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Rotorua Aerodrome 1920s to 1970s

This informative article was written by the team at Rotorua Library....

RNZAF fleet to land in Rotorua Airport for 11-day exercise

Rotorua locals will have the chance to see the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s impressive fleet in action this month as Operation Wise Owl is conducted out of Rotorua Airport. The Royal New Zealand Air Force will touch down at Rotorua Airport on May 17 for its 105th Wise Owl pilot-training operation. The Air Force will be on site until May 28. The purpose of the exercise is for trainee pilots to confirm their formation flying skills in the T-6C Texan II aircraft from an unfamiliar airport. Two f...

Rotorua Airport nominated for prestigious property award

Rotorua Airport’s innovative terminal redevelopment has been nominated in New Zealand’s most prestigious property awards for 2021. Hosted by Property Council New Zealand, the property Industry Awards celebrate excellence in design and innovation in the built environment. The list of 2021 nominees has just been released, with Rotorua Airport nominated in the Tourism & Leisure Property Award category for its full redevelopment of the airport terminal. The two-year project, totalling $5.3 milli...

Haere Mai Autumn 2021 Out Now

Check out our latest Haere Mai Magazine for Autumn 2021. Inside we celebrate winning the ‘Essential Business of the Year’ award at the regional business awards....

Job Vacancy: Fire & Operations Team

Rotorua Airport - Gateway to the Beautiful Bay of Plenty Region. Full time role on a roster basis. Immediate start with Relocation Assistance available. Progressive organisation with opportunity for ongoing development. The Rotorua Airport is the gateway to the beautiful Bay of Plenty region, and is an essential hub to the area. The Airport is a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO) and reports to an independent board of directors. Hosting 254,000 passengers per year with daily direct Air New Z...

Introducing our new Commercial Manager - Blair Simm

Blair Simm - Commercial Manager Blair joined the Rotorua Airport in February 2021 as the Commercial Manager, primarily responsible for driving the commercial side of the airport’s operations and its long term master plan. Before joining the airport team Blair worked in regional economic development in Rotorua, having prior to that spent 15 years in banking and corporate finance in different locations across New Zealand, the UK, Ireland, and France. Outside of work Blair is a keen sportsman, wh...

Commercial Manager position available

Be part of the Senior Management Team Manage the delivery of key revenue and growth opportunities Based in Rotorua – the heart of the Bay of Plenty As the gate way to the Bay of Plenty Region, for both business and tourism purposes, the Rotorua Airport is a business hub for many local tourist attractions and service functions, and acts as a pivotal component in the infrastructure of our local economy.  This is a pivotal new role within the Airport structure and will report directly to th...

Rotorua Airport take out inaugural title at business awards

Rotorua Airport took out the inaugural title of Essential Business of the Year at the gala dinner and awards ceremony at this year’s Westpac Rotorua Business Awards on Saturday night. The awards, delivered by Rotorua Business Chamber, celebrate innovation and creativity in the business sector. This year’s awards were reshaped to reflect the current environment, recognising and celebrating Rotorua's resilience through its nine categories. Rotorua Airport CEO Mark Gibb says that while the airp...

Searching for a Board Observer - Rotorua Regional Airport

Rotorua Airport Limited is searching for a candidate to sit as an observer on its Board of Directors.   This opportunity will provide an individual with first-hand exposure to the role of a board, its decision making and operations as well as training and mentorship designed to provide this observer with important skills that they can carry through to their own business.   Observers will learn about:  the issues confronting the organisation the fundamental principle...

FREE Signage Opportunities at Rotorua Airport

Rotorua Airport is offering free signage and interactive display packages to the Rotorua business community to help with growth post covid.  As part of Rotorua Airport's goal of supporting local business through this difficult time of Covid-19 we are offering free signage packages throughout our newly renovated terminal. The space sizes and locations vary from 2m high x 2m wide to 3m high x 6m wide. There is also a selection of interactive displays on offer. The packages are available on a ...

Airways and Rotorua Airport have reached an agreement

Airways New Zealand and Rotorua Airport are pleased to have reached a commercial agreement that will see existing aerodrome control services retained at Rotorua Airport until May 2021.The airport is currently carrying out an aeronautical study for the Civil Aviation Authority to determine what aerodrome control services are required for Rotorua. Depending on the outcome of the study, Airways and the airport may enter new commercial negotiations to determine if Airways will provide a future servi...

Rotorua – Christchurch flights returning next month

Rotorua Airport is welcoming the news that flights between Rotorua and Christchurch are set to resume next month, just in time for the July school holidays. It will mean Rotorua’s three key sectors, which include Auckland and Wellington, are back operating, opening the doors for tourism and business travellers. The Christchurch/Rotorua route will operate as a daily return service, with twice daily flights over the July school holidays. Chief executive Mark Gibb says it’s fantastic to see the...

More flights for Rotorua

Rotorua Airport is starting to welcome more flights – with the return of the Rotorua to Auckland route and extra flights added to the schedule for Queen’s Birthday Weekend. The flights to Auckland restarted this week and additional flights have been put on to Rotorua for Queen’s Birthday weekend on both the Auckland and Wellington routes. Rotorua Airport chief executive Mark Gibb says it’s great to see more flights returning to the airport as people begin to travel again. “We know the ...

