Canberra International Airport - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

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Canberra International Airport , now trading as Canberra Airport, is the airport serving Australia's capital city, Canberra

Canberra

Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...

, and the city of Queanbeyan, NSW. Located at the eastern edge of North Canberra, it is the 8th busiest airport in Australia. The airport is the main hub for Brindabella Airlines. Although there are no current international flight services, Air Pacific

Air Pacific

Air Pacific Limited, Fiji's international airline, operates international and domestic services around the Pacific and to North America and Hong Kong. It is also a partner with the frequent flyer programmes of Qantas, American Airlines, and Alaska Airlines...

briefly offered a service to Fiji

Fiji

Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

in 2004. Canberra Airport is managed and operated by the Canberra Airport Group Pty Ltd. The Airport has two runways known as the 17/35 and the 12/30 runways. The airport serves flights to and from domestic destinations, mainly in eastern Australia. Canberra Airport handled 3,061,859 passengers in the year ending 30 June 2009. Since 2009, the Canberra Airport Main Terminal is being replaced in a major redevelopment set for completion in 2012. The Southern Extension of the new terminal was completed in November 2010, however, the Western Extension is yet to be constructed.

Location

The Airport is located at the intersection of Canberra's main East-West artery (Parkes Way/Pialligo Avenue) and Eastern Ring Road (Monaro Highway/Majura Road) near the semi-rural suburb of Pialligo about 8–10 minutes drive from the city centre, 15 minutes from Gungahlin and 10 minutes from Queanbeyan at non-peak times; travel times can be much longer at peak times due to traffic congestion

Traffic congestion

Traffic congestion is a condition on road networks that occurs as use increases, and is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. The most common example is the physical use of roads by vehicles. When traffic demand is great enough that the interaction...

.

The land is currently divided into five areas:

The passenger terminal and general aviation facility are on the western side of the main runway.
The Brindabella Business Park is adjacent to the passenger terminal.
The ex-air force base area, now called Fairbairn, is on the eastern side of the main runway. Fairbairn is home to RAAF No 34 Squadron
No. 34 Squadron RAAF
No. 34 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force transport squadron. It is currently based at Canberra International Airport in the Australian capital Canberra, where it operates two Boeing 737 Business Jets and three Bombardier Challenger 604s.-History:...

, which is responsible for the operations of the RAAF VIP transport aircraft and the area is regularly used by visiting heads of state and military aircraft
Military aircraft
A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary armed service of any type. Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat:...

in transit.
The rest of the ex-RAAF base area has been named Fairbairn and is being developed as another "business park" area.
There is a retail and mixed use section on Majura Road which has been named Majura Park.

History

The airport was built up from an old airstrip that was first laid down in the 1920s, not long after the National Capital site was decided. In 1939 it was taken over by the Royal Australian Air Force

Royal Australian Air Force

The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

(RAAF), with an area leased out for civil aviation

Civil aviation

Civil aviation is one of two major categories of flying, representing all non-military aviation, both private and commercial. Most of the countries in the world are members of the International Civil Aviation Organization and work together to establish common standards and recommended practices...

.

On 13 August 1940, in what became known as the Canberra air disaster, a RAAF Lockheed Hudson

Lockheed Hudson

The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter...

flying from Melbourne crashed into a small hill to the east of the airport. Four crew and six passengers, including the Chief of the General Staff and three Federal Government ministers, were killed in the accident. James Fairbairn

James Fairbairn

James Valentine Fairbairn was a pastoralist, aviator, Australian politician and cabinet minister who was killed in the Canberra air disaster....

, Minister for Air and Civil Aviation, was one of those killed and Fairbairn Airbase the eastern component of the airport was subsequently named after him. In 1962 the military side of the Airport was renamed RAAF Base Fairbairn. The North-East quadrant of the Airport still retains the Fairbairn name.

