New Plymouth Airport
| New Plymouth Airport | |||||||||||||||||||
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  NPL | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner |
New Plymouth District Council Government of New Zealand[1] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Operator | New Plymouth District Council | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | New Plymouth | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 97 ft / 30 m | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 39°00′31″S 174°10′45″E / 39.00861°S 174.17917°ECoordinates: 39°00′31″S 174°10′45″E / 39.00861°S 174.17917°E | ||||||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2014[2]) | |||||||||||||||||||
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New Plymouth Airport (IATA: NPL, ICAO: NZNP) serves the city of New Plymouth, and the surrounding region of Taranaki. It is on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island and is 11 km from the city centre, on the highway north to Auckland, and 4 km from the outer suburb/satellite town of Bell Block.
New Plymouth Airport is served by Air New Zealand and Jetstar Airways with direct flights to Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch daily. Jetstar services commenced 1 February 2016.
With 19,678 aircraft movements, the airport was the 14th busiest airport in New Zealand in 2015 flight operations.[3] However, in terms of passenger numbers, it was the 9th busiest in New Zealand in 2014, with 343,572 people flying to the airport.[2] Hence, more people fly to New Plymouth than other cities with larger populations such as Hamilton and Tauranga. In October 2009, New Plymouth Airport was voted as the best regional airport in New Zealand.[4]
History
The original airport opened in 1933 with the New Plymouth Airport Act. It had five runways, the longest of which was around 5000 ft. During World War II, the airport became RNZAF Bell Block Airbase. Post war, the airport returned to civilian use, and was used by New Zealand National Airways Corporation with links to Whenuapai (Auckland) and Paraparaumu (Wellington).
In line with a general improvement throughout the 1950s and 1960s, of New Zealand's infrastructure, and National Airways Corporation (NZNAC) acquisition of Fokker F27 Friendships, New Plymouth's airport was reviewed. In view of the undulating land, the need for a tarmac runway for the F27, and the clearer approach paths required, a new airfield was soon under construction at the end of Brown Road (recently renamed Airport Drive). During construction of the airport, a small hill at the west end of the runway had to be levelled off, due to take-off and landing path infringements. This was rather controversial, due to said hill being a Māori burial ground. The government of the day decided to go ahead with construction anyway, and despite protests, the hill was levelled. Part of it still remains. The airport opened in 1966, replacing a grass airfield 3 km southwest, which is now industrial land. The foundation stone from the original airport, and a stone commemorating RNZAF Bell Block, were moved to the new airport when it opened.
The original terminal was renovated during the 1990s. The observation deck upstairs was removed at this time, and the outside observation area was removed in 2005, due to rising security concerns worldwide.
Facilities
The terminal is equipped with a cafe, and a Koru Regional Lounge. There are eight tarmac gates at the terminal.
New Plymouth Airport has a control tower with services provided by Airways Corporation. It is staffed from 6am to around 8 pm on weekdays, and reduced hours on weekends, to coincide with airline traffic movements. There is also one fire rescue unit and another small emergency unit based at New Plymouth Airport.
The airport's only sealed taxiway connects the apron and the asphalt runway, so aircraft taxi on the runway, and commence take off roll from runway ends. New Plymouth Airport is infamous for crosswinds, due mostly to the fact that although the tarmac runway faces into the prevailing SSW wind the area regularly receives a strong SSE/SE. The cross runway is not sealed, and thus airline traffic is limited to the tarmac runway, parallel to the sea. The tarmac runway is equipped with low intensity runway lighting, runway end lighting, and Precision Approach Path Indicators. The sealed taxiway and apron are also lit. The airport has VOR/DME equipment. It was equipped with an NDB, but this was recently removed.
New Plymouth Aero Club and its Air New Plymouth charter service was based at the airport,until it ceased operations in 2014. Previously it carried out charter work and air ambulance services as well as providing a well recognised flight training facility.
General aviation aircraft are located at the airport as well as heritage De Havilland Vampire, an L-39 Albatross, four Yak 52s and a Catalina Flying Boat.
Upgrades to terminal
New Plymouth District Council has confirmed that they are designing a new terminal extension for construction commencing in 2015. The airport's terminal building opened in 1967 and was designed to handle just 60,000 passengers per year. In 2014, 343,572 people flew in and out of New Plymouth making it the 9th busiest airport in the country.[2][5]
The new master plan proposes a major expansion of the terminal so it will have a floor area of 2300 square meters instead of the current 1430 square meters. The terminal design features separate arrival and departure gates, moving the baggage claim to the other side of the terminal, a larger Air New Zealand lounge, more space for retail and the cafe, and the ability to create a passenger security area if required in the future. The master plan also proposes a two-stage runway extension to better cater for larger ATR aircraft which are now regularly using the airport. The current runway length limits their operation under certain conditions so the proposal is for an initial extension to 1500m and then potentially to 1700m.[6]
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Air New Zealand Link operated by Air Nelson | Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington |
| Air New Zealand Link operated by Mount Cook Airline | Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington (begins 31 October 2016)[7] |
| Jetstar Airways operated by Eastern Australia Airlines[8] | Auckland[9] |
Previous Airlines
Origin Pacific Airways used to operate Jetstream J31 and Metroliner aircraft to/from Auckland and to/from Nelson 6x weekly. NAC used to operate from New Plymouth with a Fokker F27 service.
Aircraft
(This list is approximate and may be incomplete)
- 1966 - 1990 Fokker F27 Friendships Mk 100 and Mk500
- 1990 - 2006 Fairchild-Swearingen Metroliner
- 1990 - 2007 Saab 340
- 1995 - 2005 Piper Navajo
- 2000 - 2006 Jetstream J31 Occasional Jetstream J41 operations.
- 2005–present Bombardier Q300
- 2012–present ATR 72-500
- 2012–present ATR 72-600
See also
- List of airports in New Zealand
- List of airlines of New Zealand
- Transport in New Zealand
- List of busiest airports in New Zealand
References
- ↑ "New Plymouth Airport". New Plymouth District Council.
- 1 2 3 Maetzig, Rob (5 March 2015). "$20m airport upgrade on cards". Taranaki Daily News.
- ↑ "Domestic and International Aircraft Movements by Calendar Year" (PDF). Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- ↑ "New Plymouth Airport wins best regional". The New Zealand Herald. NZPA. 19 October 2009. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
- ↑ Utiger, Taryn (17 February 2014). "Airport passengers skyrocketing". Taranaki Daily News.
- ↑ Beca (December 2014), New Plymouth Airport - Master Plan 2014 (PDF), New Plymouth District Council
- ↑ Air NZ online timetable
- ↑ "Jetstar Group Fleet". Jetstar. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
- ↑ Gray, Jamie (31 August 2015). "Jetstar's new routes: Nelson, Napier, New Plymouth and Palmerston North make the cut". NZ Herald.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to New Plymouth Airport. |
- New Plymouth Airport at the District Council web site
- Airport information for NZNP at World Aero Data. Data current as of October 2006.
