Queenstown Lakes district councillors recently unanimously voted to retain Wānaka Airport’s focus on general aviation while enabling limited scheduled flights to Christchurch, and potentially Wellington, ruling out the much-feared big-jet-capable future.
Reflecting on the decision, Queenstown Lakes District deputy mayor Quentin Smith said: ‘‘I think we’ve landed in a place that supports the local community and general aviation really well and it has a limited amount of commercial scheduled services to help support activities at Wānaka’’.
‘‘It was strongly supported as the preferred option by Wānaka residents and people who were involved in the engagement, and I think it largely reflects the position of the community,’’ Cr Smith said.
He described the agreed direction as the ‘‘status quo plus’’, allowing for growth and increased use over time, without sending the town into a ‘‘large-jet-aircraft future, which is what many people in Wānaka feared previously’’.
Wānaka Stakeholders Group chairwoman Meg Taylor said she thought the council had made the correct decision in moving forward with the approved scenario, but that its viability must be properly examined as part of a master-planning process.
‘‘The community was very clear that they want a small-scale airport that protects existing general aviation business, that is cost-effectively managed and has financial transparency and a much improved level of oversight and community input,’’ she said.
‘‘Our primary concern is that any master plan for Wānaka be cost-effective, and of a scale that doesn’t load either the airport or Upper Clutha ratepayers with further debt when there’s so many infrastructure requirements in this region.
‘‘We feel that the master plan should consider the viability of short-haul domestic flights before recommending expensive infrastructure on the basis that it will happen,’’ Ms Taylor said.
In a report delivered to the council to support decision-making, council manager for strategic projects Paul Speedy wrote that the scenario chosen by the council required no immediate airside capital investment beyond work that was already ongoing to meet compliance requirements, ‘‘avoids the environmental, amenity and airspace impacts associated with larger aircraft, and provides the best alignment with community values and local needs’’.
The decision made by the council followed the recommendations of Mr Speedy and independent consultancy Egis, which ran a community engagement exercise on the issue.
Egis’ public consultation found a strong public preference for a ‘‘general aviation airport’’ supported by limited turboprop services (less than 30-seat aircraft) to nearby cities.
The consultation process tested six scenarios with the public, options ranging from the closure of Wānaka Airport to its expansion to accommodate transtasman services. A clear public preference emerged for the airport to retain its current focus on general aviation, the scenario that enabled regional services being preferred to an outcome where there were no scheduled services to cities such as Christchurch and Wellington.
Neither closing the airport nor opening it up to large aircraft making long flights was supported by the community.
The decision came at what Mr Speedy described as a ‘‘pivotal moment’’ in the airport’s development, regulatory, operational and community drivers creating a need for ‘‘operational planning and a longer-term direction’’.
In 2023, the Civil Aviation Authority issued formal notice that the airport must meet a higher standard of compliance by July 2027, requiring mandatory safety, operational and management upgrades.
Then, in 2025, Sounds Air ended its services to the airport, leaving Wānaka with no scheduled regional services, intensifying community interest in the airport’s future.
With that future now decided, the Queenstown Lakes District Council has directed officers to report back with options for implementing a new Wānaka Airport master plan to deliver the scenario chosen by councillors.
Before the full council vote on the future of the airport, an amended resolution was added, directing the chief executive to ‘‘consider Project Pure [Wānaka’s wastewater treatment plant] in future wastewater treatment and disposal needs in the Wānaka Airport master plan review’’.
Councillors unanimously approved the recommended scenario, including the added resolution on wastewater treatment and disposal, meaning council staff can now begin work on the development of a master plan for the airport.
As part of its community engagement work, Egis made a series of recommendations for a proposed master plan.
Egis said the master plan would need to have a vision with a five-year and 20-year time horizon, which would need to cover the economic plan and land use for the airport, the growth plan for local aviation and non-aviation businesses, and community, user and stakeholder consultation.
Egis also recommended the master planning process be led and managed by ‘‘an organisation with the appropriate aviation knowledge and skill set required to undertake this work’’, working closely with the Queenstown District Lakes Council to ensure the airport operated within the context of the council’s long-term and spatial planning work.
Ms Taylor said it was important this master planning process was conducted independently.
‘‘We feel that there is currently an unsatisfactory separation between Queenstown Airport Corporation’s role in managing the airport, and planning for it.’’
