A report into regional airports presented to the Australian Airports Association (AAA) in September predicts a funding shortfall that may force some airports to close over the next 10 years.
According to the report compiled by ACIL Allen Consulting, regional airports that don't have regular public transport (RPT) services have a 45.6% funding gap between income and expenditure, compared with just 3.4% for airports with RPT, a situation that local council owners may be reluctant to bear in the decade ahead.
ACIL Allen estimated that the average income for non-RPT airports is $99,000 per year against an average cost outlay of $182,000, with maintenance costs averaging 49% of the expenditure.
"The AAA has always understood from discussions with our members, that regional airports do face significant challenges in maintaining and repairing essential infrastructure and that they do not always have access to adequate financial resourcing," said AAA Policy Manager Simon Bourke
"Most regional airports are not profit-generating enterprises due to the high costs involved in maintaining safe operations and the limited revenue opportunities available. The most surprising finding was the extent of the financial burden facing non-RPT airports."
ACIL Allen believes the consequences of these funding gaps is that many non-RPT airports face challenges just to stay open, as they have to compete with other infrastructure and amenities for local council cross-funding, and may eventually buckle under financial pressure and close.
It is a situation that the AAA believes is a very real scenario.
"The unfortunate reality is that for a number of small regional airports, particularly those without the benefit of RPT services, there is simply no way to generate enough revenue from the airport to cover the cost of its operation," Bourke told Australian Flying.
"This ultimately means that if the local government council that operates the airport is no longer able to afford sustaining operations, there is the real risk of it facing closure.
"This is why it is essential for both the Commonwealth and State Governments to provide financial assistance for critical infrastructure investment and maintenance that allows the airport to continue facilitating aviation services essential to the local region."
The AAA has said it has started a strong advocacy campaign with both the federal and state governments to make sure the situation for all regional airports (RPT and non-RPT) is recognised, with the goal of securing additional funding in the 2017-18 federal budget.