air commenced operations at the airport in October with a once-weekly Norfolk Island - Sydney - Melbourne - Norfolk Island service.

Philippine Airlines increased Melbourne flights for the peak season with an additional two weekly flights, routed via Sydney, providing Melbourne with five weekly flights to Manila.

Skywest introduced a thrice-weekly Perth - Kalgoorlie - Melbourne service from November.

Jetstar commenced daily A320 flights between Tullamarine and Perth in November.

Tiger Airways Australia began operations in November with Melbourne Airport as its main hub, serving destinations around Australia.

Air China de-linked Melbourne from Sydney, offering non-stop services on both the Beijing-Shanghai-Melbourne-Shanghai-Beijing routes, operating 3 times per week.

Qantas began a twice weekly flight between Melbourne and Shanghai from early 2008.

China Southern Airlines now operates two additional direct services from Melbourne to Guangzhou for the peak season.

Jetstar increased frequencies from Melbourne to Cairns, Sunshine Coast and Hobart from 18 March 2008 with new Airbus A321 aircraft .

Northern Summer 2008

Thai Airways International added 2 additional weekly Bangkok services beginning 30 March, 2008, giving Thai a double-daily frequency on this route. The flights will be operated with a Boeing 777.

Air New Zealand began daily direct flights to San Francisco via Auckland from 30 March, 2008. .

Qantas added 3 additional flights to Hong Kong from April 1, 2008. These new flights will be operated by an A330-300 and will complement the current daily 747-400 service. Qantas will eventually go to twice daily on the Melbourne-Hong Kong route.

Jetstar entered the Melbourne-Darwin-Singapore route with new flights from 17 April, 2008. Flights JQ 61 and JQ62 are operated daily by the airline's A320 aircraft; and will complement the existing Melbourne to Darwin flight.

Air Vanuatu will commence a weekly direct service from Port Vila to Melbourne from 5 June.

Malaysia Airlines will increase flights from 14 to 16 weekly in July 2008 with additional services on Fridays and Sundays using Boeing 777 aircraft.

Norfolk Air will add an additional flight each week from Norfolk Island to Melbourne from 1 September.

Northern Winter 2008/2009

Air New Zealand will increase capacity by replacing selected existing Melbourne - Auckland services operatedy by A320 aircraft with B767-300, from 26 October, 2008. Three more weekly Melbourne - Auckland services operated by B767-300 aircraft will be introduced beginning 16 December, 2008.

Emirates Airline will add a third daily service to Dubai commencing in February 2009 utilising the Airbus A380.

Qantas will replace its 343-seat 747-400ER aircraft on its daily Melbourne-Los Angeles-Melbourne non-stop service with the larger 450-seat A380-800 aircraft, increasing seat numbers by approximately 800 per week, from October 2008 .

Qantas, from late 2008, will remove the last three A330-200 services on Melbourne-Auckland-Los Angeles-Auckland-Melbourne and replace them with larger B747-400 aircraft, increasing seat numbers by 600 per week. .

Prospective users and routes

Air India - Originally planned to launch November 1, 2007 but now deferred till early 2009

Etihad Airways - Plans to launch daily flights starting between April 2009 - April 2010 They may start as early as Q1 2009.

Jetstar Airways - Expansion to Kuala Lumpur, Rome and Athens

Qatar Airways - Received government approvals, and plans to launch service in late 2008

Royal Brunei Airlines - Plans to launch services, timeframe indeterminate.

Virgin Atlantic - Evaluating services using the Boeing 787, timeframe indeterminate.

Viva Macau - Plans to launch flights by December

Airbus A380

Recent works have been undertaken to prepare the airport for the late 2007 arrival of the double-deck Airbus A380, which has been purchased by a number of airlines using the airport including Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Thai, China Southern Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Emirates. Improvements include construction of dual airbridges (Gates 9 and 11) with the ability to board both decks simultaneously to reduce turnaround times, the extension of the international terminal building by 20 metres to include new penthouse airline lounges, an expansion to the short-term carpark, a second exit off the Tullamarine Freeway to reduce congestion on Airport Drive, the widening of the north/south runway by 15 metres and the widening of remote stands and taxiways. Along with the construction of an additional extra large baggage carousel in the international arrivals hall. All this work has made the airport the first A380-capable airport in Australia. On May 15, 2008, the A380 made its first passenger flight into the airport, when a Singapore Airlines Sydney-bound flight was diverted due to the closure of Sydney Airport because of fog. Qantas will be the first airline to operate the Airbus A380 from the airport, from October 2008 on the route Melbourne Airport to Los Angeles International Airport. Qantas will be followed by Singapore Airlines who will operate the A380 from Melbourne Airport to Singapore Changi Airport starting in 2008. Emirates Airline will operate the A380 from Melbourne Airport to Dubai International Airport commencing in February 2009.