The lease to the site was sold to Canberra International Airport Pty Ltd in 1998, and the RAAF area was sub-leased back to the Department of Defence. It was decommissioned as a RAAF base in 2003, (although No. 34 Squadron RAAF

No. 34 Squadron RAAF

No. 34 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force transport squadron. It is currently based at Canberra International Airport in the Australian capital Canberra, where it operates two Boeing 737 Business Jets and three Bombardier Challenger 604s.-History:...

remains based there), and the RAAF area was renamed Defence Establishment Fairbairn.

In the years since the sale of the lease to Canberra International Airport Pty Ltd, a series of upgrades have taken place at the Airport including major terminal upgrades. In early December 2007, plans were announced to construct a new terminal, but these plans were placed on hold in late 2008.

Brindabella Business Park

Over a dozen office buildings have also been built on Airport land at Brindabella Business Park and Fairbairn. A retail precinct called Majura Park has been established on Airport land along Majura Road.

The Canberra Spatial Plan released by the ACT Government

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly

The Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory...

in March 2004 identified the airport and surrounding areas as being an important centre for future industrial and related development.

Fairbairn

Several new hangars and buildings have been erected in both Fairbairn and near the terminal. A 600m extension to the airport's runway and upgrades to runway systems were completed in 2006.

Future Development

In 2008, the management of Canberra International Airport launched an advertising campaign in support of the idea of having Canberra considered as Sydney's Second Airport. The slogan they were using was "Is the solution to Sydney's second airport still 20 years away? Less than 3 hours actually." Their point of view is presented at "Canberra is the Only Serious Solution to Sydney's Air Traffic Problems."

The Federal Transport Minister Anthony Albanese

Anthony Albanese

Anthony Norman Albanese , Australian politician, who serves as Leader of the House of Representatives and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport in the Gillard Ministry...

rejected Canberra International Airport's draft master plan in November 2008 on the grounds that it did not provide enough detail on the proposal to develop the airport into a freight hub and the airport's community consultation had been insufficient. The Airport's 2005 master plan was also criticised by the then-Howard Government

Howard Government

The Howard Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia led by Prime Minister John Howard. It was made up of members of the Liberal–National Coalition, which won a majority of seats in the Australian House of Representatives at four successive elections. The Howard Government...

for not providing enough information.

In the second half of 2008, Canberra International Airport Pty Ltd started referring to itself as "Canberra Airport".

In early December 2007, plans were announced to construct a new terminal, with constructions commening in July 2008, and completion set for September 2010. When completed, the terminal would have 6 aerobridges (an increase of 2), 32 check-in counters, (twice the current number), 2,500 car parking spaces (doubled), three times the baggage belt capacity, and the floor area of the lounge facilities would be quadrupled.

These plans were placed on hold in late 2008 as a result of the Global economic crisis.

In April 2009, Canberra Airport announced that it would spend $350 million on a number of infrastructure projects:

3 new jet aircraft parking positions – under construction
2 Structured Car Parks (1200 undercover spaces each) – the first is completed with the second one currently under construction
A New Southern Concourse Terminal – completed
A Western Concourse Terminal – planned to commence late 2010 (currently under construction as at September 2011)

Changes to the terminal will include:

International capability with dedicated customs, immigration and quarantine facilities
More than double the number of check-in counters (from 17 to 44)
A tripling of baggage capacity
A quadrupling of Airline Club Lounge areas
A two storey roadside drop off and pick up system – departures on the upper level and arrivals on the lower level
An indoor taxi rank waiting area – a first for an Australian airport

They have placed a 4.5 minute animated video of the planned finished product on their website.

The project was given the go ahead by Canberra International Airport executive chairman Terry Snow, to start late 2009. It was approved by the Australian Government in February 2008. The new terminal will increase space by 65%. There will be 10 airbridges (upon the completion of the final stages some time in the future), two 4 level car park and an under-cover taxi rank. Space will be made for the future requirements of International flights.

