Please, somebody, make airports great again......a Gobbledocks twiddle
GA and airports, my two favourite subjects. Of both I am fiercely passionate about.
This is the reality of airports - only a small amount actually turn a profit, and that is predominately the big few owned by the investment sharks.
Successive Governments have flogged the airports in fire sales, leaving regional areas vulnerable to the mischief making hedge funds who take, take, and take some more, and then invest nothing back into the airport. A regional area without its airport is as good as the same regional area being without water or sewerage. It will eventually collapse.
An average new 2,000m runway alone is around $50m. How many regional Councils can afford that? None basically. And even if they could afford it they won't do it because that constitutes 'spending for the future', something a 4 year Council will not do.
The government needs to be subsidising more routes and flights. Do it under a contractural arrangement with the airline(s) but in a way that the airline cannot gouge the regional residents. Fair and equitable ticket prices combined with fair and equitable landing fee charges and passenger head taxes. A triangulated win for all parties - the fare payer, the airline, the airport. A wise investment by state and federal government as it will stimulate more business creating more revenue for them with benefits returned to the economy.
There also needs to be streamlined funding application processes. Some of the hoops that airports are forced to jump through courtesy of state Treasury departments are ludicrous. Most regional areas do not have the skill and manpower to apply for these funding programmes as the project already needs to be shovel ready to get the money. You could spend a $1m getting a project shovel ready for a new runway or terminal upgrade, only to miss out on the funding anyway! Who can afford that? And the further you are away from the coast the more expensive your maintenance and new infrastructure costs are. Try doing the same construction work at Newcastle or Sunshine Coast as you would do in Weipa! Compare the costs, I dare you.
A lot of our airport infrastructure has been neglected over the past decade or so and it is catching up. The Government needs to smarten up and realise the risks that are present when you have failing airport infrastructure. It's also time for people to accept that not every airport is some kind of bottomless cash cow. Many rely on paltry revenue from some landing fees, that's it. The airport is screwed by the airlines, has no paid car parking, has little in its terminal to lease or sub-lease, and few to nil car hire vehicles. The big revenue dollars just aren't there. Hell, even the fuel companies are taking a hit in regional areas and are often running at a loss or breaking even.
Aviation and it's linkages are a huge driver of the national economy. Those tentacles spread far and wide. It is a portfolio all of its own. It needs it's own Junior Minister, someone who knows about business models and aviation holistically, to oversight it. Imagine if you may - Minister Fawcett as Minister for aviation, working hand in glove with Nash, Xenophon, Smith, AAA, AOPA, RAAA, AMROBA, Ag Phil, the whirlybirders, even the red haired clown Hanson? Surely some good would come from that, rather than having a succession of these NFI Ministers who don't know an aircraft beacon from a control towers light.
All I'm trying to articulate in a peaceful and pragmatic approach is that there needs to be collaboration (governments favourite word). GA and airports are begging for it, the RAAA, AOPA, AAA, Independents are pushing for it, so it is time that people like Minister Chester, even Albo and all other past National, Liberal and Labor Governments woke up to the fact that our industry is sick, it is dying, and if it does finally die it will take a lot of associated services, businesses, people and regions down the shitter with it. Just sayin.........
Tick Tock
GA and airports, my two favourite subjects. Of both I am fiercely passionate about.
This is the reality of airports - only a small amount actually turn a profit, and that is predominately the big few owned by the investment sharks.
Successive Governments have flogged the airports in fire sales, leaving regional areas vulnerable to the mischief making hedge funds who take, take, and take some more, and then invest nothing back into the airport. A regional area without its airport is as good as the same regional area being without water or sewerage. It will eventually collapse.
An average new 2,000m runway alone is around $50m. How many regional Councils can afford that? None basically. And even if they could afford it they won't do it because that constitutes 'spending for the future', something a 4 year Council will not do.
The government needs to be subsidising more routes and flights. Do it under a contractural arrangement with the airline(s) but in a way that the airline cannot gouge the regional residents. Fair and equitable ticket prices combined with fair and equitable landing fee charges and passenger head taxes. A triangulated win for all parties - the fare payer, the airline, the airport. A wise investment by state and federal government as it will stimulate more business creating more revenue for them with benefits returned to the economy.
There also needs to be streamlined funding application processes. Some of the hoops that airports are forced to jump through courtesy of state Treasury departments are ludicrous. Most regional areas do not have the skill and manpower to apply for these funding programmes as the project already needs to be shovel ready to get the money. You could spend a $1m getting a project shovel ready for a new runway or terminal upgrade, only to miss out on the funding anyway! Who can afford that? And the further you are away from the coast the more expensive your maintenance and new infrastructure costs are. Try doing the same construction work at Newcastle or Sunshine Coast as you would do in Weipa! Compare the costs, I dare you.
A lot of our airport infrastructure has been neglected over the past decade or so and it is catching up. The Government needs to smarten up and realise the risks that are present when you have failing airport infrastructure. It's also time for people to accept that not every airport is some kind of bottomless cash cow. Many rely on paltry revenue from some landing fees, that's it. The airport is screwed by the airlines, has no paid car parking, has little in its terminal to lease or sub-lease, and few to nil car hire vehicles. The big revenue dollars just aren't there. Hell, even the fuel companies are taking a hit in regional areas and are often running at a loss or breaking even.
Aviation and it's linkages are a huge driver of the national economy. Those tentacles spread far and wide. It is a portfolio all of its own. It needs it's own Junior Minister, someone who knows about business models and aviation holistically, to oversight it. Imagine if you may - Minister Fawcett as Minister for aviation, working hand in glove with Nash, Xenophon, Smith, AAA, AOPA, RAAA, AMROBA, Ag Phil, the whirlybirders, even the red haired clown Hanson? Surely some good would come from that, rather than having a succession of these NFI Ministers who don't know an aircraft beacon from a control towers light.
All I'm trying to articulate in a peaceful and pragmatic approach is that there needs to be collaboration (governments favourite word). GA and airports are begging for it, the RAAA, AOPA, AAA, Independents are pushing for it, so it is time that people like Minister Chester, even Albo and all other past National, Liberal and Labor Governments woke up to the fact that our industry is sick, it is dying, and if it does finally die it will take a lot of associated services, businesses, people and regions down the shitter with it. Just sayin.........
Tick Tock