Adelaide International Airport
Encyclopedia
Adelaide Airport is the principal airport in the South Australian capital of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

 and the fifth busiest airport in Australia, servicing 7,362,000 passengers in the year ending 30 June 2011. Located adjacent to West Beach
West Beach, South Australia
West Beach is a seaside suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in both the City of Charles Sturt and the City of West Torrens.-History:...

, it is approximately 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) west of the city-centre
Adelaide city centre
The Adelaide city centre is the innermost locality of Greater Adelaide, known by locals simply as "The City" or "Town". The locality is split into two key geographical distinctions: the city "square mile", bordered by North, East, South and West Terraces; and that part of the Adelaide Parklands...

. It has been operated privately by Adelaide Airport Limited under a long-term lease from the Commonwealth Government
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...

 since 1998.

First established in 1955, a new dual international/domestic terminal
Airport terminal
An airport terminal is a building at an airport where passengers transfer between ground transportation and the facilities that allow them to board and disembark from aircraft....

 was opened in 2005 which has received numerous awards, including being named the world's second-best international airport
International airport
An international airport is any airport that can accommodate flights from other countries and are typically equipped with customs and immigration facilities to handle these flights to and from other countries...

 (5–15 million passengers) in 2006.

History

The first Adelaide airport was an aerodrome constructed in 1921 on 24 hectares (59.3 acre) of land in Hendon. The small facility allowed for a mail service between Adelaide and Sydney. To meet the substantial growth in aviation
Aviation
Aviation is the design, development, production, operation, and use of aircraft, especially heavier-than-air aircraft. Aviation is derived from avis, the Latin word for bird.-History:...

, Parafield Airport
Parafield Airport
Parafield Airport is on the edge of the residential suburb of Parafield, South Australia, 18 kilometres north of the Adelaide Central business district and adjacent to the Mawson Lakes campus of the University of South Australia. It is Adelaide's second airport and the fifth busiest airport in...

 was developed in 1927. By 1947, the demand on aviation had outgrown Parafield and the current site of Adelaide Airport was selected at West Torrens (now West Beach). Construction began and flights commenced in 1954.

An annexe to one of the large hangar
Hangar
A hangar is a closed structure to hold aircraft or spacecraft in protective storage. Most hangars are built of metal, but other materials such as wood and concrete are also sometimes used...

s at the airport served as a passenger terminal until the Commonwealth Government provided funds for the construction of a temporary building. International services became regular from 1982 upon the construction of an international terminal. A new dual-use $260 million facility replaced both the original 'temporary' domestic and international terminals in 2005. Many have said the new terminal is grossly overbuilt, while others suggest it is well placed to capture future growth.

In October 2006, the new terminal was named the Capital City Airport of the Year at the Australian Aviation Industry Awards in Cairns. In March 2007, Adelaide Airport was rated the world's second best airport in the 5–15 million passengers category at the Airports Council International
Airports Council International
Airports Council International is the association of the world’s airports. It is a non profit organization, whose prime purpose is to advance the interests of airports and to promote professional excellence in airport management and operations...

 (ACI) 2006 awards in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...

.

Plans were announced for an expansion of the terminal in July 2007, including more aerobridges and demolition of the old International Terminal.

On 5 August 2008 Tiger Airways Australia confirmed that Adelaide Airport would become the airline's second hub which would base two of the airline's Airbus A320
Airbus A320
The Airbus A320 family is a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.Airbus was originally a consortium of European aerospace companies, and is now fully owned by EADS. Airbus's name has been Airbus SAS since 2001...

s by early 2009. On 29 October 2009 Tiger announced it would be housing its third A320 at Adelaide Airport from early 2010. Tiger Airways has since shut down its Adelaide base.

The airport encountered major problems during the eruption of Puyehue volcano in Chile, the ash cloud caused flights to be cancelled nationwide, with over 40,000 passengers being left stranded in Adelaide.

Old Adelaide International Airport

The old international terminal had only one terminal with limited stores for passengers. Check in desks were much smaller opposed to now and waiting space was also more limited.

Terminal building

The airport was redeveloped in 2005 at a cost of $260 million. The redevelopment was managed by builders Hansen Yuncken
Hansen Yuncken
Hansen Yuncken is a national Australian construction company, founded in 1918. The company claims to have completed over 4500 projects, and has managed the construction of several Australian landmark buildings including Myer Emporium in Melbourne, the new terminal at Adelaide Airport and the...

. Before the redevelopment, the old airport terminal was criticised for its limited capacity and lack of aerobridges.

