Still questions as flight talks confirmed

It was meant to end speculation, but an announcement by the Invercargill City Council it is in negotiations with an Australian airline about providing transtasman flights to the city has only raised more questions.

Cr Norman Elder, in his capacity as chairman of the council-owned company, Invercargill City Holdings, confirmed the city was in negotiations with an Australian airline to provide direct flights to the city.

"It is not a done deal and there is still a lot of work to be done. Realistically, it could be up to six months before any announcement is made," he said.

Asked why the council decided to issue a statement if no deal had been signed, Cr Elder said it was designed to "end speculation".

City and airport officials met airline representatives yesterday, he said,Cr Elder declined to name the airline, but confirmed it was Australian-based and did not at present fly the transtasman market.

One airline source suggested Australian-owned start-up, Pacific Wings, which announced in June it was in talks with several councils about establishing transtasman flights, was a possible option.

It is not the first time the possibility of transtasman flights from Invercargill has been suggested, following a decision to spend $4 million on extending the runway in 2005, but none has come to fruition.

Invercargill Airport chief executive Barry Bouton was unavailable for comment, but his southern counterparts said they saw little threat in Invercargill's moves.

Queenstown Airport Corporation chief executive Steve Sanderson said the resort was well serviced with several low-cost transtasman carriers, which provided competitive prices.

It was unlikely an international airport in Invercargill would affect Queenstown passenger numbers.

Dunedin International Airport chief executive John McCall said people would make a choice of which airport they would fly out of, with competitive pricing the number one factor.

Establishing an international airport, which required significant infrastructure spending and regulatory requirements, was a "high hurdle" for any airport, he said.

hamish.mcneilly@odt.co.nz