Hamilton Island Airport
Encyclopedia
Great Barrier Reef Airport (formerly Hamilton Island Airport) is the primary airport of the Whitsunday Islands
Group, and airport of Hamilton Island. The airport is settled on mostly reclaimed land and due the island's tourism status, is occupied mostly and favoured by Australia's leading low-cost airlines
, Jetstar Airways
and Virgin Australia.
The airport suffered heavily in September 2001 with the demise of Ansett Australia
, which operated more heavily out of the airport than any other airline with flights to Cairns, Townsville, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Then a year later in October 2002 a light plane crashed shortly after take off, killing 6 people. In the year ending 30 June 2009 the airport handled 434,305 passengers. It is ranked 19th busiest airport in Australia.
*Sydney route included from July 2009
Whitsunday Islands
The Whitsunday Islands are a collection of continental islands of various sizes off the central coast of Queensland, Australia, situated between just south of Bowen and to the north of Mackay, some north of Brisbane. The island group is centred on Whitsunday Island, while the group's commercial...
Group, and airport of Hamilton Island. The airport is settled on mostly reclaimed land and due the island's tourism status, is occupied mostly and favoured by Australia's leading low-cost airlines
Low-cost carrier
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline is an airline that generally has lower fares and fewer comforts...
, Jetstar Airways
Jetstar Airways
Jetstar Airways is an Australian low-cost airline headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. It is a subsidiary of Qantas, created in response to the threat posed by low-cost airline Virgin Blue...
and Virgin Australia.
The airport suffered heavily in September 2001 with the demise 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...
, which operated more heavily out of the airport than any other airline with flights to Cairns, Townsville, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Then a year later in October 2002 a light plane crashed shortly after take off, killing 6 people. In the year ending 30 June 2009 the airport handled 434,305 passengers. It is ranked 19th busiest airport in Australia.
Airlines and destinations
Operations
| Rank | Airport | Passengers carried | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  New South Wales Sydney AirportSydney Airport Sydney Airport may refer to:* Sydney Airport, also known as Kingsford Smith International Airport, in Sydney, Australia* Sydney/J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport, in Nova Scotia, Canada... |
181,700 | NA* |
| 2 |  Queensland Brisbane AirportBrisbane Airport Brisbane Airport is the sole passenger airport serving Brisbane and the third busiest in Australia, after Melbourne and Sydney Airports. Brisbane Airport has won many awards. Located in the suburb with the same name, the airport serves the city of Brisbane and the surrounding metropolitan area... |
176,500 | 6.5 |
*Sydney route included from July 2009