Mount Gambier, Kingston and the Coorong will share in a $29.6m round of funding for regional airports across Australia.
The second round of the Regional Airports Program is delivering funds to 89 regional airports nationwide, with the aim of supporting safety and access upgrades with taxpayer funding. In the Limestone Coast, Mount Gambier and Kingston Airports and the Coorong’s Meningie Aerodrome will share in nearly $433,000. Of the funds, $80,000 will go to Grant District Council, more than $264,000 to Kingston District Council and $88,000 to Coorong District Council.
Speaking to The SE Voice at a Mount Gambier Airport event, Member for Barker Tony Pasin said the Federal Government would provide funds for regional airports of all sizes across the Barker electorate. “It’s not just about large airports like the Mount Gambier Airport,” Mr Pasin said. “In this round … we have provided funding to Renmark, Meningie, Kingston – these are small airstrips that are equally important.
“Whether it’s the Royal Flying Doctor Service flying in or it’s crop dusting or other work under the aviation banner, the importance of having distribution of well-maintained, well-equipped airstrips across our nation is of strategic importance,” Mr Pasin said.
Mr Pasin added funds would aid councils that own and operate airfields across the region, like Grant District Council at the Mount Gambier Airport, in maintaining compliance by allowing them to start works they would not normally be able to fund when financed by ratepayers. As to funds in further rounds of the Regional Airports Program, Mr Pasin said it would be a matter for airport managers to determine whether they required financial assistance from the Federal Government.
“One of the things that I notice is that in communities like the South East, people apply for the funding they need, rather than the funding they’re entitled to,” he said. The $80,000 awarded to Grant District Council will be used to construct a new taxiway at Mount Gambier Airport as it moves into another phase.
“This provides the ability to grow the airport in terms of its offerings to aviators and businesses and to attract people to continue to invest in our airport and to have a really strong regional presence,” council chief executive Darryl Whicker said.
Mayor Richard Sage said boosting the capacity of carriers Regional Express (Rex) and Qantas was a long-term plan, but challenges for aviation companies in the face of the coronavirus pandemic would slow the process. “In reality, they’re doing their utmost to do what they can to get the flights going and they’re working together very well,” Mayor Sage said, adding council had not received a complaint about either Rex or Qantas’ services out of Mount Gambier.
Reigniting community confidence in flying continues to be a challenge for the council. When asked about council’s relationship with the SA Tourism Commission and whether it was confident the commission could successfully promote the Limestone Coast, Mayor Sage said regional experiences were needed to support the attributes.
“All of the councils (in the Limestone Coast) are working feverishly to see what experiences we can get on the table and how we can get people to invest to make that happen,” he said. Mr Whicker said council was delighted with the response to COVID and the amount of frequency and competition, accessibility and price of airfares to the region from the two carriers, which exceeded expectations.
At Kingston Airport, the $264,941 awarded will be used to replace and upgrade the old airport lighting control system and extend and reseal its apron and taxiway to create a designated helicopter landing area, while at the Meningie Aerodrome the $88,000 awarded will be used to install wildlife-proof fencing to improve safety at the airport.
