Prospects for Joint Military/Civilian Use of RNZAF Base Auckland
Principles for Joint Use
9. Much discussion has focussed on the prospect of joint use of Defence facilities at Whenuapai with commercial operators. In January 2003, the Minister of Defence agreed to a set of principles, listed below, to guide the joint use of military airfields and to safeguard military operations:
- any joint use proposal must recognise the primacy of military operations;
- the RNZAF must have first call on runways, taxiways and airspace;
- the level of civil aircraft movements must not unduly impede military operations; and
- RNZAF areas must be maintained in a clearly delineated secure environment which means that joint users are to be separated from military buildings, operational areas and support facilities.
10. In addition to those principles, the Minister was advised of a number of provisos that potential joint users need to consider:
- all joint use proposals will be treated on an equal basis (no special treatment entitlements will be considered);
- "Defence Purpose" designations do not cover civilian operations (all Resource Management Act, local body and any other necessary consents will be the responsibility of the joint user);
- access to supply authority services such as water, electricity, telecommunications and waste water is the responsibility of the joint user and must not compromise the current capacity of the RNZAF systems; and
- any joint user would be liable for lease, landing and airfield use charges at standard commercial rates.
Implications
11. The above principles mean that joint use prior to the consolidation would allow the shared use of the runways and airspace, with sufficient land being made available, separate from RNZAF operations, for the establishment of commercial facilities.
12. The principles for joint use preclude the shared use of existing infrastructure, such as roading, buildings, services, and flightline (the area on which aircraft are parked in preparation for flying) prior to the consolidation being completed. In any case, Whenuapai's infrastructure is currently fully utilised; there is no spare capacity for a civilian operation.
13. Of significant concern is the condition of the runway. It is at the end of its useful life and is being kept in an operational condition with an intensive programme of preventative and repair maintenance. Any joint user would be liable for runway maintenance costs in proportion to the number of additional air movements (and the weight of the aircraft) as part of the commercial arrangements. The additional maintenance that is required is likely to cause increased runway "down-time."
Compliance with Airport Security Regulations
14. If a commercial operator was to obtain the right to share existing defence infrastructure, in particular buildings and the flightline, the operator would need to comply with civilian airport security regulations. It is Defence's view that this would be impracticable. Even if the significant issues surrounding different requirements for military and civilian airport security regulations were to be met, the area of the flightline, adjacent buildings and other military building areas is simply too small to accommodate the volumes of civilian traffic.
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