A special day on the Chatham Islands today with the official opening of the Inia William Tuuta Memorial Airport. I was happy to be around to witness the afternoon!
The Islands airport on the Karewa Peninsula has been undergoing a major upgrade, dubbed - Longer and Stronger. The Runway has been extended from 1360m to 1850m and widened from 30m to 45m. The Apron has been extended and strengthened to accommodate two aircraft stands, one big enough to receive aircraft up to Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 in size. The original Terminal has been retained to accommodate Check In and Airline Operations. A new Terminal extension has been built which houses a Departure Lounge, and can be upgraded further to comply with any future increase in Security screening measures. The sealed carpark has also been extended. The original airport was built in 1982, replacing a grass airstrip at Hapupu.
Officially opening the Airport today was MP Mark Patterson, Associate Minister for Regional Development. Air New Zealand CEO Nikhil Ravishankar also traveled out to the Islands to announce that the Air NZ and Air Chathams interline agreement has been expanded to include both Whanganui and the Chatham Islands from tomorrow onwards. Air Chathams CEO Duane Emeny then spoke, saying that the airline plans to increase flight offerings between New Zealand and the Chathams, with potentially 2-3 flights a week to Christchurch, and 3-4 flights a week to Wellington, in addition to seasonal flights over the summer.
MP for Rangitata and Associate Minister of Transport James Meager was supposed to conclude the ceremony, but was called to Wellington just before boarding his flight to the Chathams. Instead Whanganui MP Andrew Tripe, made a speech, also happy with the Interline that is set to include the City. Also in attendance was Air Chathams Craig and Marion Emeny, and MP for Rongotai Julie-Ann Genter.
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| Air Chathams ATR 72-500 ZK-MCO watches proceedings before its next flight to New Zealand on Thursday. |
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| Texel Air flew its Boeing 737-800BCF ZK-TXE in to celebrate the Airport opening. It landed just before 9am, and departed again at 3.40pm. |
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| The old grass airstrip at Hapupu. |
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