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Brief history

The development of Christchurch International Airport began in 1936 with an aerodrome at Harewood. When deciding to build an aerodrome, two sites were considered – New Brighton and Harewood. Seeing how badly affected New Brighton, in the eastern suburbs, was from the Christchurch earthquakes, the decision to have the airport at Harewood was a good one!

The “Harewood Airport” opened for commercial flying in May 1940. It became New Zealand's first international airport on 16 December 1950. There have been a lot of changes to the airport since then. The most recent change has been the construction of a new terminal building, which cost $237 million and was opened in April 2013. The old terminal opened in 1960 and was built to handle around 200,000 passengers. These days the airport handles that number of passengers every 13 days!

Who owns the airport?

Basically, the people of Christchurch and New Zealand own the airport. The airport is owned 75% by Christchurch City Holdings Limited (a holding company of Christchurch City Council) and 25% by the Government. The airport is one of the city’s main assets. It is run as a commercial business and is expected to make a profit.

Who runs the airport?

Christchurch Airport is run by a company called Christchurch International Airport Limited (CIAL). CIAL owns the airport terminal and airfields, plus 800 hectares of land. CIAL’s main jobs are to keep the terminal building safe, clean and warm, maintain the runways, manage car parking facilities, and make sure passengers, visitors and tenants have the services they need.

Tenants and employment

Tenants within the terminal are made up of a wide range of businesses including airlines, freight and postal companies, tourism operators, rental car companies, clothing stores, food outlets, cafes and bookshops.

Just over 6000 people are employed on the airport campus, making it the largest single centre of employment in the South Island.

• Check out the ground floor map (PDF 75k) and first floor map (PDF 199k) to see the different facilities, businesses and services at the airport.

On the airfield, CIAL leases space to airlines, freight companies, the Canterbury Aero Club and the US Air Force for Antarctic operations.

CIAL does not own aircraft or the control tower and does not make decisions about flights or flight timetables.

Bringing the world south

Christchurch International Airport is the gateway for Christchurch and the South Island. 81 per cent of international visitors to the South Island are welcomed and farewelled at the airport. Up to six million passengers travel in and out of the airport each year. There are even more than 100 direct flights to Antarctica each year! Christchurch Airport is one of only two in New Zealand able to handle Boeing 777 and Boeing 747.

The Antarctic connection with this airport began in 1955 with the arrival of eight US Air Force aircraft for Operation Deep Freeze. The aircraft left from Harewood Aerodrome for the 14 hour flight to McMurdo Station. Operation Deep Freeze still remains at the airport today and with the arrival of the International Antarctic Centre in 1992, the airport continues its Antarctic connection.

Runways

The prevailing winds in Christchurch come from the north-east and the south-east, but the city is also affected by Canterbury's infamous Nor'wester. As a result, the airport has two perpendicular runways. The main runway is 3300 metres and faces the north-easterly and south-easterly prevailing winds. The second runway is 1750 metres and positioned for use during nor'westers. The airport also has a third grass runway, parallel to the main runway, for use by general aviation.

Airport Fire Service

Christchurch International Airport has its own fire service. There are four large modern fire fighting vehicles, several smaller vehicles, and 35 fire fighters. There is even a wildlife officer whose job is to keep the airfield free of birds and pests!

Community engagement

CIAL supports the community in a number of ways. It is the main sponsor for the Christchurch Marathon and sponsors a wide range of other organisations and agencies. CIAL also supports a number of charities.