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As Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) moves to more effectively manage heavy peak time congestion, the Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) has said plans by BAC to encourage regional operators to use larger aircraft as part of congestion-easing measures are “disingenuous given that the market should determine the size of aircraft for a particular route, not the airport owners.” The RAAA added the move was “in order to maximise airport revenues”.
“As operations at Brisbane Airport increase there will inevitably be pressure from BAC to have the smaller operators removed from the airport in order to maximise the airport’s profit. This has been the case in Sydney for some time to the point where federal government legislation was enacted in order to protect the rights of regional residents to be able to fly into their capital city airport and not be forced to suffer the inconvenience of travelling to a secondary airport,” the RAAA said in a statement.
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The association said regional scheduled, FIFO and charter operators have a strong presence at Brisbane airport “and need to remain there”.
The BAC has proposed working with nearby airports in south-east Queensland to help ease congestion in the face of rising traffic volumes that can’t be met by existing infrastructure.
“If a customer lives or works in Brisbane, that is their obvious destination or departure point. Flying regional customers in and out of the Sunshine or Gold Coast is not a viable alternative to Brisbane.
“There is a mixed message to industry in that BAC is planning a new FIFO/charter terminal. This contradicts the CEO’s wish to assist such operations in moving elsewhere. Do they want the new business or not?” the RAAA said, adding: “The RAAA and its members stand ready to work with BAC to ensure that regional operators have a long-term and reasonable access to Brisbane Airport.
Dane
says:Talk about not knowing your customer base
Dee
says:Definitely time to start the earth work for their proposed parallel strip, if they don’t soon, then we have another SYD debacle in the making.
Ray E
says:Earth works for the parallel runway have begun. Already extensive clearing on the north side of the airport for the runway. Could use Archerfield for regional, FIFO and small charter aircraft just to alleviate the pressure during peak times while the parallel runway is built. Archerfield claim to be ready to handle aircraft up to 110 seat aircraft. Obviously connecting flights make regional flights to archerfield unlikely/extremely difficult.
Andy
says:I regularly travel several times a week out of Brisbane Airport, but would desperately love to travel from my local airport on the Sunshine Coast, and avoid the huge traffic issues involved with getting to Brisbane Airport at peak times. Unfortunately I am unable to travel to any airport north of the Sunshine Coast from Maroochydore Airport, and I suspect that there are many more like me who wish to travel northwards.
Marty
says:Why can’t Archerfield Airport be utilised for the regional airlines (both turbo-prop and jet) as well as the FIFO workforce? A new terminal could be constructed on the southern perimeter and the state government could come to the party and extend the rail network a few kilometres to provide easy access to the city for those working there. That would free up congestion at Brisbane Airport and provide a much needed second airport to the area.
Adrian Paddingtom
says:Airllines like RyanAir, EasyJet and FlyBee succeeded and prospered using regional airports.
Australia just needs the right airlines.