Lord Howe Island Airport
Encyclopedia
Lord Howe Island Airport is a regional and international airport providing air transportation to Lord Howe Island
, a dependency
of New South Wales
, Australia
. Lord Howe Island is located in the Tasman Sea
, 600 kilometres (372.8 mi) east of mainland Port Macquarie. The airport is operated by the Lord Howe Island Council.
, Norfolk Island
and New Zealand
. Located 600 km (600,000,000,000,000 nm) to the west is the Australian mainland, and 900 km (900,000,000,000,000 nm) to the east is Norfolk Island Airport
which is within range of New Zealand
to the southeast and New Caledonia
to the north. These distances are within the range of many light aircraft when fitted with long range tanks, while the direct distances are not. From New Caledonia, other Pacific Islands such as Vanuatu and Fiji are within range and can be used as further 'stepping stones' to the other South Pacific and North Pacific destinations.
of 17 feet (5 m) above mean sea level and has one runway
which measures 886 by 30 m (2,906.8 by 98.4 ).
s during financial year 2009-2010, ranking it 64th amongst airports in Australia.
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...
, a dependency
Dependent territory
A dependent territory, dependent area or dependency is a territory that does not possess full political independence or sovereignty as a State, and remains politically outside of the controlling state's integral area....
of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Lord Howe Island is located in the Tasman Sea
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...
, 600 kilometres (372.8 mi) east of mainland Port Macquarie. The airport is operated by the Lord Howe Island Council.
Light aircraft transit
Lord Howe Island is an important transit and refueling point for light aircraft flying between AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean located between Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The island is part of the Commonwealth of Australia, but it enjoys a large degree of self-governance...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Located 600 km (600,000,000,000,000 nm) to the west is the Australian mainland, and 900 km (900,000,000,000,000 nm) to the east is Norfolk Island Airport
Norfolk Island Airport
Norfolk Island Airport is the only airport on Norfolk Island, an external territory of Australia. The island is located in the Pacific Ocean between Australia, New Zealand, and New Caledonia...
which is within range of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
to the southeast and New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
to the north. These distances are within the range of many light aircraft when fitted with long range tanks, while the direct distances are not. From New Caledonia, other Pacific Islands such as Vanuatu and Fiji are within range and can be used as further 'stepping stones' to the other South Pacific and North Pacific destinations.
Facilities
The airport resides at an elevationElevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 17 feet (5 m) above mean sea level and has one runway
Runway
According to ICAO a runway is a "defined rectangular area on a land aerodrome prepared for the landing and take-off of aircraft." Runways may be a man-made surface or a natural surface .- Orientation and dimensions :Runways are named by a number between 01 and 36, which is generally one tenth...
which measures 886 by 30 m (2,906.8 by 98.4 ).
Airlines and destinations
Incidents
On April 20, 2009 the runway was damaged by heavy rains of 230 millimetres (9.1 in) in three hours, leaving 100 tourists stuck on the island.Statistics
Lord Howe Island Airport served 33,385 revenue passengerRevenue passenger
A revenue passenger is someone who has paid the transport operator for her or his trip. That excludes non-paying passengers such as airline employees flying on free or nearly-free passes, babies and children who do not have a seat of their own, etc...
s during financial year 2009-2010, ranking it 64th amongst airports in Australia.