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Cairns Airport

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Cairns Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorNorth Queensland Airports Group
ServesCairns, Queensland, Australia
LocationAeroglen
Hub for
Focus city forQantas
Elevation AMSL10 ft / 3 m
Websitecairnsairport.com.au
Map
YBCS is located in Queensland
YBCS
YBCS
Location in Queensland
Map
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
15/33 3,156 10,354 Asphalt
Statistics (2013–2014)
Passengers4,556,271
Aircraft movements (2011)43,006
Source: AIP[1] Enroute Supplement[2]
passenger and aircraftmovements from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE)[3]

Cairns Airport (IATA: CNS, ICAO: YBCS) is an international airport in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Formerly operated by the Cairns Port Authority, the airport was sold by the Queensland Government in December 2008 to a private consortium. It is the seventh busiest airport in Australia. The airport is located 2.3 nautical miles (4.3 km; 2.6 mi) north northwest[2] of Cairns or 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) north of the Cairns central business district, in the suburb of Aeroglen. The airport lies between Mount Whitfield to the west and Trinity Bay to the east.

The airport has direct flights to 18 international and 30 domestic destinations and many general aviation flights including a number of helicopter operators. Flights are operated to all major Australian cities and tourist destinations, regional communities in Far North Queensland, and a number of international destinations in the Asia-Pacific region with connections to the rest of the world. The airport formed the main base for Australian Airlines prior to its ceasing of operations in June 2006 (the airport remains a major port for parent company Qantas). It is also a base for the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia and the search and rescue helicopters of the State Emergency Service. In the 12 months ending 30 June 2013 Cairns Airport had 4.1 million passengers, up 263,532 from the previous year.[4]

History

Aerial View of runway and terminal to the right
View of Cairns international terminal with an Air New Zealand 767, Air Niugini F100, a Jetstar A321 and 2 Jetstar A330s, 11 June 2010

Cairns Airport goes back to 1928 when Tom McDonald started flying his de Havilland Gipsy Moth off a sand ridge near the present airport. He could only land and take off between high tides. During one emergency, Tom was forced to take off from beer barrels.

During World War II the Australian Government bought the airport for use by the Royal Australian Air Force. In 1943, the main runway was hard surfaced and lengthened to handle military aircraft. It was also used by the United States Army Air Forces as a transport base, with the 33d Troop Carrier Squadron (374th Troop Carrier Group) operating from the base during 1942. In 1949, the main runway was lengthened to 1,730 m (5,680 ft) to accommodate larger aircraft. During the mid-1960s, the airport was upgraded and the runway further lengthened to 2,020 m (6,630 ft) and strengthened so jets could land.

During the 1970s, Australia's two domestic airlines Trans Australia Airlines and Ansett provided regular scheduled services to most Australian capital cities and also Papua New Guinea, while in 1975 Air Niugini became the first international airline to commence flights out of Cairns, to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea. In 1982, redevelopment of the airport commenced. This involved further lengthening of the runway to 2,600 m (8,500 ft) (making it the longest runway in Queensland) and construction of a new terminal building. The first stage of the redevelopment was finished in 1984 and a dual International and Domestic Terminal was opened. At the end of the decade the second stage of redevelopment was completed. This included a new separate International Terminal, associated aprons and taxiways, costing an estimated $80 million. The main runway was again extended, to 3,196 m (10,486 ft). In 1997, the third stage of redevelopment was completed, during which a three-storey Airport Administration Centre was constructed providing 4,000 m2 (43,000 sq ft) of office space.[5]

A$200 million redevelopment of the Domestic terminal started in August 2007 and was completed in 2010.[6] Check-in facilities were expanded into a common-user facility for all airlines, and the building enlarged. Five new jet bridges replaced the existing three old bridges. In January 2010, Auckland International Airport Limited announced that it had purchased 24.6 per cent of North Queensland Airports (NQA), operator of the airports at Cairns and Mackay, for about $132 million.[7]

