Wellington Airport

Wellington Airport operates a single terminal at the east of the airport, with three piers: South, South-West and North-West. The terminal and piers have a total floor area of 32,300 square metres (348,000 sq ft).[3] The main terminal building contains a common check-in area on the first floor and a common baggage claim area on the ground floor. Both connect to a retail area on the first floor, looking out onto the runway.

The gates in the South Pier (Gates 3 to 12), and the gates in the main terminal building (Gates 18 to 20) serve regional piston-engined and turboprop aircraft. The gates in the South-West Pier (Gates 13 to 17) are predominantly used by Air New Zealand domestic jets, and with the exception of Gate 14, all are jetbridge gates. The gates in the North-West Pier (Gates 21 to 29) are used by Jetstar domestic jets and all international flights: when transferred to international use, these gates are referred to as Gates 41 to 49 (e.g. Gate 26 is referred to as Gate 46 when used for an international flight).[30]

Air New Zealand operates three lounges for Koru members: the Regional Lounge on the second floor of the main terminal for members travelling regionally on turboprop aircraft, the Domestic Lounge located after security screening in the South-West Pier for members travelling domestically on Air New Zealand jet aircraft, and the International Lounge located after outbound passport control in the North-West pier for members travelling internationally. Qantas also operate a lounge after outbound passport control in the North-West pier; the lounge are available to Qantas Club members departing on international flights.[31]

Main departures area

International gate waiting area

The international terminal – partially built by the now-defunct Ansett New Zealand in 1986 – has been upgraded in various stages since 2005. On 19 February 2008, Wellington Airport announced the proposed design for a new, expanded international terminal.[32] The design, nicknamed "The Rock" and penned by Studio Pacific Architecture and Warren and Mahoney, was a deliberate departure from traditional airport terminal design, and aroused a great deal of controversy.[33] "The Rock" opened in October 2010.[34] There have also been plans for expanding retail operations,[35] as well as building a hotel[36] and carpark.[37]

An Air New Zealand Boeing 737 landing in 2006, with construction of the south end runway safety area in the foreground.

Execujet (in conjunction with Capital Jet services) also operate a FBO and hangar facility for corporate jets and visiting general aviation aircraft on the Western apron. Other notable operators on the Western apron include Life Flight, the RNZAF and the Wellington aeroclub.

In April 2009, the airport issued a new master plan outlining upgrade plans over the next 20 years, including expanded terminal and apron space, and scope for runway extensions.[38]

In 2013 the airport announced that it would be spending $40 million expanding its south west pier at the domestic terminal to cope with increased passengers numbers, with work expected to start in late 2013 and be finished by 2015.[39] In 2014 it announced it would spend $250 million. The main building would be extended to the south by 35 metres at a cost of $62m and the north pier doubled in width for $19m. Extra levels would be added to the carpark and $30m spent in airfield works.[40]

A NZ$1 billion 2040 Master Plan was announced in October 2019. It includes a terminal expansion, runway and taxiway improvements, new freight facilities, additional aircraft apron space and a new, relocated fire station.[41]

Air Movements Rongotai sits on the opposite side of the Wellington airport runway from the main passenger terminals, its main use being the facilitation of RNZAF flights and flights of overseas military forces. The current building was refurbished in the late 1980s when it housed not only the RNZAF Air movements unit but also 2 MCU (2nd Movements Control Unit) of the New Zealand Army. The role of 2 MCU was the logistic control and movement of defence personal and freight throughout New Zealand and abroad, utilising both civilian and military modes of transport.

The length of the runway has limited the size of aircraft that can use the airport on a commercial basis, and non-stop overseas destinations are limited to the east coast of Australia and the South Pacific. Most large jet aircraft can safely use Wellington but the short runway severely limits their range to short-haul flights, and passenger numbers on trans-Tasman routes generally do not qualify the use of wide-body aircraft. Air New Zealand has occasionally used wide-body aircraft to cater for high-demand events such as major sports fixtures,[55] and the airport has seen a number of wide-body movements over the years for heads of state and visiting foreign dignitaries, diversions or special promotional events. Singapore Airlines operate a Wellington-Melbourne-Singapore flight four times per week, using an Airbus A350-900.[56]