Competition with Avalon Airport

When Jetstar was established in 2004, it was decided to operate flights to Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth from Avalon Airport rather than Melbourne Airport. This has created airport competition for the first time in any Australian city. This has led to the establishment of the Budget Terminal, home to Tiger Airways Australia, to compete with Avalon Airport. Additionally, this has prompted Melbourne Airport to lower landing fees and make it the cheapest arrival point in Australia, a quarter the price of rival Sydney Airport. The competition with Avalon will only get more intense as AirAsia X is evaluating launching flights to Kuala Lumpur from either Avalon or Tullamarine. This makes Melbourne the only city in Australia to have a second airport with commercial flights.

Traffic and statistics

Melbourne Airport passenger numbers have hit a record high, with the airport recording more than 22.5 million passengers in 2006-07. 4.53 million of those were international, with the remaining 17.81 million domestic. There were 180,160 aircraft movements, the vast majority (154,810) being domestic passenger services. In the long term, for passenger movements, the forecasted averaged annual growth rate is between 3.3% and 4.3%. This firmly entrenches Melbourne Airport as Australia's second busiest airport, remaining busier than Brisbane Airport, but not surpassing Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport .
The following table lists passenger statistics for Melbourne Airport. Forecast statistics are in dark grey. Annual Passenger Statistics for Melbourne Airport >

Year	Passenger movements (millions)	Aircraft movements (thousands)
1997-98	14.20	154.13
1998-99	14.58	156.80
1999-00	15.57	164.67
2000-01	17.24	187.36
2001-02	16.48	157.60
2002-03	16.92	157.92
2003-04	19.16	165.26
2004-05	20.78	180.51
2005-06	21.43	179.51
2006-07	22.50	180.16
2007-08	22.8-23.7	184.0-190.5
2012-13	27.4-29.8	203.0-217.0
2017-18	32.5-37.1	223.9-247.4
2022-23	38.5-45.8	243.9-281.7
2027-28	43.9-54.9	263.2-316.5

Busiest International Routes out of Melbourne Airport (2007)>

Rank	Airport	Passengers handled	% Change
1	Singapore Changi Airport	844,595	3.2
2	Auckland International Airport	673,526	2.8
3	Hong Kong International Airport	375,763	9.6
4	Kuala Lumpur International Airport	355,073	8.0
5	Los Angeles International Airport	328,006	8.1
6	Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport	305,244	51.7
7	Dubai International Airport	287,022	4.0
8	Christchurch International Airport	265,436	7.1
9	London Heathrow Airport	229,983	2.9
10	Wellington International Airport	134,195	4.4

Busiest Domestic Routes out of Melbourne Airport (2008)>

Rank	Airport	Passengers handled (thousands)	% Change
1	Kingsford Smith International Airport	6,821.8	5.6
2	Brisbane Airport	2,697.7	4.8
3	Adelaide Airport	1,892.2	1.9
4	Perth Airport	1,625.9	10.1
5	Gold Coast Airport	1,365.7	10.5
6	Hobart International Airport	1,015.9	2.5
7	Canberra International Airport	966.1	3.6
8	Launceston Airport	769.6	10.0
9	Cairns International Airport	447.7	0.9
10	Sunshine Coast Airport	407.1	2.9

Runways Melbourne Airport currently has two intersecting runways, one 3,657 metre North-South runway and one 2,286 East-West runway. As traffic grows, several runway expansion projects are on the agenda. A 843 metre extension of the North-South runway to provide it an ultimate length of 4,500 metres and a 1,214 metre extension of the East-West runway to give it an ultimate length of 3,500 metres are both planned. Additionally, two more runways are planned. Firstly, a 3,000 metre runway west of the current North-South runway. Secondly, another 3,000 metre runway is planned south of the current East-West runway. A third runway is expected to be required from 2017 as traffic movement is expected to reach 248,000 per annum .

Terminals

The terminals have 62 gates between them, 46 domestic and 16 international. There are also five dedicated freighter parking positions on the Southern Freighter Apron.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 is currently home to domestic services for Qantas, Jetstar and QantasLink, and is located to the northern end of the terminal building. In other words, it houses all domestic operations for the Qantas Group. Departures for Qantas, Jetstar and QantasLink are located on the first floor, while arrivals are located on the ground floor. A wide range of shops and food outlets are situated at the end of the terminal, just before heading into the International Terminal (T2).

