Townsville International Airport
Townsville International Airport |
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| Characteristics | |
| ICAO code | YBTL |
| IATA code | TSV |
| Coordinates | |
| Height above MSL | 5 m (16 ft ) |
| Transport links | |
| Distance from the city center | 5 km northeast of Townsville , Australia
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| Street | State Route 9 / State Route 16 |
| train | No |
| Local transport | bus |
| Basic data | |
| opening | 1939 |
| operator | Queensland Airports Limited |
| Terminals | 1 |
| Passengers | 1,624,319 (2017) |
| Flight movements |
25,763 (2017) |
| Employees | 1,600 (2015) |
| Runways | |
| 01/19 | 2438 m × 45 m asphalt |
| 07/25 | 1100 m × 30 m asphalt |
The Townsville Airport , including Townsville Airport or in German airport Townsville , occasionally Garbutt Airport or Garbutt airport 's international commercial airport in eastern Australia, near the city of Townsville in Queensland . The airport itself acts as Townsville Airport . The airport shares the runways with RAAF Base Townsville .
history
Beginnings
Today's Townsville International Airport dates back to the late 1930s when the city of Townsville began construction of a new airport dedicated to passenger services. A coastal area was chosen as the location, which was close to the gates of the city. The airport, then better known as Garbutt Airport , received its official operating license on January 26, 1939, and air traffic began shortly afterwards in February of the same year.
Although a civil airport was initially envisaged in the planning, a second use by the Royal Australian Air Force was decided a little later . This was looking for a base in northeast Australia and had a focus on Townsville. It was decided to build a base next to the civil airfield, whose runways were then also used by military aircraft. This could already be put into operation in December 1939 - less than a year after the opening of the airfield. The base, known as RAAF Base Townsville , is still in use today and is one of the most important in Australia.
Second World War
Townsville Airport was used extensively for military purposes during World War II. The airport was taken over by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in December 1940 . Both RAAF and United States Air Force aircraft of the ally USA use the airport with its newly opened base. From Townsville-Garbut, missions were almost exclusively flown in the Pacific. During the war, the airport was one of the largest and most important military airfields in the southern hemisphere. In order to be able to carry out the large number of flights, the capacities had to be expanded, which led to extensive expansion measures and extensions to the parking areas and the runway system.
Development after the Second World War
After the Second World War, the civil part of Townsville Airport was transferred back to the city of Townsville, the military part remained under the care of the RAAF and continued to be used. A civil aviation network was (re) established, which quickly exceeded the size of the pre-war network. The airport was approached by the major Australian network carriers and served exclusively domestic routes.
First international flights and expansion in the 1980s
In 1980, Qantas asked for flights from Townsville to the United States of America and New Zealand. Since the airport was not designed for international flights until then, passenger facilities for international flights had to be built beforehand. In addition, the main runway for flights with Boeing 747s had to be reinforced because Qantas wanted to use this aircraft on the routes. The combined cost approximately five million Australian dollars raised by the owner, the city, and the government. The first international scheduled flight in Townsville was conducted in 1981 with the addition of both routes.
The building, which initially stood alone, shouldn't look like it did when it opened for long. As early as 1986, major redesign and new construction work began on the civil wing and the runway of the airport. The new international terminal was rebuilt and expanded for eleven million Australian dollars so that it could accommodate both international and domestic flights; the existing domestic flight building was thus superfluous and demolished.
In addition, the former inland apron was renewed during the renovation work and has since been able to accommodate two wide-body aircraft, two aircraft the size of a Fokker 100 and one small aircraft. In addition, the main line 01/19 was re-asphalted and a new parking lot, a garbage station and an emergency power generator were built and the access road to the civil area was modified. All these renovations lasted from May 1986 to April 1988.
In April 1989 the state Federal Airports Corporation took over responsibility and ownership of the civil area from the city of Townsville.
privatization
As a result of the Airport Act 1996 , under which the state airport operator Federal Airports Corporation leased almost all major commercial airports in the country for 50 years each with an option for a further 49 years, Townsville International Airport, as the civil sector is called, was also leased in 1996. Because of the long-term leasing contracts, one often speaks of privatization. Townsville Airport was leased to Australian Airports Limited for 50 years, as standard, with an option for a further 49 years . The contract was signed on June 11, 1998.
However, the airport was operated by Australian Airports Limited for just under 10 years. In 2005 she sold the contract and with it the airport operator to Queensland Airport Limited .
