A message from the CEO

It’s a time of reaching milestones here at Nelson Airport and we are seeing some real changes to the landscape.

Our terminal and car parking redevelopment is well underway and the new Airways control tower is growing quickly. Piling is now complete for stage one of the new terminal and more contractors are arriving on site to start construction.

We recently welcomed our one millionth passenger within a twelve-month period - Abby Nalder, a 15-year-old student at Golden Bay High School who was arriving home from Auckland on an Air New Zealand flight. This achievement means we are the fifth-busiest airport in New Zealand based on passenger numbers, slightly ahead of Dunedin Airport.

Thank you to all our airlines, business and tourism partners and travellers for making this possible. We appreciate your ongoing support and patience while we build your new Nelson Airport. Thank you to everyone who is doing their part to make our visitors feel welcome and safe as they journey to and from the airport.

Rob Evans
Chief Executive Officer, Nelson Airport

Terminal update

Nelson Airport’s new terminal is being constructed in two stages. Naylor Love have commenced stage one. This has included driving 58 piles to a depth of between 16-17m. Pre-cast beams for the ground floor of the new terminal are in production here in Nelson.

Roading and car parking

A new temporary rental car area is under construction outside the old terminal. When completed, the access road within the airport will be changed to provide more space for constructing the new car park. The trenching (pictured above) that is taking place through the existing car park is to provide a route for the power supply to the new terminal.

Numbers at a glance

Airways control tower

Over the last couple of months, the pre-cast panels for the first two floors of the new control town have been erected and concrete for the internal floors has been poured. The joinery has also been installed in the ground-floor windows.
Offsite, the focus has been on pre-casting the panels for the next two levels and prefabricating the steel staircase. We expect that the remainder of the main body of the tower will be in place over the next six weeks. After that the contractor will be working on the control cab and sub-cab structure and beginning the internal fit out.

Passenger numbers and trends

Passenger numbers for July 2017 were 85,443 - up eight percent compared with July 2016. This continues the trend of extraordinary growth in passenger numbers that Nelson Airport experienced during the year to the end of June 2017. Surpassing one million passengers within that 12-month period set a new record for Nelson Airport and demonstrates both the popularity of the region for visitors and locals’ propensity for travel.

Air NZ increases passenger capacity

Air NZ has announced a 16,500 increase in passenger capacity into our region over the summer months. We are really delighted and believe this shows how much the airline values its partnership with Nelson Airport and recognises the strength of our region within its network.

Sponsorships

We are delighted to support the Tasman Makos, the South Island Masters Games, and the Abel Tasman Cycle Challenge. Sponsorships relationships like these connect us to our community and provide important points of focus for visitors choosing to travel to our region.

Regional tourism collaboration

Nelson Airport entered into a three-year marketing services agreement with the Nelson Regional Development Agency (NRDA). This agreement will underpin our collaborative work in support of our region’s future growth. NRDA will have a strong focus on promoting our region through NRDA’s domestic marketing, international trade, and conference and events marketing to strategic markets.

Community Connections

We had a great turnout for our recent community tree planting day on the Great Taste Cycle Trail. More than a thousand native trees were planted in two areas. Some of the trees will beautify the DVOR navigational aid site at Monaco, but most were planted alongside the cycle trial, about 10 minutes' walk from the Honest Lawyer carpark if you are heading towards Richmond.

Air NZ Maintenance

The Air New Zealand Regional Maintenance team has been busy recently with various checks on their own airline’s ATR-72 and Q300 fleets in addition to customer work for Air Caledonie and Virgin Australia. The team look after Air New Zealand’s 50 strong turboprop fleet – not a small task – and it takes a team of 42 engineers more than 4,400 hours over a period of two and a half weeks to complete a heavy maintenance check.