Proposals were developed for an attempt for an upgraded terminal of world standard. The final proposal, released in 1997, called for a large, unified terminal in which both domestic and international flights would use the same terminal. A combination of factors, the most notable of which was the collapse of Ansett Australia
Ansett Australia
Ansett Australia, Ansett, Ansett Airlines of Australia, or ANSETT-ANA as it was commonly known in earlier years, was a major Australian airline group, based in Melbourne. The airlines flew domestically within Australia and to destinations in Asia during its operation in 1996...

, then a duopoly
Duopoly
A true duopoly is a specific type of oligopoly where only two producers exist in one market. In reality, this definition is generally used where only two firms have dominant control over a market...

 domestic carrier with Qantas
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...

, and the resultant loss of funds for its share of the construction cost, saw the new terminal plans shelved until an agreement was reached in 2002.
The new terminal was opened on 7 October 2005 by the Prime Minister John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....

 and South Australian Premier Mike Rann
Mike Rann
Michael David Rann MHA, CNZM , Australian politician, served as the 44th Premier of South Australia. He led the South Australian branch of the Australian Labor Party to minority government at the 2002 election, before attaining a landslide win at the 2006 election...

. However, Adelaide Airport Limited announced soon afterward that only international flights would use the new facility immediately due to problems with the fuel
Aviation fuel
Aviation fuel is a specialized type of petroleum-based fuel used to power aircraft. It is generally of a higher quality than fuels used in less critical applications, such as heating or road transport, and often contains additives to reduce the risk of icing or explosion due to high temperatures,...

 pumps and underground pipes. These problems related initially to the anti-rusting agent applied to the insides of the fuel pumps, then to construction debris in the pipes. Although international and regional (from December 2005) aircraft were refuelled via tankers, a lack of space and safety concerns prevented this action for domestic jet aircraft, which instead continued operations at the old terminal. The re-fueling system was cleared of all debris and the new terminal was used for all flights from 17 February 2006.

The new airport terminal is approximately 850 metres (2,788.7 ft) end to end and is capable of handling 27 aircraft, including the Airbus A380
Airbus A380
The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine jet airliner manufactured by the European corporation Airbus, a subsidiary of EADS. It is the largest passenger airliner in the world. Due to its size, many airports had to modify and improve facilities to accommodate it...

, simultaneously and processing 3,000 passengers per hour. It includes high amenity public and airline lounges, 14 glass-sided aerobridges, 42 common user check-in
Airport check-in
Airport check-in uses service counters found at commercial airports handling commercial air travel. The check-in is normally handled by an airline itself or a handling agent working on behalf of an airline...

 desks and 34 shop fronts. Free wireless Internet
Wireless Internet Protocol
Wireless Internet Protocols are the suite of wireless protocols after Wireless Application Protocol 2.0 . It includes XHTML Basic, Nokia's XHTML Mobile Profile, and future developments of WAP by the Open Mobile Alliance....

 is also provided throughout the terminal by Internode Systems
Internode Systems
Internode, founded on 8 May 1991 by Managing Director Simon Hackett, is an Australian Internet Service Provider . The company focuses primarily on ADSL-based Internet access, but also provides business-class access , web hosting, co-location, Voice over IP, and a variety of related...

, a first for an Australian airport.

The first Qantas A380, VH-OQA "Nancy Bird Walton", made a historic landing at the airport on 27 September 2008, enthralling several thousand spectators who had gathered to catch a glimpse of the giant aircraft. This was a 25 minute pitstop before it flew on to Melbourne. This was one of several visits the airliner made as part of a pilot training and testing program.

Recent Development

As of 2011 a series of developments are either underway, approved or proposed for Adelaide Airport. In February 2011 a A$100 million building program was launched as part of a five year master plan. The developments which have been made public (whether part of the building plan or not) are listed below:
  • New Airport road network (set to improve traffic flow)
  • New multi-storey car park
    Multi-storey car park
    A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...

     (will increase short term parking spaces from 800–2000)
  • New Passenger Terminal plaza frontage
  • Walkway Bridge connecting new car park and existing terminal building
  • Terminal concourse extension
  • Three new aerobridges
  • Terminal commercial projects & passenger facilities
  • Relocation of regional carrier Rex
  • Relocation of old transportable charter aircraft operators' terminal
  • New control tower (twice the height of current tower, will cost A$16.9 million)
  • Increasing the amount of international airlines serving airport (are apparently looking into: China Southern Airlines
    China Southern Airlines
    China Southern Airlines is an airline headquartered in Baiyun District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China. It is the world's sixth-largest airline measured by passengers carried, and Asia's largest airline in terms of both fleet size and passengers carried...