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 houses most international flights out of Melbourne Airport, with the only exception being Jetstar's flight to Singapore which operates via Darwin. The terminal has 16 gates, however gates 12-16 are 'standoff' (or non-airbridge gates).
A $330 million expansion program for T2 was announced in 2007. The objectives of this project include new lounges and retail facilities, a new satellite terminal, increased luggage capacity and a redesign of outbound passenger customs and security areas. A new satellite terminal will feature floor to ceiling windows offering views of the north-south runway. The new concourse will include three double-decker aerobridges each accommodating an A380 aircraft or two smaller aircraft. Capacity for baggage handling will also be increased and two new baggage belts in the arrivals hall will cater for additional A380 traffic. Work commenced in November 2007 and will be completed in stages through to 2012.
Although described as a satellite terminal, it's really an extension of the current international terminal building connected by an above-ground corridor access. Diagrams of the proposed new extension however indicate that departures will take place on the lower deck (similar to the A380 boarding lounges currently in use at gates 9 and 11) with arrivals streamed on to the first floor to connect with the current first floor arrivals deck. Passengers departing from gates in the new extension will therefore have to drop down into their gate lounges once they reach their assigned gate.

Terminal 3

Terminal 3 is home to Virgin Blue, Regional Express and Skywest. Terminal 3 was formerly used by Ansett Australia solely, until its collapse in 2001. Following Ansett's departure, Virgin Blue moved into the terminal from what was then called Domestic Express, now Terminal 4. It currently houses all domestic airlines, outside the low cost carrier Tiger Airways Australia, that are not part of the Qantas Group.

Terminal 4

Terminal 4 was originally called the Domestic Express and South Terminal, and is now the budget terminal, the first dedicated budget terminal within a conventional airport in Australia. Originally, it was purposely constructed for Virgin Blue and Impulse Airlines. As time went on, Regional Express also utilised the terminal. Virgin Blue and Regional Express eventually moved into Terminal 3 when it was vacated by Ansett. It re-opened in 2007 following the model at Singapore Changi Airport and Kuala Lumpur International Airport. In order to lower landing fees and airport handling fees, the terminal is much more basic, with fewer amenities and retail outlets. The terminal also lacks aerobridges, a cost saving measure. The terminal was purposely reconstructed for Tiger Airways Australia, who utilise it as their main hub. Tiger's domestic flights began on 23 November 2007. Jetstar have confirmed to have been in discussions with Melbourne Airport regarding the expansion of terminal facilities to accommodate for the growth of domestic low cost services. The expansion of Terminal 4 considers infrastructure accommodating Tiger and Jetstar flights, in separate adjoining sections. The plans are currently in development and the expansion of Terminal 4 would include relocating the current freight centre. If given the go-ahead, this project is expected to cost hundreds of millions of dollars and take five years to complete.

Melbourne Centre

Melbourne Airport is home to Melbourne Centre, which controls Australia's busiest Flight Information Region, Melbourne FIR, as well as Canberra and Melbourne approach. Melbourne FIR contains Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales south of Sydney, most of South Australia and the southern half of Western Australia. This includes six of the eight capital cities of Australia. It also contains the Australian Indian and Southern Ocean airspace.

Access

Car

Melbourne Airport is approximately 25 km from the CBD, as it accessible via CityLink and the Tullamarine Freeway. Melbourne Airport has five car parks that all operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. These are the Short Term, Multi-Level Long Term, Long Term, Business and Express car parks, all of which are undercover except Long Term.

Public transport

The existing Skybus service was improved to compensate and remains the only available public transport service to the airport direct from the Melbourne CBD, the trip taking approximately 20 minutes from Southern Cross Station. From Southern Cross, airport passengers can access the V/Line and Melbourne Suburban Public Transport networks, and interstate train and bus services.
Two local daily bus services to the airport are operated by Tullamarine Bus Lines, Route 478 between Moonee Ponds Junction and Melbourne Airport and Route 500 between Broadmeadows railway station and Victoria University in Sunbury.
A number of dedicated bus services have developed, servicing the airport from Regional Victoria, negating the need to transfer onto V/Line services. This includes a twice daily service from the states north; starting in Shepparton, passing through Nagambie and Seymour and operated by Airport Direct. Bendigo-Melbourne Airport Shuttle Bus operates hourly buses between Bendigo and Tullamarine Airport. The buses follow the Calder Freeway and stop at Bendigo, Castlemaine, Kyneton, Woodend, Gisborne and Sunbury.

Rail link

In 2001, the state government investigated the construction of a heavy rail link to Melbourne Airport. Two options were considered, one branching off the Craigieburn suburban line to the east, and another branching off the Albion goods line, which passes close to the airport's boundary to the south, with the latter being the preferred option. Market research found that most passengers preferred travel by taxi or private car to the airport. Poor patronage of similar links in Sydney and Brisbane also cast doubt on the viability of the project. This led to the project being deferred until at least 2012. To maximise future airport development opportunities, the airport is seeking the line to be underground.

