Christchurch International Airport

Description

In 1988 CIAL was incorporated to operate the airport business, and CIAL’s primary business remains as an airport operator.

CIAL is the owner and operator of the Airport. As the gateway for Christchurch and the South Island, the Airport is New Zealand’s second largest airport and the busiest and most strategic air connection for South Island trade and tourism markets.

The Airport includes dual runways (that are not subject to any curfew), the airport terminals, infrastructure and airfields,as well as more than 800 hectares of land. Within the Airport terminal, CIAL leases space to a wide variety of businesses including duty free shops, food outlets, cafes, bookshops and rental car operators.

The Airport also has car parking facilities, and significant ground and property leasing activity across the greater airport campus. On the airfield, it leases space to airlines, freight companies, the Canterbury Aero Club, and numerous general aviation businesses. It is also home to the NZ, US, Korean and Italian Antarctic Programs and the US Air Force in support of their Antarctic operations.

CIAL has undertaken a number of significant development projects to meet the changing needs of passengers and airline operators. The most recent development project is the integrated terminal project (ITP). This development provides a new domestic terminal, as well as providing an integrated check-in facility and baggage handling facility for both domestic and international passengers. A later addition has been the development of a regional terminal to service turbo prop aircraft.

The construction phase of the ITP commenced in June 2009 and is expected to be completed in early April 2013.

The Airport occupies a unique position both physically and economically. Around 85% of international visitors entering or leaving the South Island do so via the Airport. In addition the Airport services passengers coming to or leaving the wider Canterbury region, for both business and leisure purposes. For the year ended 30 June 2012, the Airport handled more than 5.5 million passengers.

In the 2010 calendar year, the Airport generated $1.7 billion in regional gross domestic product (GDP) for the Canterbury region. This is 6% of the total GDP for Canterbury and 3.9% of the total GDP for the South Island as a whole.