    , Thai Airways International
    Thai Airways International
    Thai Airways International Public Company Limited is the national flag carrier and largest airline of Thailand. Formed in 1988, the airline's headquarters are located in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, and operates out of Suvarnabhumi Airport. Thai is a founding member of the Star Alliance. Thai is a...

    , Vietnam Airlines
    Vietnam Airlines
    Vietnam Airlines Company Limited, trading as Vietnam Airlines , is the national flag carrier of Vietnam. Founded in 1956 under the name Vietnam Civil Aviation, the airline was established as a state enterprise in April 1989. Vietnam Airlines is headquartered in Long Bien, Hanoi, with hubs at Noi...

    , Scoot Airlines, Emirates
    Emirates Airline
    Emirates is the airline based in the Emirate of Dubai part of the United Arab Emirates . Based at Dubai International Airport it is the largest airline in the Middle East, operating over 2,400 flights per week, from its hub at Terminal 3, to 111 cities in 62 countries across six continents...

    , Etihad Airways
    Etihad Airways
    Etihad Airways is the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates. Established in July 2003 and based at Abu Dhabi International Airport, Etihad commenced operations in November 2003....

    , Qatar Airways
    Qatar Airways
    Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. , operating as Qatar Airways, is the flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha, it operates a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 100 international destinations from its base in Doha, using a fleet of over 100 aircraft...

     as well as some United States operators)
  • Adelaide Airport Hotel (37 metres tall, nine levels)


The new control tower will open in early 2012. The multi-storey car park is scheduled for completion by May 2012. The plaza frontage and walkway bridge should be completed by November 2012.

Airlines and destinations



Notes: These flights may make an intermediate stop en route to their listed final destination; however the airlines have no traffic rights to carry passengers solely between Adelaide and the intermediate Australian stop.

Cargo


Domestic

Busiest Domestic Routes out of Adelaide Airport
(Year Ending June 2011)
Rank Airport PAX
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....

 
% Change
1   Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the...

2,343,000 11.7
2   Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport may refer to:* Sydney Airport, also known as Kingsford Smith International Airport, in Sydney, Australia* Sydney/J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport, in Nova Scotia, Canada...

1,778,600 3.4
3   Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport is the sole passenger airport serving Brisbane and the third busiest in Australia, after Melbourne and Sydney Airports. Brisbane Airport has won many awards. Located in the suburb with the same name, the airport serves the city of Brisbane and the surrounding metropolitan area...

708,200 7.7
4   Perth Airport
Perth Airport
Perth Airport is an Australian domestic and international airport serving Perth, the capital and largest city of Western Australia. The airport itself is located in the suburb of Perth Airport....

596,700 2.7
5   Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport, or Coolangatta Airport, is an Australian domestic and international airport on the Gold Coast and is located some south of Brisbane and 25 km south of Surfers Paradise. The entrance to the airport is situated in the suburb of Bilinga on the Gold Coast...

213,600 24.0
6   Port Lincoln Airport
Port Lincoln Airport
Port Lincoln Airport is an airport serving Port Lincoln, a city in the Australian state of South Australia. It is located north of Port Lincoln, near the township of North Shields. The airport is owned and operated by the District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula...

199,600 new
7   Canberra International Airport
Canberra International Airport
Canberra International Airport , now trading as Canberra Airport, is the airport serving Australia's capital city, Canberra, and the city of Queanbeyan, NSW. Located at the eastern edge of North Canberra, it is the 8th busiest airport in Australia. The airport is the main hub for Brindabella Airlines...

186,100 11.4

Busiest Domestic Routes out of Adelaide Airport
(Month of June 2011)
Rank Airport PAX
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....

 
% Change
1   Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport
Melbourne Airport , also known as Tullamarine Airport, is the primary airport serving the city of Melbourne and the second busiest in Australia. It was opened in 1970 to replace the nearby Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the sole international airport of the four airports serving the...

164,500 6.6
2   Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport
Sydney Airport may refer to:* Sydney Airport, also known as Kingsford Smith International Airport, in Sydney, Australia* Sydney/J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport, in Nova Scotia, Canada...

122,200 7.2
3   Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport
Brisbane Airport is the sole passenger airport serving Brisbane and the third busiest in Australia, after Melbourne and Sydney Airports. Brisbane Airport has won many awards. Located in the suburb with the same name, the airport serves the city of Brisbane and the surrounding metropolitan area...

49,000 12.6
4   Perth Airport
Perth Airport
Perth Airport is an Australian domestic and international airport serving Perth, the capital and largest city of Western Australia. The airport itself is located in the suburb of Perth Airport....