In 2010, 8 Brindella Circuit, a building located in the administration area of the Airport precinct, won the 5 Green Stars Australian Excellence Award.

Awards

In 2002 and 2007 Canberra Airport won the Australian Airports Capital City Airport of the Year Award.

Qantas Terminal

The former Qantas Terminal at Canberra Airport, located on the Western side of the building, has now been closed and all Qantas

Qantas

Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...

, Qantaslink

QantasLink

QantasLink is a regional brand of Australian airline Qantas and is an affiliate member of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is a major competitor to Regional Express Airlines, Virgin Australia and Skywest Airlines. As of September 2010 QantasLink provides 1900 flights each week to 54 domestic and...

and Brindabella Airlines

Brindabella Airlines

Brindabella Airlines Pty Ltd is a regional airline based in Canberra, Australia. It is a Qantas affiliate airline operating a small regional network. Its main base is Canberra International Airport.- History :...

flights and related services such as lounges now operate from the new Southern Concourse Terminal. The terminal was demolished in 2011 to make way for the building of a second Western Concourse Terminal.

Common User Terminal

The Common User Terminal is located on the far Eastern side of the building. The terminal serves Virgin Australia and Tiger Airways Australia

Tiger Airways Australia

Tiger Airways Australia Pty Ltd, operating as Tiger Airways Australia, is a low cost airline which commenced services in the Australian domestic airline market on 23 November 2007. It is a subsidiary of Tiger Airways Holdings, a Singapore-based company, which is owned partially by Singapore Airlines...

, however until 2001 this terminal was the home of Ansett Australia

Ansett Australia

Ansett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...

's operations from the airport.The former Ansett Golden Wing Club is currently the home of Virgin Australia's "The Lounge", the former Ansett Executive Lounge has been demolished. However, after the construction of the new Southern Extension, only the terminal's departure lounge and gates 5 and 6 are in use. The common user terminal is set for demolition during the course of the next 2 to 3 years.

Southern Concourse Terminal

The newly built Southern Concourse Terminal completed construction in late 2010 and came into service on the 14 November. The terminal will serve all airlines for check-in including Tiger Airways Australia, Qantas, Virgin Australia and Brindabella Airlines. However, until the completion of the Western Concourse Terminal, only Qantas will use the departure gates – all other airlines will continue to use the departures area of the existing common user facility. The Southern Concourse Terminal also includes The Qantas Club, The Qantas Business Class Lounge and The Qantas Chairman's Lounge (all co-located between Gates 11 and 12).

Western Concourse Terminal

The Western Concourse Terminal will be the final addition to Canberra Airport set for completion in 2012. When completed the terminal will conjoin onto the Southern Concourse Terminal.

General Aviation Terminal

The General Aviation Terminal in Canberra Airport is a separate building located on the Far West Side of the Terminal Precinct. The terminal serves the ACT Emergency Services Aviation Wing, Australian Federal Police

Australian Federal Police

The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...

Air Wing, The Royal Flying Doctor Service, NSW Air Ambulance and Wingaway. The Terminal also holds the aircraft maintenance facilities.

Noise, noise sharing and curfews

Approach and departure corridors lie over largely rural and industrial areas, although the instrument approach path (from the south) passes near the New South Wales suburb of Jerrabomberra, the city of Queanbeyan, and the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

base, HMAS Harman

HMAS Harman

HMAS Harman is a Royal Australian Navy communications and logistics facility. The main base is located in the Australian capital of Canberra, and is geographically recognised as the suburb of Harman...

, which has some barracks and housing.

Proposals have been made to the NSW Planning Minister by various developers to approve housing estates that are under the southern flight paths in New South Wales. Canberra International Airport Pty Ltd has been vigorous in advertising its opposition to these plans on the basis of a general increase in noise levels over a wide corridor which is currently free of aircraft noise, and concern that this will lead to the imposition of a curfew on the hours-of-operation of the airport.

