Summary

  • Air Chathams questions airport’s NZ $6.7 ($4.09) million investment in parallel taxiway over new routes to serve growing demand and community.
  • Increased airport activities demand better infrastructure to avoid inefficient operations and minimize potential catastrophic incidents.
  • Air Chathams considers relocation of maintenance facilities to Whanganui if new route to Christchurch becomes a reality.

A regional airport in the North Island of New Zealand is being questioned by regional carrier Air Chathams, the sole regular scheduled operator at the airport, about why the airport wants to invest in a parallel taxiway instead of additional routes to the airport. Whanganui Airport (WAG) serves the river city to which the airport bears its name, with a regional population of around 50,000 people.

The airport was served directly by New Zealand’s flag carrier, Air New Zealand, until 2016, when it was adopted by Air Chathams, an airline more frequently recognized for serving the outlying Chatham Islands (CHT), some 800 kilometers (500 miles) east of the country’s South Island, where it serves Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch directly, multiple times a week. The carrier, also has a long-standing exclusive charter partnerships with various tour companies and local sport’s teams.

Whanganui Airport ATC

Photo: Whanganui Airport

Air Chathams has carved a niche out of abandoned routes by the national carrier and now serves four of these, including Auckland (AKL) to Norfolk Island (NLK), its sole international route, in addition to domestic services from Auckland to Kapiti (PPQ), and Whakatane (WHK).

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Help us serve Christchurch.

The airport ownership, a joint venture between the district council and crown, has proposed a NZ $6.7 ($4.09) million parallel taxiway as part of the airport’s long-term plan. The additional parallel taxiway will aid aircraft in taxiing between hangars, runways, terminals, and other airport facilities. However, Air Chathams has proclaimed it unnecessary, and the airport can still expand current scheduled operations without it.

Local counselors, however, have noted that increased activity at the airport, which includes a local flying school and other hobby aircraft, means the airport can no longer sustain the current configuration, which is a mix of grass and sealed taxiways. Phil McBride, the airport manager, explained this in a recent report:

“This creates inefficient operations, due to aircraft needing to backtrack on the active runway, and increases the likelihood of a catastrophic aircraft incident occurring.”

Whanganui Airport

Duane Emeny, Chief Operating Officier of Air Chathams, has stressed that the airport should focus on establishing new routes to the airport. Community demand has identified that Christchurch, New Zealand’s second-largest city, would be a perfect addition to the airport’s route map, which has seen a growing number of new international routes and airlines. Should the connection come to fruition, Air Chathams also stated that it would consider establishing airport maintenance facilities.

Can’t afford to do it alone

Emeny went on to note that while the airline is committed to the region, it cannot afford to ‘take the plunge’ on serving Christchurch without marketing support, aeronautical relief fees, and additional local government support. Air Chatham’s, which currently services all aircraft in Auckland, has been considering relocating its maintenance facilities elsewhere, citing increased hangar lease costs at the countries busiest airport Emeny confirmed to the Whanganui Chronicle:

“If we were to establish feasible routes to both Auckland, which we have currently, and Christchurch, which would be a new route, there would be a strong business case to consider moving our Auckland operations and aircraft maintenance to Whanganui.”

Whanganui Airport is located 73 kilometers (45 miles) from the next closest airport, Palmerston North (PMR), which is served by Air New Zealand and sees up to four times daily flights to Christchurch.

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