Rotorua Airport continuing to fight to keep air traffic control services

Rotorua Airport continuing to fight to keep air traffic control services. Rotorua Airport chief executive Mark Gibb is disappointed Airways has presented its decision to close Rotorua’s control tower as a done deal – saying the Airport company is still doing everything it can to fight the closure. The two parties decided on Monday to head towards an arbitration process, but in parallel, to explore commercial alternatives to see Air Traffic Control services retained at Rotorua Airport. The mo...

Flights resume at Rotorua Airport

Flights are set to resume at Rotorua Airport from Monday – and people visiting the airport will notice a significant difference with much of the redevelopment now complete. Air New Zealand will initially operate two return flights a day to Wellington. From May 25, a daily return flight to Auckland will resume, with more flights expected from the end of May as a more comprehensive schedule is introduced. Chief executive Mark Gibb says at this stage there are no flights between Rotorua and Chris...

Rotorua Airport to now turn its focus to support the travel of essential services personel and medical flights.

With the deadline for Kiwi travellers to get home finishing at 11.59pm Friday night, Rotorua Airport will turn its focus to support the travel for those on the essential services list and medical flights. Rotorua Airport Chief Executive Mark Gibb says staff from across the Airport – and its partners such as Air New Zealand – put in a significant amount of work over the past few days to help get people home. “I’m really proud of efforts our team have gone to – working together – to en...

COVID-19 Update: Airport Remains Open

Rotorua Airport will remain open to support essential services as New Zealand moves in to Alert Level 4 tonight. Rotorua Airport Chief Executive Mark Gibb says the airport is currently operating at Alert Level 3 and will move to Alert Level 4 at 11.59pm tonight – in line with the Government’s announcement. “Our immediate focus is to support essential travel to enable the travelling public, friends and whānau to get to where they need to be,” says Gibb. “From Thursday, we will move to ...

Operations Manager Role Available

As the gate way to the Bay of Plenty Region, for both business and tourism purposes, the Rotorua Airport is a business hub for many local tourist attractions and service functions, and acts as a pivotal component in the infrastructure of our local economy.  On behalf of the Rotorua Airport we are now recruiting for an experienced and capable Operations Manager to lead a team of established and dedicated safety professionals and essentially take accountability for Fire, Safety and Security ...

Newly appointed observers of the board for Rotorua Airport

Rotorua Airport Limited has proudly appointed two new observers to the board. Grace Tuakana-Jones and Joanne McCracken have been selected from a large number of quality applicants and replace Charlotte Schimanski and Danielle Auld who finished their 12 month placement through the programme in November. Grace is the owner of Safety Talks Limited which specialises in Health and Safety services for the construction industry, mainly commercial. The company offers Health and Safety management system...

Terrace Airside to open at Rotorua Airport

A popular Rotorua eatery is spreading its wings to Rotorua Airport – with Terrace Kitchen’s new offshoot Terrace Airside to open as part of the terminal redevelopment early next year. The new restaurant will cater for passengers travelling through the airport, but is also expected to provide another café option for residents and workers on the eastern side of the city. Travellers and visitors to the airport will get a taste of what’s to come from tomorrow with Terrace Kitchen operating a ...

Passenger growth continues as Rotorua Airport readies itself for the future

The number of people using Rotorua Airport continues to grow – jumping 7.7 per cent in the past financial year. The strong passenger numbers were revealed at the Airport’s annual general meeting today highlighting a successful year for the airport. For the 12 month period ending 30 June, 2019 the airport catered for 265,443 passengers - the highest in 10 years.  Growth across all three destinations – Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch - led to the increase, with Wellington travel t...

Bikes to take over runway

It’s the one day of the year bikes replace planes on the runway at Rotorua Airport – and it’s again set to attract a big crowd. Family favourite Ride the Runway will take place on Sunday (November 3) with a range of activities on site including the opportunity to bike on the runway, the mascot challenge, music, activity and entertainment areas and food and drinks. Organiser Mark Leishman says the event is totally unique and is always a family favourite, offering a free morning’s entertai...

Commercial Manager Vacancy

The Rotorua Airport is the gateway to the beautiful Bay of Plenty region and is an essential hub to the area.  Hosting 265,000 passengers per year with daily direct Air New Zealand services between Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. This is a new role within the Airport structure and will report directly to the Chief Executive, whilst working closely with other members of the management team. Essentially this role will be responsible for identifying and maximising commercial activities ...

Board Observer Opportunity

We’re looking for a Board Observer for Rotorua Regional Airport Ltd  - giving the candidate a self-development opportunity and exposure to the role of a CCO Board. Details below: Board Observer Rotorua Regional Airport LtdSelf-development and exposure to the role of a CCO board. Rotorua Airport Limited is searching for a candidate to sit as an observer on its Board of Directors.  This opportunity provides first-hand exposure to the role of a board, its decision making and operations,...

First phase of development complete

The first phase of Rotorua Airport’s terminal redevelopment is complete – with a new arrivals facility now welcoming visitors to Rotorua. The redevelopment includes new rental car kiosks, rest room facilities and storage space, with passengers arriving into a large new area. The work comes as Rotorua Airport has recorded its highest passenger numbers in a decade, with more than 265,000 people travelling through the airport in the year to June 2019. Rotorua Airport chief executive Mark Gibb s...