Airport Pressures

Some councils have a very firm view, or at very least querying that they should not be acting as a landlord and have therefore committed to selling development sites rather than leasing them.

On the other hand, Tamworth Regional Council is expertly managing its airport as an enterprise and actively acquiring land around the airport to protect it for long-term future development opportunities (including international freight).

Operationally, more airport owners are considering contracting out the day-to-day management of their airport to professional managers.

Aeronautical fees and charges

Airport owners are increasingly focused on balancing their aeronautical expenses budgets while aircraft operators continue to face seemingly never-ending financial challenges, with the end result of significant tension between the two parties.

There is a widespread desire to attract general aviation back to regional airports, but that comes into conflict with the need to increase, or at least impose, airport fees and charges, as the mostly council-owned airports attempt to repair weak financial positions.

As has been widely reported, earlier this year the City of Wagga Wagga proposed to implement some fees at Wagga Wagga Airport, but the local aero club actively resisted and caused council to reconsider.

As a result, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) decided to establish a campaign office in Wagga Wagga, which is Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Michael McCormack’s electorate so that it can directly engage with him and advocate its position.

Then in July, the Australian GA community held a summit in Wagga Wagga and delivered a number of resolutions, citing cost impositions, operational restrictions and inappropriate infrastructure development by Airservices and airport operators as exacerbating cost and complexity burdens (notably absent was a discussion about drones).

Capital city airports too are certainly not immune from disagreements about aeronautical fees and charges. Virgin Australia has suggested in its submission to the Productivity Commission public inquiry into the Economic Regulation of Airports that the “cost of airport use is becoming an increasingly urgent issue … as these charges have risen, and are likely to continue to increase, inappropriately in the absence of any effective constraint on airports.”

There is a widespread desire to attract general aviation back.’

On the other hand, Sydney Airport expressed concern in its own submission about “the ability and practice of airlines, upon the expiry of a negotiated contract or lease, to continue using the airport while short-paying or refusing to pay for airport services”. And Northern Territory Airports Pty Ltd, in its submission to the same Inquiry, concerning the expiry of its long-term pricing agreement with Qantas Group, stated that “Qantas Group has refused to pay the 2.5 per cent increase on the basis that it does not pay charges it does not agree to”.

Aircraft landing areas (ALAs)

Aircraft landing areas, which are not regulated by CASA, have traditionally provided a place for private pilots to operate their aircraft free from the seemingly onerous shackles of long-term financial sustainability (read landing and access fees) and the need for strict compliance with appropriate design standards and rigorous operational management and oversight.

The boom in recreational aviation flying has led to greater activity and development at some ALAs, where lower costs, unconstrained airspace and a relaxed operational environment contrast with the situation at most larger, regulated airports. This trend is expected to continue as the scale and scope of recreational aviation increases.

Local governments often support the ongoing cost of operation of ALAs because they provide a community benefit, by supporting aeromedical evacuation, aerial fire-fighting and other emergency services. There may also be a small economic benefit derived through employment at flying schools, maintenance services and other aviation-related businesses, along with operational and discretionary visitor expenditure.

However, if there is no community benefit, then the cost of operating the aerodrome is being seriously questioned.

Take Bruny Island Airstrip in Tasmania for example. Earlier this year, Kingborough Council sought expressions of interest from parties that would be prepared to be responsible for the management and operation of the existing Bruny Island Airstrip. The obligation was to include the necessary upgrading of the airstrip, its ongoing maintenance and all future operational arrangements.

But it was felt that none of the submissions adequately dealt with the current airstrip shortcomings or resolved Council’s existing concerns, so Council decided on May 28 to announce its intention to close the airstrip, subject to the outcomes of a four-week consultation period. This statement, on Kingborough Council’s ‘have your say’ web page, could be written by any number of councils concerning their ALAs: “Council understands the significance of this decision, but the airstrip is now only used for private purposes and the expenditure of public funds cannot be justified.” The future of the airstrip is still not finalised.

Encroaching development

There is also increased attention being applied to protecting operational airspace (think obstacle limitation surfaces and instrument flight procedures) from incompatible development. This is a result of a concerted effort over many years by all levels of government in conjunction with airport owners in defining their operational airspace and other aerodrome safeguarding measures, and ensuring development assessment processes consider the potential impact of a proposal on an airport’s operations.

Freight

Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport currently has a weekly Cathay Pacific cargo service to China, originating in Sydney, while Darwin Airport has recently announced expansion plans for its international freight facilities, aligned with new passenger services to China via Donghai Airlines and a proposed partnership with a Chinese based logistics company.

Cassowary Coast Council has requested expressions of interest in the development of a Northern Australia Aviation Logistics Hub at the Mundoo Aerodrome site at Innisfail, Far North Queensland, that will form the basis of a tender process for a long-term lease and business partner for the Mundoo Aerodrome.

Meanwhile, Bundaberg, Deniliquin and Lismore Councils (to name a few) are scoping potential international air freight opportunities through more detailed investigations.

Most air freight task is carried in the belly-hold of scheduled passenger services, but as Wellcamp shows, there are some niche opportunities for direct international freighter services to regional Australian airports.

Flying training

Through the process of responding to Qantas’ request for expressions of interest in hosting its pilot academy (the first site of which has been announced for Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport – see elsewhere this issue), many airport operators have come to realise the opportunity before them in terms of meeting the world’s massive pilot training task, and it is likely that a number of world class flying training providers will be attracted to establish or expand facilities in Australia as a result.

Electric aircraft

In time electric-powered aircraft look set to offer a viable alternative to traditional avgas and avtur-burning aircraft. But that will mean from an airport planning perspective that power supplies, environmental, noise and apron design issue will need consideration.

Hangar developments and aircraft parking areas will need reticulated power or self-contained (solar and batteries) charging, plus a means of metering and charging for their use. This might lead to other renewable energy investments within an airport’s overall infrastructure development provisions (think solar and batteries).

Aircraft parking aprons won’t necessarily need to be (almost) level to assure symmetric fuel loading and won’t need fuel interceptor systems and other fuel management equipment, nor fuel resistant membranes.

There will be no need for a check of water in the fuel, and therefore there won’t be as much fuel/water being disposed of into the general environment (in the absence of a dedicated disposal facility).

‘This statement could be written by any number of councils concerning their ALAs.’

The potential fire hazard associated with batteries means a different approach will be needed concerning firefighting and emergency response arrangements – around hangars/aprons and movement areas.

Finally, community concern associated with noise will be almost entirely mitigated, and modelling will need to consider aircraft movements that don’t create noise.

Drones

The prospect of securing investment from a new and innovative industry is attractive, but the potential economic and social benefits of drone operations on or near an airport of any size or scale should be carefully weighed against additional operational restrictions that might be imposed on locally-based and visiting aircraft operators.

For example, if an emergency services aircraft needed to takeoff or land, drone operations at or near the airport would need to stop. Alternatively, an aircraft, whether private or commercial, would not be able to take-off, land or conduct circuit training while drones were operating on or near the airport. The safe coordination of these activities would be costly and is not properly contemplated within Australia’s current regulatory framework.

On the other hand, pilot-optional or unmanned aerial vehicles will increasingly be afforded priority over other airspace users, for example where they are involved in aeromedical, fire-fighting and other disaster relief and humanitarian operations, and so manned aircraft operators will need to increase their awareness of drone operations.

Airport owners and operators and the general aviation community need to consider the threats and opportunities emerging from the drone industry and find ways to cooperate with the explorers of this exciting new aviation frontier.

Keith Tonkin is managing director and principal consultant of Aviation Projects