Ayers Rock Airport

Ayers Rock Airport
Connellan Airport
Ayers Rock/Connellan Airport
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia Pty Ltd
Location Uluru
Elevation AMSL 1,626 ft / 496 m
Coordinates 25°11′10″S 130°58′32″E / 25.18611°S 130.97556°E / -25.18611; 130.97556Coordinates: 25°11′10″S 130°58′32″E / 25.18611°S 130.97556°E / -25.18611; 130.97556
Map
YAYE
Location in the Northern Territory
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
13/31 2,599 8,527 Asphalt
Statistics (2010-11[1])
Passengers 309,089
Aircraft movements 4,017
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart[2] Passengers and movements from BITRE[3]

Ayers Rock Airport (also known as Connellan Airport) (IATA: AYQ, ICAO: YAYE) is situated near Yulara, around 463 km (288 mi) (5 hrs drive) away from Alice Springs, Northern Territory, and 20 minutes drive from Uluru (Ayers Rock) itself. An average of just under 300,000 passengers per year pass through this airport in the middle of Australia.[3]

History

The original Connellan Airport at Uluru was provided by Edward Connellan, who founded Connellan Airways in 1942. The development of tourism infrastructure adjacent to the base of Uluru that began in the 1950s soon created adverse environmental impacts. It was decided in the early 1970s to remove all accommodation-related tourist facilities from near the base of Uluru and re-establish them outside the park. In 1975, a reservation of 104 km2 (40 sq mi) of land beyond the park's northern boundary, 15 km (9.3 mi) from Uluru, was approved for the development of a tourist facility, to be known as Yulara, along with a new airport. The new facilities became fully operational in late 1984.

On 6 August 2000, an Ansett Australia Airbus A320 arrived from Auckland Airport in New Zealand, carrying the Sydney Olympic Torch for its inaugural Australian leg. From there, the torch was taken for a run around Uluru, followed by a formal reception.

Airport facilities

Ayers Rock Airport has one main terminal for scheduled flights.

The largest aircraft that Ayers Rock Airport caters for is Boeing 737-800s operated by Virgin Australia. QantasLink operate a number of Boeing 717-200s in and out of the airport. Jetstar has from the 4th of June 2013 operated flights to and from Sydney and Melbourne using Airbus A320 aircraft.

Technical aspects

The runway at Ayers Rock Airport is 2,599 m × 30 m (8,527 ft × 98 ft). It has a simple, single stage lighting system and T-VASIS.

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
Jetstar Airways Brisbane[4], Melbourne,[5] Sydney
QantasLink operated by Cobham Alice Springs, Cairns
Virgin Australia Sydney

In addition, there are a wide number of scenic flights that are offered by different private charter operators.

Other aviation

The main users of the airport are light aircraft – either charter, scenic flights or privately-owned aircraft.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June
  2. ↑ YAYE – Ayers Rock/Connellan (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia, effective 01 March 2018, Aeronautical Chart Archived 10 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. 1 2 "Airport Traffic Data 1985-86 to 2010-11". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). May 2012. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2012. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
  4. ↑ "Fly direct between Brisbane and Uluru (Ayers Rock) starting 3 August 2018". Jetstar. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  5. ↑ http://www.travelweekly.com.au/news/jetstar-to-launch-melbourne-uluru-service
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