Darwin International Airport

Darwin International Airport RAAF Base Darwin
IATA: DRW – ICAO: YPDN
Summary
Airport type	Military/Public
Operator	Darwin International Airport Pty Ltd (DIA) / RAAF Darwin
Serves	Darwin, Northern Territory
Location	Marrara, Northern Territory
Hub for	Airnorth
Focus city for	Qantas
Elevation AMSL	103 ft / 31 m
Coordinates	12°24′53″S 130°52′36″E / 12.41472°S 130.87667°E / -12.41472; 130.87667Coordinates: 12°24′53″S 130°52′36″E / 12.41472°S 130.87667°E / -12.41472; 130.87667
Website	darwinairport.com.au
Map
YPDN Location in the Northern Territory
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 11/29 3,354 11,004 Asphalt 18/36 1,524 5,000 Asphalt
Statistics (2012)
Passengers 1,925,039 Movements 26,259
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart[1] passenger and aircraftmovements from the Department of Infrastructure and Transport[2] Darwin International Airport Pty Ltd (DIA) is 100% owned by Airport Development Group of Northern Territory Airports.[3]

Opening of the new airport terminal in December 1991

Darwin International Airport (IATA: DRW, ICAO: YPDN) is the busiest airport serving the Northern Territory and the tenth busiest airport in Australia. It is the only airport serving Darwin.

The airport is located in Darwin, Northern Territory's northern suburbs, 8 km (5.0 mi) from the Darwin city centre, in the suburb of Marrara. It shares runways with the Royal Australian Air Force's RAAF Base Darwin.

Darwin Airport has an international terminal, a domestic terminal and a cargo terminal. Both of the passenger terminals have a number of shops and cafeterias.

In 2011 the airport served 26,036 flights and 1,743,734 passengers.^[2]

History

In 1919, when the England to Australia air race was announced, Parap Airfield was established in the suburb of Parap to act as the Australian Terminal.^[4] It operated as two airports, a civilian airport and a military field.

It frequently took hits from Japanese bombing through the Second World War, and was used by the Allies to project air power into the Pacific. The airport hosted Spitfires, Hudson Bombers, Kittyhawks, C-47s, B-24 Liberators, B-17 Fortresses and PBY Catalinas.^[5]

In 1945 the Department of Aviation made the existing Darwin military airfield available for civil aviation purpose. As a result, the civilian airport at Parap was closed down and airport operations combined with the military airport.^[4]

Between 1950 and 1974 Darwin Airport acted as the primary domestic and international airport for the Northern Territory and a very important stop for airlines flying between Australia, Asia and onwards to Europe. UTA,^[6] BOAC,^[7] Alitalia^[8] and Air India^[9] were some airlines that had scheduled services to Darwin. However the introduction of longer range aircraft in the 1970s meant that many airlines did not need to stop over in Darwin, and chose to cease services.

Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin in 1974 and flattened the city. The airport was used to ferry 25,628 people out of Darwin. Darwin Airport was extensively used to assist UN operations in East Timor from 1999, and to support medical evacuations following the 2002 Bali bombings.

The new passenger terminal, with four aerobridges, was opened in December 1991.

On 8 November 2007 it was announced that it had reached agreements for a $100 million home and lifestyle centre in Darwin Airports Business Park, which will be developed by retail developer Ticor Developments. The centre is being built on eight hectares of airport land at the major intersection of Bagot Road and McMillans Road and is due for completion by the end of 2009.^[10]

In 2008 the Australian Infrastructure Fund (AIX), which holds 28.2% of Northern Territory Airports, announced that the airport would undergo a $60 million expansion to cater for growing passenger numbers. Among other improvements it would provide a 65 percent increase in terminal floor space.^[11]

In April 2009 Garuda Indonesia suspended the Denpasar service from Darwin after nearly 30 years of service, citing "economic reasons". The move had been protested by the Northern Territory government.^[12][13] The suspension left Darwin Airport without any non-Australian carriers flying there until late 2010 when Indonesia AirAsia started service from Bali to Darwin, which were again suspended in 2012.