Curfew for Canberra has been formed in response to the changes proposed in Canberra Airport’s draft 2008 Master Plan, in particular the night time aircraft movements and the impact this will have on the quality of life for all residents of the Canberra region. Its membership draws on the residents associations from around the ACT. One of the key platforms is the introduction of a night time curfew at Canberra Airport. The core objectives of Curfew 4 Canberra include: secure an 11pm-6am curfew; oppose Canberra Airport becoming a 24 hour freight hub; oppose Canberra Airport becoming Sydney’s 2nd Airport; oppose the construction of a parallel (third) runway.

Transport

Access to and from the Canberra airport terminal is primarily by car, hire car or taxi. Canberra Cabs and partner taxi companies provide services to the airport taxi rank, with cabs waiting when flights come in.

Bus Services

Royale Limousines operates Airport Express, which provides daytime mini-bus services to Canberra City.

Deane's Buslines

Deane's Buslines

Deane's Buslines is a privately owned bus company that operates through Queanbeyan, Jerrabomberra and Canberra. It has over 10 different routes and now runs services to Bungendore....

operates route 834 to nearby Queanbeyan.

Canberra airport terminal is not serviced by ACTION

ACTION

ACTION is a public bus service operating in Canberra, ACT, Australia. It is operated by the ACT Department of Territory and Municipal Services...

, Canberra's public bus service. During weekdays, ACTION operates five services to various parts of the airport site (to/from City/Belconnen

Belconnen, Australian Capital Territory

Belconnen is a suburb of Canberra, Australia in the district of Belconnen. It contains the Belconnen Town Centre, Lake Ginninderra and several residential areas. It is bounded by Ginninderra Drive, Aikman Drive, Eastern Valley Way, Belconnen Way and Coulter Drive...

(10), City (737 - peak only), Gungahlin

Gungahlin

Gungahlin is a name of a district and the northernmost town centre of Canberra, Australia. Gungahlin is situated 10 km north of Canberra's city centre and is one of five satellites of Canberra including Woden, Tuggeranong, Weston Creek and Belconnen. Currently Gungahlin comprises 11 suburbs,...

(757 - peak only), Tuggeranong

Tuggeranong

Tuggeranong is the southernmost town centre of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. It comprises 19 suburbs with a total of 31,819 dwellings, housing 87,119 people of the 324,034 people in the Australian Capital Territory . The district occupies 117 square kilometres to the east of the...

(786 - peak only), Weston Creek

Weston Creek

Weston Creek is a residential district of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, situated to the west of the Woden Valley district and approximately 13 km southwest of the Canberra city centre...

and Woden

Woden

Woden or Wodan is a major deity of Anglo-Saxon and Continental Germanic polytheism. Together with his Norse counterpart Odin, Woden represents a development of the Proto-Germanic god *Wōdanaz....

(28 - peak only)), but these stop at Brindabella Business Park, Fairbairn Business Park

Fairbairn, Canberra

Fairbairn was a base of the Royal Australian Air Force located in Australia's national capital, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Over the years the name of the establishment, and the use of the land, has changed...

and Majura Park, not at the terminal itself. These locations are some distance from the main terminal building, making them impractical for passengers with luggage.

Coach services operate from Canberra Airport to the New South Wales Snow Fields

Ski resort

A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...

. These coach services are operated by: Grand Touring Coaches, Greyhound Australia, Hummingbird Charters and Transborder.

Road traffic and road traffic congestion

The road system around Canberra Airport and the road between Civic and Canberra Airport was being duplicated as at July 2008, partly funded by Canberra Airport and the ACT Government. Federal Labor has also committed to further road improvements in the area through the extension of the Monaro Highway.

The Chief Minister of the ACT Government, Jon Stanhope

Jon Stanhope

Jonathan Ronald Stanhope is a former Australian politician who was Labor Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory from 2001 to 2011. Stanhope represented the Ginninderra electorate in the ACT Legislative Assembly from 1998 until 2011. He resigned as Chief Minister on 12 May 2011 and as...