Terminals

The airport has two passenger terminals on the eastern side of the airport on reclaimed mangrove swamp. They are approximately 6 km (3.7 mi) north of the Cairns Central Shopping Centre and situated on Airport Avenue off Sheridan Street (Captain Cook Highway). The terminals are in two separate buildings 200 m (660 ft) from one another. The Domestic terminal is number 2 it has five jet bridges and 17 gates, while the International Terminal is number 1 it currently has six jet bridges and ten gates in total.[8]

Runways

The airport has a single runway which is 3,156 m (10,354 ft) long. The flight path to the north of the main runway is located directly overhead Cairns' northern beach suburbs. The flight path to the south is located directly over central Cairns. A smaller 925 m (3,035 ft) runway that was used for general aviation lies to the east; its final approach crossed the main runway. As of April 2011 this runway is closed and not expected to reopen.

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinationsTerminal
Airfast Indonesia Timika International
Air New Zealand Seasonal: Auckland[9] International
Air Niugini Port Moresby, Rabaul International
Airnorth Brisbane West Wellcamp-Toowoomba (begins 14 March 2016),[10]Darwin, Gove[11] Domestic
Alliance Airlines Charter: Cloncurry, Groote Eylandt, Lawn Hill, Mount Isa, Townsville, Trepell Domestic
Asia Pacific Airlines Tabubil International
Cathay Pacific1 Hong Kong International
China Eastern Airlines Seasonal: Shanghai-Pudong[12] International
China Southern Airlines Seasonal: Guangzhou[13] International
Hinterland Aviation Cooktown, Dunk Island, Lizard Island General Aviation
Hinterland Aviation Daru, Kiunga, Tabubil International
Hong Kong Airlines Hong Kong[14][15] International
Jetstar Airways Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney Domestic
Jetstar Airways Denpasar,[16] Melbourne, Osaka-Kansai,[17] Tokyo-Narita, Sydney International
Philippine Airlines Auckland, Manila [18] International
Qantas Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney Domestic
QantasLink
operated by Cobham 		Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, Darwin Domestic
QantasLink
operated by Sunstate Airlines 		Brisbane, Hamilton Island, Horn Island, Mackay, Moranbah, Rockhampton, Townsville, Weipa Domestic
QantasLink
operated by Sunstate Airlines 		Port Moresby International
Regional Express Airlines Bamaga,[19] Normanton, Mornington Island, Burketown, Doomadgee, Mount Isa, Townsville Domestic
SilkAir1 Singapore International
Skytrans Aurukun, Coen, Kowanyama, Lockhart River, Pormpuraaw, Weipa Domestic
Tigerair Australia Brisbane,[20] Melbourne,[21] Sydney[22] Domestic
Virgin Australia Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney Domestic

Notes
  • ^1 These flights may make an intermediate stop en route to and/or from their listed final destination; however the airlines have no traffic rights to carry passengers solely between Cairns and the intermediate Australian stop.

Cargo

AirlinesDestinations
Australian air Express Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney
Toll Aviation Brisbane, Darwin, Sydney