2012 and 2013 saw a major boost for Darwin Airport when foreign carriers Silk Air, Indonesia AirAsia, Philippine Airlines and Malaysia Airlines started direct flights to Singapore, Bali, Manila and Kuala Lumpur respectively. However, the increased competition from these carriers forced Jetstar to abandon its base in Darwin Airport and focus its aircraft elsewhere.^{[14][15][16][17]}

On the 9 May 2015, a new expanded terminal was officially opened. The expansion, costing $85 million, increased the floor area from 16,000 to 27,000 square metres and is expected to double the capacity of the airport at peak periods. It offers expanded arrivals and departures area, four new domestic and two new international boarding gates, additional security screening areas, a larger check-in area and a new multi-use baggage reclaim area for both domestic and international arrivals. The extended terminal also features Qantas and Virgin Australia airline lounges as well as Duty Free and other retail areas.^[18]

Today

Airnorth Aircraft at Darwin International Airport

Darwin International Airport tarmac

Darwin Airport has scheduled flights to destinations in the Northern Territory, around Australia and in Southeast Asia. Only one terminal is used for both domestic and international services. The terminal has several food outlets and shops, with duty-free shopping for international travellers.^[19]

During 2008–09 financial year^[20] a total of 1,538,938 passengers passed through Darwin International Airport which consisted of 188,530 international passengers and 1,350,408 domestic passengers.^[21]

During the 2009–10 financial year^[20] there was a total of 1,569,007 passengers which consisted of 207,825 international passengers and 1,361,182 domestic passengers, up 2.0%.^[21]

During the 2010–11 financial year^[20] there was a total of 1,679,899 passengers.^[21]

The head office of Airnorth is on the airport property.^[22]

Future of Darwin Airport

Australian low-cost carrier, Jetstar Airways, had expressed a keen interest in developing Darwin Airport as a hub for its trips to Asia. With the close proximity to Southeast Asia, Jetstar anticipated that it would be able to make flights using smaller aircraft, such as the Airbus A320 to fly anywhere within 4 to 5 hours from Darwin.^[23] Jetstar did eventually use Darwin as a base, with flights to Singapore, Bali, and Tokyo via Manila but was forced to cut back on them in May 2013.^[24] Flights to Bali were retained while flights to Singapore would now operate by Jetstar Asia with Singapore-based aircraft. New low cost carrier Tiger Airways had also expressed interest in making Darwin Airport its second hub;^[25] however, Tiger terminated its flights from Singapore to Darwin in October 2008, and for quite some time only operated domestic flights to Melbourne, however these flights have also now been terminated. Tiger started flights from Brisbane to Darwin after starting its Brisbane base.

In December 2010 the Federal Government approved the Darwin Airport Master Plan, a 20-year blueprint of how the airport will be affected by and manage issues such as aviation growth and the rise of Darwin Airport as an international transit point between Europe, Asia and Australia.^[26]

Operations

Domestic

Busiest domestic routes into and out of Darwin International Airport (Year ending June 2013^[20])^[27]

Rank	Airport	Passengers carried	% Change
1	01 !Queensland, Brisbane	373,600	02 !0.9
3	02 !New South Wales, Sydney	358,800	01 !NA(a)
2	02 !Victoria, Melbourne	296,300	01 !2.3
4	03 !Western Australia, Perth	165,800	03 !2.3

(a) Darwin – Sydney route included from May 2012, prior data not shown.

International

Busiest international routes out of Darwin International Airport
(2015)^[28]

Rank	Airport	Passengers handled	% Change
1	04 !Singapore, Singapore-Changi	114,975	04 !13.2
2	01 !Indonesia, Denpasar	105,080	02 !19.5
3	04 !Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur	29,428	01 !2.9
4	03 !Philippines, Manila	13,304	01 !49.8

Airlines and destinations

Accidents and incidents

• On 25 December 1974, Douglas C-47B PK-RDB of Seulawah Air Services was damaged beyond economic repair by Cyclone Tracy.^[34]
• An Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia operated by Airnorth crashed after takeoff during a training flight on 22 March 2010. A check and training pilot and pilot under instruction were the only occupants and were both killed in the accident. Shortly after becoming airborne from runway 29, the pilot-in-command closed the power lever to simulate a failure of the left engine. During the manoeuvre, control was lost. The aircraft rolled left, pitched nose down and impacted the ground close to the golf course at RAAF Base Darwin. The subsequent investigation conducted by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau found that the incorrect throttle setting used by the pilot-in-command resulted in a simulated failure of the propeller auto-feathering system that increased the aircraft's tendency to roll, and that the pilot under check increased power on right engine, further increasing the roll. The crew failed to abandon the manoeuvre once control was lost. As a result of the accident, Airnorth now conducts most flight proficiency training using a simulator.^[35]

See also

• United States Army Air Forces in Australia (World War II)
• Transportation in Australia
• List of airports in the Northern Territory

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Darwin International Airport.

• Official website
• Darwin Airport Guide