41,400 6.3
5   Port Lincoln Airport
Port Lincoln Airport
Port Lincoln Airport is an airport serving Port Lincoln, a city in the Australian state of South Australia. It is located north of Port Lincoln, near the township of North Shields. The airport is owned and operated by the District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula...

14,300 6.1
6   Canberra International Airport
Canberra International Airport
Canberra International Airport , now trading as Canberra Airport, is the airport serving Australia's capital city, Canberra, and the city of Queanbeyan, NSW. Located at the eastern edge of North Canberra, it is the 8th busiest airport in Australia. The airport is the main hub for Brindabella Airlines...

13,800 11.8
7   Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport
Gold Coast Airport, or Coolangatta Airport, is an Australian domestic and international airport on the Gold Coast and is located some south of Brisbane and 25 km south of Surfers Paradise. The entrance to the airport is situated in the suburb of Bilinga on the Gold Coast...

12,200 41.2}

International

Busiest International Routes out of Adelaide Airport
(Year Ending December 2010)
Rank Airport PAX
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....

 
% Change
1   Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport , Changi International Airport, or simply Changi Airport, is the main airport in Singapore. A major aviation hub in Southeast Asia, it is about north-east from the commercial centre in Changi, on a site....

244 501 3.6
2   Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport , or KLIA serves the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, and is one of Southeast Asia's largest airports. It is also Malaysia's main international airport. It is situated in the Sepang district, in the south of the state of Selangor, about from Kuala Lumpur...

97 791 15.9
3   Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

79 885 2.2
4   Auckland Airport 60 808 0.1
5   Ngurah Rai International Airport 43 754 21.8
6   Nadi International Airport
Nadi International Airport
Nadi International Airport is the main international gateway for the islands of Fiji. It serves about 1.2 million people per year, and is the main hub of Air Pacific. The airport is 10km from the city of Nadi. In 2009 it handled 1,220,000 passengers on international and domestic...

5 653 8.4

Busiest International Routes out of Adelaide Airport
(For June 2011)
Rank Airport PAX
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....

 
% Change
1   Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport , Changi International Airport, or simply Changi Airport, is the main airport in Singapore. A major aviation hub in Southeast Asia, it is about north-east from the commercial centre in Changi, on a site....

19,705 0.2
2   Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport , or KLIA serves the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, and is one of Southeast Asia's largest airports. It is also Malaysia's main international airport. It is situated in the Sepang district, in the south of the state of Selangor, about from Kuala Lumpur...

10,541 31.0
3   Auckland Airport 3,920 6.0
4   Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

5,125 7.9
5   Ngurah Rai International Airport 5,309 36.4

Flights to Nadi began in June 2009, Cancelled from 6 May 2010.

Cargo

Busiest international freight routes out of Adelaide Airport
(Fisical Year 2008/09)
Rank Airport Tonnes % Change
1 Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport , Changi International Airport, or simply Changi Airport, is the main airport in Singapore. A major aviation hub in Southeast Asia, it is about north-east from the commercial centre in Changi, on a site....

12,112.2 7.6
2 Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

3,025.7 31.8
3 Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport , or KLIA serves the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, and is one of Southeast Asia's largest airports. It is also Malaysia's main international airport. It is situated in the Sepang district, in the south of the state of Selangor, about from Kuala Lumpur...

2,796.8 13.2
4 Auckland Airport 533.9 4.1

Busiest international freight routes out of Adelaide Airport
(Month Ending Sept 2009)
Rank Airport Tonnes % Change
1 Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport
Singapore Changi Airport , Changi International Airport, or simply Changi Airport, is the main airport in Singapore. A major aviation hub in Southeast Asia, it is about north-east from the commercial centre in Changi, on a site....

1,065.1 2.8
2 Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...

356.0 53.6
3 Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport
Kuala Lumpur International Airport , or KLIA serves the capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, and is one of Southeast Asia's largest airports. It is also Malaysia's main international airport. It is situated in the Sepang district, in the south of the state of Selangor, about from Kuala Lumpur...

238.2 0.5
4 Auckland Airport 37.9 11.8


Ground transport

Adelaide Metro
Adelaide Metro
Adelaide Metro is the public transport system of the South Australian capital of Adelaide and the brand name of the Public Transport Division of the Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure. It is an intermodal system with services provided by bus, tram or commuter rail throughout the...

 operates several JetBus buses connecting the airport to various locations in Adelaide. Skylink Adelaide also operates a shuttle bus from the airport to central Adelaide. In the latest master plan there is a proposed light rail for the near future

External links

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