THE RISE AND FALL OF REGIONAL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS IN NEW ZEALAND AS A CONSEQUENCE OF AIRLINE VOLATILITY

摘要

Since 1985 New Zealand has been at the forefront of airport commercialisation. Airport companies have sought ways of developing both aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenues. Driven in part by the emergence of Low Cost Carriers several larger regional airports which did not have international services saw their development as a real opportunity. After 1995, the number of international airports grew quickly from the long established three to seven with other airport companies actively seeking such services. These regional airports frequently put in place infrastructure developments to support and encourage international services. Typically provided to Australia and Pacific Island nations, the number of international services initially grew quickly and then reached a seemingly stable level. However due in part to the volatile nature of Low Cost Carriers the long term stability of these services was mixed and after around ten years they began to decline rapidly and subsequently ended at two regional airports and were severely curtailed at a third. This paper utilises the experiences of New Zealand's regional airports as case studies to explore the shifting nature of airport-airline relationships from the airports' perspective. The authors reflect on the possible lessons and overall ramifications given the magnitude and long term nature of airport infrastructure investments.