Airport investors navigate future

Hedland’s new airport operators have held their first board meeting, but is guarded about the future of the community facility.

The Port Hedland International Airport Group of Companies, representing a consortium of private investors, took control of the airport last month on a 50-year lease.

The investors paid Hedland’s local government $165 million and pledged to spend an additional $40 million within five years improving airport infrastructure.

PHIA Group chief executive Mitchell Cameron said his board of directors had backed plans to invest in airfield infrastructure first.

Longer-term investments into a new terminal building and expanded freight hub were to be discussed further in the board’s upcoming strategy meetings, he said.

“For an airport, it is always (investing in) runways, taxiways, aprons, lighting and everything on the airfield ... and then land-side issues,” he said.

“(After that you turn to improving) terminals, carparking and front-of-house issues.”

Mr Cameron’s comments also follow the recent touchdown at Hedland airport by an Antonov An-124 cargo plane.

He said at the time the plane was a sign of the investors’ hopes that Hedland can become an important freight hub for North West WA.

“The new (airport) owners ... (are) developing a master plan which will include a freight precinct,” he said.

“That will include small parcels and letters ... right up to the second-biggest aircraft in the world, which can take major loads.

“We can already do that now, we would just like a better facility to do that from (and) that’s the major plank of our expansion going forward.”

Mr Cameron said his team would also look to promote tourism and Port Hedland as a gateway allowing Pilbara residents to fly direct to Australia’s east coast and international destinations.

“A (Hedland resident) was telling me recently, they flew to Bali to catch a flight to Singapore to then go on to other places,” he said.

“Some people claim it is actually cheaper or quicker to catch a flight to Bali and then back to the east coast of Australia (than it is to first fly from Hedland to Perth).”

“Our job is to do everything we can to grow the passenger numbers and the usage of the airport.”