Nasa scientists and Orbital ATK logistic staff returned to Wanaka this year to prepare for the third consecutive super pressure balloon launch but new to the project this year was a 600m-diameter gravel launch pad.
Campaign manager and Orbital ATK spokesman Justin Marsh said "over the past two years, the other airport tenants have been very co-operative and great to work with but we don’t want to wear out our welcome".
"We had five launch attempts last year and each time the airport was shut down from midnight until we either cancelled or launched, and it forced some of the helicopters to move their choppers off site and shut down the skydive operations," he said.
Orbital ATK has been the logistical support company for Nasa’s scientific balloon launch programme since 2014, involved in management, mission planning, engineering services and field operations.
The balloon programme base is at the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility in Palestine, Texas, but other launch sites include northern Sweden, New Mexico, the Northern Territory of Australia, the Antarctic and Wanaka.
"The airport here is very active which is something we’re not used to as the other places we launch from are fairly desolate and remote."
Mr Marsh said the new launch pad would mean the airport could stay open on launch day until they started inflating the balloon, when it would have to close, but it would be for one to two hours instead of the seven or eight hours in the previous two years.
The new launch pad would allow more flexibility in terms of launch direction and space.
"When we launch on the airport runway, the wind has to be coming in one direction straight down the runway, but on the pad the wind can come in four directions and we’ll also have more room for the launch equipment vehicle, which is what we have in other launch locations around the world," Mr Marsh said.