Emergency service

Operations

Cairns Airport statistics[23]
Year[24] Total passengers
2010–11 3,859,339
2009–10 3,550,240
2008–09 3,653,544
2007–08 3,777,154
2006–07 3,782,183
2005–06 3,731,178
1999–2000 2,718,378
1994–95 2,418,847
1989–90 840,392
1985–86 578,294
Busiest domestic routes into and out of Cairns Airport (YE 2014)[25]
Rank Airport Number of Passengers % change
1 Queensland, Brisbane 1,256,100 Increase 4.7
2 New South Wales, Sydney 1,000,900 Increase 2.3
3 Victoria, Melbourne 713,200 Increase 5.3
Busiest international routes into and out of Cairns Airport (Financial Year 2014-15)[26]
Rank Airport Passengers handled % change
1 Japan, Tokyo-Narita 154,254 Increase 3.5
2 Japan, Osaka-Kansai 111,435 Increase 24.2
3 Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby 86,299 Decrease 10.1
4 Hong Kong, Hong Kong 56,911 Decrease 4.2
5 New Zealand, Auckland 31,017 Decrease 27.9
6 People's Republic of China, Shanghai 17,813 Increase 61.8
7 Guam, Guam 14,950 Decrease 6.2
8 Indonesia, Denpasar 10,812 Increase 894.7
10 Singapore, Singapore 2,495 Increase N/A
10 Papua New Guinea, Rabaul 2,393 Decrease 46.9
Busiest international freight routes into and out of Cairns Airport (FY 2011)[24][26]
Rank Airport Freight handled % change
1 Hong Kong, Hong Kong 2,728.3 Decrease 9.6
2 Japan, Tokyo-Narita 2,113.2 Decrease 3.1
3 Japan, Osaka-Kansai 643.4 Increase 687.4
4 Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby 306.6 Increase 6.4
5 New Zealand, Auckland 131.3 Increase 7.5
6 Guam, Guam 19.2 Decrease 12.4
7 Singapore, Singapore-Changi 0.0 Increase 100

Ground transport

Taxi

Ranks are located near both the International and Domestic Terminals. Cairns Taxis taxi ranks are located immediately outside the International and Domestic Terminals.

Bus

Airport shuttle bus services to hotels, city centre, Northern Beaches, Palm Cove, Port Douglas and Cape Tribulation are available.

Parking

Short-term and long-term parking, including a covered car park and parking for people with a disability are located within the public carparks adjacent to both the Domestic and International Terminals.

See also

References

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency

  1. ^ "Aerodrome Chart – Page 1: Cairns, QLD (YBCS)" (PDF). Aeronautical Information Publication. Airservices Australia. 20 August 2015. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b YBCS – CAIRNS/Cairns INTL (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia, effective 13 June 2024
  3. ^ "Airport traffic data". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  4. ^ Dalton, Nick (26 July 2013). "Air passenger tally takes off in Cairns". The Cairns Post. Archived from the original on 2 August 2013. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  5. ^ "History". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  6. ^ "Redeveloping 5th Busiest Airport" (PDF). Australian National Construction Review. 9 December 2009. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  7. ^ Howard, Rebecca (11 January 2010). "Auckland Airport buys stake in North Queensland Airports". The Australian. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  8. ^ Cairns Airport terminal information retrieved 25 May 2011
  9. ^ "Air New Zealand Converts Auckland – Cairns to Seasonal Service in 2014". Airline Route. 24 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2014.
  10. ^ "Destination: Melbourne and Cairns". Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  11. ^ "Timetable". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  12. ^ "China Eastern Suspends Cairns Service from late-Feb 2014". Airlineroute.net. 1 January 2014.
  13. ^ "China Southern arrives in Cairns". Australian Aviation. 31 January 2013.
  14. ^ http://www.cairnspost.com.au/news/cairns/cairns-airport-numbers-reach-record-in-july/story-fnjpusyw-1227506726094
  15. ^ http://www.hongkongairlines.com/en_HK/news/detail?id=10004513672
  16. ^ "Cheap Flight Specials and Airfare Deals in Australia and Abroad – Jetstar Airlines Australia". Jetstar. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  17. ^ "New Jetstar flights between Cairns and Osaka- Local Cairns News". cairns.com.au. 1 December 2009. Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  18. ^ "TWO MORE INTERNATIONAL LINKS WELCOMED". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  19. ^ "Rex announces new Cape York route". Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  20. ^ "Tigerair focuses on Queensland". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  21. ^ Tiger Airways gets green-light for more flights
  22. ^ http://www.tigerairways.com/news/TT_20130206_20130206.pdf
  23. ^ "Airport Traffic Data 1985–86 to 2010–11". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). May 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2012. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
  24. ^ a b Fiscal year 1 July – 30 June
  25. ^ "Domestic aviation activity 2014" (PDF). Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). April 2015. Retrieved 26 April 2015. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
  26. ^ a b "International Airline Activity Annual Publications". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). November 2015. Retrieved 29 February 2016. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"


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