In the following years some modernization measures took place at the airport. So they renewed the runway surface by July 2006 for 20 million Australian dollars . The terminal also received a renovation, which took place from 2006 to early 2007. Additional check-in counters were built during the renovation.
Air traffic
Townsville's civil aviation is heavily dominated by the domestic market. From Townsville you can reach Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Gold Coast, Mackay, Melbourne, Mount Isa and Sydney inland by regular service. Active are Virgin Blue , Qantas and Jetstar . Regional Express Airlines also offers a regional route with many stops to Mount Isa. Internationally only Jetstar flies to Bali. This route will be discontinued on March 21, 2018. The Qantas routes to the USA and New Zealand are no longer served.
Charter flights for workers to mines in Queensland also play an important role. Alliance Airlines is particularly active here.
The Townsville military base is well used and continues to keep aircraft moving around the field.
Passenger statistics
Below are Townsville International Airport's passenger statistics for over two decades. The table is based on records from the Australian Department of Infrastructure and Transport .
| Period | Passengers | Changes in % | Flight movements | Changes in % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985/86 | 1,029,749 | 17,471 | ||
| 1986/87 | 1,010,283 | 1.9% | 17,644 | 1.0% |
| 1987/88 | 1,007,196 | 0.3% | 16,482 | 6.6% |
| 1988/89 | 907.614 | 9.9% | 17,425 | 5.7% |
| 1989/90 | 455.146 | 49.9% | 10,732 | 38.4% |
| 1990/91 | 511,835 | 12.5% | 13,732 | 28.0% |
| 1991/92 | 481.779 | 5.9% | 14,299 | 4.1% |
| 1992/93 | 555.084 | 15.2% | 14,386 | 0.6% |
| 1993/94 | 514.358 | 7.3% | 15,137 | 5.2% |
| 1994/95 | 576,687 | 12.1% | 15,928 | 5.2% |
| 1995/96 | 598.115 | 3.7% | 17,103 | 7.4% |
| 1996/97 | 607.426 | 1.6% | 18,035 | 5.4% |
| 1997/98 | 627.902 | 3.4% | 17,373 | 3.7% |
| 1998/99 | 652.864 | 4.0% | 17,943 | 3.3% |
| 1999/20 | 681,638 | 4.4% | 17,994 | 0.3% |
| 2000/01 | 731.908 | 7.4% | 19,013 | 5.7% |
| 2001/02 | 695.866 | 4.9% | 12,687 | 33.3% |
| 2002/03 | 778.370 | 11.9% | 15.208 | 19.9% |
| 2003/04 | 923,389 | 18.6% | 17,402 | 14.4% |
| 2004/05 | 1,055,287 | 14.3% | 20.101 | 15.5% |
| 2005/06 | 1,161,290 | 10.0% | 21,432 | 6.6% |
| 2006/07 | 1,278,888 | 10.1% | 20,247 | 5.5% |
| 2007/08 | 1,365,959 | 6.8% | 19.205 | 5.1% |
| 2008/09 | 1,435,967 | 5.1% | 20,299 | 5.7% |
| 2009/10 | 1,518,369 | 5.7% | 24,565 | 21.0% |
Web links
- Website Townsville Airport (english)
- Side of the airport operator (English)
- Airport data on World Aero Data ( 2006 )
- Airport data in the Aviation Safety Network (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Passenger Traffic and Seat Capacity. TownsvilleAirport.com.au, accessed June 10, 2018 .
- ↑ Airport traffic data. BITRE.gov.au , accessed on June 10, 2018 .
- ↑ Townsville Airport Master Plan 2016. TownsvilleAirport.com.au, accessed June 10, 2018 .
- ↑ a b Brief history part in the 2004 master plan, pages 35 to 38 ( Memento of the original from February 28, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 2.1 MB)
- ↑ internationalairportguide.com about the airport
- ↑ Airport Environment Strategy, pages 11 and 12 ( Memento of the original dated February 28, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 1.3 MB)
- ↑ Masterplan 2004, page 13 ( Memento of the original dated February 28, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 2.1 MB)
- ^ QAL: Townsville Airport
- ↑ Jetstar to announce the end of flights between Townsville and Bali. Accessed March 8, 2018 .
- ↑ where i can fly
- ↑ Passenger numbers at Australian airports ( memento of the original from July 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
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