, initially blamed the Commonwealth for the increased traffic congestion around the airport, which he claims has occurred due to the construction of office buildings on airport land, however, Mr Stanhope later stated that while he accepted the development of the airport adds to the level of traffic on the roads, it is not the cause of the congestion during peak periods. The ACT Government established a roundtable working group to examine the roads around the Airport and identify solutions to the road congestion through the Majura Valley. The roundtable identified that the cause of the road traffic was increased traffic from Gungahlin

Gungahlin

, the expansion of the airport and Queanbeyan's growing population. The working group recommended a staged approach to solving the traffic congestion, with Stage 1 including the duplication of Pialligo Avenue, Morshead Drive and Fairbairn Avenue.

High-speed rail link proposal

On 10 February 2009, Canberra Airport released its preliminary draft master plan which announced that a high speed rail link between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne was being considered. The plan was shortlisted in December 2008 by Infrastructure Australia

Infrastructure Australia

Infrastructure Australia is a statutory authority of the Commonwealth Government. Its role is to plan and co-ordinate infrastructure projects across Australia, particularly where the works cross state borders. It was established in 2008....

for further consideration, however it was the most expensive project shortlisted, and has not attracted any funding from any government. If completed, it would link Sydney to Canberra in around 50 minutes, making Canberra Airport a viable second international airport serving Sydney. However, Newcastle, New South Wales

Newcastle, New South Wales

The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second most populated area in the Australian state of New South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas...

and Southern Highlands, New South Wales

Southern Highlands, New South Wales

The Southern Highlands, also locally referred to as the Highlands, is a geographical region and district in New South Wales, Australia and is 110 km south-west of Sydney. The entire region is under the local government area of the Wingecarribee Shire...

are other potential locations for a second airport.

Possible additional regional and international destinations

In the 2009 Canberra Airport Masterplan, future targeted regional and international destinations were outlined.
In the next 5 years destinations such as Cairns

Cairns, Queensland

Cairns is a regional city in Far North Queensland, Australia, founded 1876. The city was named after William Wellington Cairns, then-current Governor of Queensland. It was formed to serve miners heading for the Hodgkinson River goldfield, but experienced a decline when an easier route was...

and Sunshine Coast

Sunshine Coast, Queensland

The Sunshine Coast is an urban area in South East Queensland, north of the state capital of Brisbane on the Pacific Ocean coastline. Although it does not have a central business district, by population it ranks as the 10th largest metropolis in Australia and the third largest in...

are planned to be introduced. In the next ten years destinations such as Avalon

Avalon Airport

Avalon Airport is the second busiest of the four airports serving Melbourne and is located in Avalon, Victoria, Australia, which is north-east of the city of Geelong and to the south-west of the state's capital city of Melbourne....

, Dubbo, Launceston

Launceston, Tasmania

Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...

, Bankstown

Bankstown, New South Wales

Bankstown is a suburb of south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bankstown is located 20 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Bankstown.-History:Prior to European...

and Coffs Harbour

Coffs Harbour, New South Wales

-History:By the early 1900s, the Coffs Harbour area had become an important timber production centre. Before the opening of the North Coast Railway Line, the only way to transport large items of heavy but low value, such as timber, was by coastal shipping. This meant sawmillers on the North Coast...

, and in the long term destinations as Alice Springs

Alice Springs, Northern Territory

Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice", Alice Springs is situated in the geographic centre of Australia near the southern border of the Northern Territory...

and Armidale

Armidale, New South Wales

Armidale is a city in the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales, Australia. Armidale Dumaresq Shire had a population of 19,485 people according to the 2006 census. It is the administrative centre for the Northern Tablelands region...

could be introduced.
The Master Plan also outlined a number of possible future international routes. In the short term New Zealand, Singapore, Indian Subcontinent and parts of Europe are possible. In the Medium term Fiji