Users of Melbourne Airport

Airlines and destinations

The following airlines operate services to Melbourne Airport using their own aircraft. Many others operate services as codeshares.
The top intercontinental destinations to and from Melbourne Airport are Singapore, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Los Angeles.

Destinations by Region
Domestic (Australia) - Adelaide, Albury, Alice Springs, Ayres Rock/Uluru, Ballina, Brisbane, Broome, Burnie, Canberra, Cairns, Coffs Harbour, Darwin, Devonport, Gold Coast, Hamilton Island, Hobart, Kalgoorlie, King Island, Launceston, Mackay, Merimbula, Mildura, Mount Gambier, Mount Hotham, Newcastle, Perth, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Wagga Wagga, Wollongong Africa - Port Louis Asia East Asia - Beijing, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai, Tokyo Southeast Asia - Bangkok, Denpasar, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Singapore Southwest Asia - Dubai Europe - Frankfurt, Frankfurt-Hahn, London, Luxembourg Oceania - Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Hamilton, Nadi, Norfolk Island, Port Vila, Queenstown, Rarotonga, Wellington North America - Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco

Airlines operating in Melbourne Airport>

Airlines	Destinations	Terminal
Air China	Beijing, Shanghai-Pudong	2
Air Mauritius	Port Louis	2
Air New Zealand	Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin (seasonal), San Francisco, Queenstown, Rarotonga, Wellington	2
Air New Zealand Cargo	Auckland, Chicago, Frankfurt, Shanghai-Pudong	Southern Freighter Apron
Air Pacific	Nadi	2
Air Vanuatu	Port Vila [starts5 June, 2008]	2
Atlas Air	Chicago-O'Hare, Frankfurt-Hahn, New York-JFK, Shanghai-Pudong, Sydney	Southern Freighter Apron
Australian air Express	Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Hobart, Launceston, Perth, Sydney, Townsville	Southern Freighter Apron
Cargolux	Auckland, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Los Angeles, Luxembourg, Singapore	Southern Freighter Apron
Cathay Pacific	Hong Kong	2
Cathay Pacific Cargo	Hong Kong, Sydney	Southern Freighter Apron
China Eastern Airlines	Shanghai-Pudong	2
China Southern Airlines	Guangzhou	2
Emirates Airline	Auckland, Dubai, Singapore	2
Garuda Indonesia	Denpasar/Bali	2
Korean Air	Seoul-Incheon	2
Malaysia Airlines	Kuala Lumpur	2
MASkargo	Kuala Lumpur	Southern Freighter Apron
OzJet Norfolk Air	Norfolk Island, Sydney	2
Philippine Airlines	Manila	2
Qantas (International) Jetstar Airways (International)	Adelaide, Auckland, Hong Kong, London-Heathrow, Los Angeles, Queenstown [seasonal], San Francisco, Shanghai-Pudong, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo-Narita, Wellington Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi, Christchurch, Denpasar/Bali, Honolulu, Sydney	2
Qantas (Domestic) QantasLink Jetstar Airways (Domestic)	Adelaide, Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, Brisbane, Broome, Cairns, Canberra, Hobart, Perth, Sydney Canberra, Devonport, Launceston, Mildura, Mount Hotham (seasonal), Newcastle (resumes July 2008), Wollongong Ballina/Byron, Cairns, Darwin, Gold Coast, Hamilton Island, Hobart, Launceston, Newcastle, Perth, Singapore, Sunshine Coast, Townsville	1
Regional Express	Albury, Burnie, King Island, Merimbula, Mildura, Mt. Gambier, Wagga Wagga	3
Skywest Airlines	Kalgoorlie, Perth	3
Singapore Airlines	Singapore	2
Singapore Airlines Cargo	Adelaide, Singapore	Southern Freighter Apron
Thai Airways International	Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi	2
	Adelaide, Alice Springs, Canberra, Darwin, Gold Coast, Hobart, Launceston, Mackay, Newcastle, Perth, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast	4
	Adelaide, Alice Springs, Brisbane, Darwin, Launceston, Perth, Sydney	Southern Freighter Apron
United Airlines	Los Angeles	2
Vietnam Airlines	Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City	2
Virgin Blue Pacific Blue	Christchurch	2
Virgin Blue	Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Coffs Coast, Darwin, Gold Coast, Hobart, Newcastle, Launceston, Perth, Sunshine Coast, Sydney	3

Further Information

Get more info on 'Melbourne Airport'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:

<a href="http://melbourne_airport.totallyexplained.com">Melbourne Airport Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.