Armidale Dumaresq Council is very much the gateway to the New England Tablelands.
Visitors to the region can choose to drive from Coffs Harbour along the picturesque Waterfall Way or use the New England Highway. Alternatively, many people choose to fly into the area via the recently upgraded Armidale Regional Airport.
With daily flights to and from Sydney and Brisbane, this Airport services the wider New England region. Covering 120 hectares, this modern Airport is certainly a credit to Dumaresq Shire which has owned and operated it for the past 35 years.
In 1989, Council instigated a three stage upgrading plan. Stage One was completed in the early 1990s and saw the upgrading of navigational aids. Under Stage Two, a new terminal building was completed in 1996. Extensions to the runway will occur if and when required under Stage Three.
To date, investment by Council, including land purchases, is $7 million. A further $1.5 million has been invested by the private sector through associated restaurants and a service station to capture passing trade from the adjacent New England Highway.
Council continues to extend carparking and other facilities, including navigation equipment to ensure the Airport continues to grow. Three regional airlines, Hazelton, Eastern Australian and Impulse, fly daily into Armidale. Each year they carry over 65,000 passengers.
As Australia’s second highest commercial airport, adverse weather can occur from time to time. The recent upgrade placed a primary emphasis on safety, improved lighting and the introduction of a weather station with computerised voice updates on weather conditions to assist pilots.
Once all this was completed, Dumaresq Shire turned its attention to providing top class passenger facilities. Tastefully refurbished, the terminal has comfortable waiting areas, a quality cafeteria for refreshments, a display highlighting the many tourist attributes of the region, excellent parking facilities and attractively landscaped surrounds.
Pelorus, a Canadian company which produces Geographical Positioning Systems (GPS) to assist planes to land in adverse weather, will set up its Asia Pacific branch in Armidale within two years.
The airport, the close proximity to the University of New England and other major attributes of Armidale, as a forward looking regional centre, were major drawcards. Related industries, already operating from the Airport, include a helicopter training school, aeroclub, aircraft refurbishers, aerial top dressing operators, private charters and pilot training.
