Further warning on airport funds

Press, 2 September 1981, Page 6

Further warning on airport funds

Christchurch City. councillors sounded further warnings, yesterday about, lack of. future finance for .Christchurch Airport facilities. The council's policy and finance committee was told that overseas air traffic could grow quickly enough to make the international terminal’s $2O million second stage necessary by 1988. But with the present level of airport revenue and capital spending, the necessary terminal funding might not be available until after the year 2000.

The airport’s director, Mr M. W. Atkinson, said it was another result of the “highway robbery” still occurring under the Government’s landing-charge distribution formula, which guaranteed less income for Christchurch Airport and more income for other New Zealand airports, especially Wellington’s.

Councillors were told earlier this year that the airport could be substantially in deficit by 1990 under the oresent system.

Now the City Council — the airport authority — faces a $7.3 million runway extension project that represents increased spending of almost

$2 million over the 1979 estimate. If more international air carriers used the airport after, the runway was lengthened, there could be a passenger capacity shortfall by 1988.

The . International Air Transport Association has forecast a growth rate of 6 per cent per year for international traffic through Ai ?kland to 1984, and 5 per cent per year for the next five years. ■ Using the I.A.T.A. forecast as a base, presuming that a longer runway will attract more flights to Christchurch, the City Council has forecast extra local growth that could see airport facilities stretched to their 600,000 passenger capacity in 1988. Extra growth could occur “if only one additional widebodied aircraft operates through Christchurch every fortnight during 1984, every week during 1985 and twice a week during 1986,” a staff report said. It was “strongly indicated” that construction of the international terminal’s second stage should start in 1986, the report said. The present airport capital works plan calls for $300,000

to be spent bn second stage plans from 1984 to 1986.

Councillors are still waiting for. word <from the Civil Aviation Division on which of the airport's reserve funds may be used to help start the runway extension project. Bird strikes Councillors were concerned about hews that the private Johns Road dump in Papafua County might reopen soon. They were told that the danger to aircraft from bird strikes was already too high. Bird incident reports from April to June showed that gulls again were involved in 66 per cent of the local incidents. Little had been achieved to contain the problem, said a report from the Wildlife Service. “The airport is sandwiched between two powerful attractions for gulls, a rubbish dump to the north and freezing works settling ponds to the south,” the report said. Gulls flew through airspace between those sites. The City Council had just spent $BOOO to spray the airfield for worms so that they would not be an attraction to birds, Mr Atkinson said.