WAIKATO AIRSPACE ISSUES
BY TREVOR MOLLARD
The Airways Corporation of New Zealand (ACNZ) would have
These statistics were acknowledged by the ACNZ represent-
us believe that there has been a marked increase in air traffic in
atives at the consultation meeting held on the 26th October but
the Waikato which warrants a huge increase in Class D airspace
they insisted that they failed to reflect the workload caused by IFR
down to 4500 feet and below as detailed in the sketch below.
training aircraft in particular those participating in beacon hopping
This diagram can be viewed in detail on the NZCAA website under
between Hamilton, Tauranga and Rotorua across the uncontrolled
airspace proposals. http://www.caa.govt.nz/airspace/Waikato_BOP.pdf
airspace which is so important to cross country gliders. At the end of November I received a document from ACNZ titled RFC 278 Bay sector Airspace Proposals which detailed the number of movements to the East of Hamilton. In 2001 there were 980 flights between Tauranga and Hamilton or vice versa (three flights per day). By 2005, the latest date for which statistics are available, the flights had increased “43%” to 1400 (4 flights per day). As for the Rotorua – Hamilton flights, these have languished at less than two flights per day for the past five years. Not all these six flights per day transit uncontrolled airspace as an unspecified number would have utilized the existing Class D airspace at 7000
Waikato Airspace diagram from Airspace Proposals
feet or higher. In the late 1990’s ACNZ fought hard for the elimination of Class
It just isn’t true. Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) traffic as recorded
E airspace and now they must accept that Class G uncontrolled
by ACNZ airport movement statistics been constant since 1997
airspace is the only option available to allow low density IFR traffic
with a slight increase in traffic for the three major airports, Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch balanced by a corresponding drop at the fourteen regional airports which offer an ATC service. The only significant growth has been in regional Visual Flight Rules (VFR) traffic.
Ten Year Movements Graph The movement graphs for Hamilton, Tauranga reflect this increase in VFR traffic with only the most modest increase in IFR movements largely attributable to general aviation aircraft conducting IFR training. Rotorua has been in steady decline for the past ten years with total movements dropping from 39,000 in 1997 to 22,000 in 2006. February 2008
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