A full-length runway extension to accommodate long-haul international flights has been previously investigated,[20][57][58][59][60] but would require expensive land reclamation into Lyall Bay, and massive breakwater protection from Cook Strait. Doubts have existed over the viability of such an undertaking, particularly as Air New Zealand has repeatedly indicated that it has no interest in pursuing international service beyond Australia and the Pacific Islands, and few international airlines have shown serious interest in providing services beyond those points. Air New Zealand has questioned potential demand for such flights, citing the axing of its Christchurch-Los Angeles route in early 2006.[61] Regional business organisations and the airport have put forward their case to various international airlines for long-haul operations to and from Wellington,[18][62] pointing out that Christchurch's economy is mainly industrial and agricultural, while arguing that Wellington's economy is based mainly on what they see as the higher-value public service, financial, ICT, and creative sectors. In particular, a survey commissioned by the Wellington Chamber of Commerce found that respondents regarded the airport's limited international capacity as the biggest obstacle to the Wellington region's economic potential, by a long margin over other factors.[63] It has also been pointed out that while Air New Zealand has been scaling back certain routes, it is adding others, most notably Auckland-Shanghai from 6 November 2006.

According to WIAL in 2009, the forthcoming Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 were originally predicted to have improved runway performance over existing long-haul aircraft, opening up the possibility of direct air links to Asia and the Americas if commercially viable.[64] However, when the B787 was actually introduced into service, it was found that the "actual performance was not as favourable as was originally envisaged", prompting a decision to extend the north end of the runway.[65] In 2011, the Wellington City Council, Mayor Celia Wade-Brown and local business leaders reiterated their support for lengthening the runway, as part of the Airport's 2030 Long Term Plan, however questions were raised about a possible conflict of interest regarding the then incumbent Mayors' role on Infratil's board of directors.[66] The same year, Upper Hutt mayor Wayne Guppy called for further action on a runway extension,[67] with a spokesman for the airport confirming a proposal to lengthen the southern end of the runway by 300 m at an estimated cost of $1 million a metre which could start early 2015.[68] In 2013, United Arab Emirates-based airline Emirates said it would consider Wellington as a destination while the airport operator said 1000 people connect with long-haul flights to and from the capital each day.[69] Also in 2013, China Southern Airlines expressed interest in starting a Guangzhou to Wellington service.[70]

In late 2014, the Airport and the Wellington City Council jointly opened the Web site Connect Wellington to promote the case for a runway extension.

In January 2016, Singapore Airlines announced that it would begin services to Wellington via Canberra. The route, dubbed "The Capital Express", flew to Wellington via Canberra four times a week, using a Boeing 777-200 aircraft.[71] The 777-200 was able to use Wellington Airport because the fuel needed to fly between Wellington and Canberra was relatively small; it could not take off from Wellington Airport if it carried the fuel required to fly non-stop to Singapore. The Deputy Mayor of Wellington argued Singapore Airlines' commitment to the capital helped the case for an airport runway extension, and showed that airlines are looking to fly to Wellington and that the extension would cater for that in the future.[72] In 2018, the Capital Express route was redirected via Melbourne instead of Canberra.[29] In 2019, Singapore Airlines announced that they will replace the 777-200 aircraft with the A350-900, starting 1 November 2019.[73]

The first Boeing 747 to land at Wellington Airport, a Qantas Boeing 747SP, touches down in 1981

Because of the runway limitations, Qantas introduced two short-bodied Boeing 747SPs on flights between Wellington and Australia in 1981.[74][75][76] Air New Zealand operated DC-8s from Wellington on trans-Tasman routes, but when the planes were retired in 1981[76] none of its other planes were capable of operating international flights from Wellington – Air New Zealand's DC-10s required more runway length than Wellington had available, and twinjet planes such as the Boeing 737-200 were not yet ETOPS-certified.[77]

The 747SP addressed this gap in the market, with Air New Zealand (after turning down an offer to purchase the type) code-sharing with Qantas. Special markings on the runway assisted Qantas pilots where to touch down and to abort and go round to attempt a landing again.[78] The SP service to Wellington continued until 1985 when Qantas and later Air New Zealand took delivery of the more capable and economical Boeing 767-200ER type.[76][77]

During this time Pan Am took an interest in the operation of 747SPs into the capital and proposed a possible long-range service to the US via Hawaii. However the New Zealand Government refused Pan Am's request for the route, citing Auckland Airport as the main gateway for overseas flights and the ability to generate passenger numbers amongst other things.[79][80]