Gladstone Airport

Gladstone Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic
Owner/OperatorGladstone Regional Council
ServesGladstone, Queensland, Australia
Elevation AMSL59 ft (18 m)
Coordinates23°52′11″S 151°13′22″E / 23.86972°S 151.22278°E / -23.86972; 151.22278
Websitehttps://gladstoneairport.com.au/
Map
YGLA is located in Queensland
YGLA
YGLA
Location in Queensland
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
10/28 1,920 6,299 Asphalt
Statistics (2024-25)
Revenue passengers221,503
Aircraft movements3,799
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart[1] BITRE[2]
Helicopter at Gladstone Airport in Queensland, Australia.
Helicopter at Gladstone Airport in Queensland, Australia.

Gladstone Airport (IATA: GLT[3], ICAO: YGLA) is an airport serving the city of Gladstone, in Queensland, Australia. It is located in the suburb of Clinton, about 10 km (6.2 mi) by from the town's centre.[4] The airport is owned and operated by the Gladstone Regional Council[1] and offers scheduled flights to Brisbane Airport.

History

An airstrip was cleared from scrubland close to Gladstone by Thiess Brothers for the operation of company aircraft in 1952. The local council, interested in using the strip to attract air services to the town, submitted plans to the Department of Civil Aviation to extend the runway to allow operation of Douglas DC-3 airliners. On 7 July, a DC-3 of Queensland Airlines operating a flight between Rockhampton and Brisbane made an intermediate stop at Gladstone with officials on board to survey the airfield.[5]

Funding for development of the site into a commercial airport was approved in 1954, with the facility to open in 1955. Queensland Airlines announced they would serve the town's new airport.[6] By 1965, the airport handled 13,000 annual passengers. Following the acquisition of Queensland Airlines by Ansett, the federal government granted Trans Australia Airlines permission to launch competing services to the airport,[7] which commenced on 5 December 1966.[8]

During the mid-1980s, Sunstate Airlines served the Brisbane to Gladstone route using a combination of Short 330 and Short 360s. The airport provided a hub for tourism, with flights meeting Lloyd Helicopters connections to the Heron Island resort.[9]

The Gladstone council took control of the airport following the dissolution of the Gladstone-Calliope Aerodrome Board on 15 March 2007 as part of local government reforms across Queensland.[10]

2010s resources boom

By 2008, Qantaslink was the sole airline regularly serving Gladstone, using Dash 8 aircraft with seating from 50 to 74 passengers for flights to Brisbane. A small number of these flights operated onwards to Rockhampton, Mackay, Townsville and Cairns.[11] The same year, the Gladstone Regional Council commenced an upgrade of the airport.[12] The $65 million project included strengthening and extending the runway from 1,600 m (5,200 ft) to 1,915 m (6,283 ft), allowing Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 jets to regularly use the airport.[13] The council announced that the airport would not shut down during the upgrade.[14] Stage two of the works, approved in 2010 involved expansion of the terminal and upgraded security screening to provide additional capacity for rapid growth caused by a boom in the resources sector.[15]

In April 2011 Strategic Airlines began double daily return flights from Brisbane Airport[16] The service, which used A320 jets only lasted until August.[17]

With the acquisition of ATR 72 aircraft, Virgin Australia commenced services to Brisbane on 17 October 2011.[18] An additional service was added to the route from 16 January 2012, bringing the route to three times daily[18] and frequencies were increased again in May 2012.[19]

Qantas also invested significantly in Gladstone Airport during 2012, opening a Qantas Regional Lounge and increasing capacity on the Brisbane route through the introduction of Boeing 717 jets during peak times. The airline also announced eight direct flights per week between Gladstone and Sydney beginning in March 2013, operated by Qantaslink Bombardier Q400 aircraft.[20]

An instrument landing system and distance measuring equipment were installed at the airport in 2013. These navigational aids were funded liquefied natural gas (LNG) producers, after concerns that the development of processing facilities on Curtis Island would cause thermal updrafts in the airport's approach corridors.[21] In the 2013-14 financial year, the airport handled over 500,000 passengers and 10,702 regular public transport aircraft movements.[2] As a result of the rapidly increasing airline traffic volume, Airservices Australia constructed an aircraft rescue and firefighting station at Gladstone airport in late 2014.[22]

Following the cancellation of the Qantaslink service,[11] regional airline JetGo launched double-daily Gladstone to Sydney flights as their inaugural route on 1 December 2014.[23] The service was terminated in February 2015 with the carrier citing concerns about its financial viability.[24]

Downturn, COVID-19 and recovery

As major construction projects in Gladstone wound down, the airport recorded a significant drop in traffic volumes, falling by more than 200,000 annual passengers between the 2013 and 2017 calendar years.[25] Following the withdrawal of ATR 72s from Virgin Australia's Queensland routes in 2017 amid the downturn,[26] Alliance Airlines took over the Brisbane to Gladstone services maintained service through a code share arrangement, using Fokker 70s.[27]

The runway 10 instrument landing system that was installed in 2013 was decommissioned and removed in 2020, in part due to ongoing maintenance costs.[28] The initial wave of the coronavirus pandemic saw further heavy service reductions to the airport in April 2020. Qantaslink retained a single weekly flight, while Alliance Airlines, maintained a reduced six-day per week schedule.[29] Alliance Airlines services to Bundaberg, which had operated as an extension of the Virgin Australia codeshare arrangements ceased in September 2020, however additional frequency was added to Brisbane.[30]

The short-lived low-cost carrier Bonza introduced direct flights between Gladstone and Melbourne,[31] as well as the Gold Coast in 2023,[32] however both services ceased with the airline's financial collapse in April 2024.[33]

Facilities

The airport resides at an elevation of 59 ft (18 m) above sea level. It has 4 parking stands using a state of the art double level parking bay design, able to hold from Q200s to 737s, it also has a large GA parking areas to the west of the main terminal. It has one runway designated 10/28 with an asphalt surface measuring 1,920 m × 45 m (6,299 ft × 148 ft), able to hold up to a Boeing 737 or an Airbus A320.[1]

Airlines and destinations

AirlinesDestinations
QantasLink Brisbane[34]
Virgin Australia Brisbane[35]

Ground transport

Buses operate between the town centre and the airport, but are only operational from Monday to Friday between 6am and 6pm. Taxis are also available, as are rental cars.

Statistics

Gladstone Airport was ranked 31st in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in financial year 2024–25.[2]

Annual passenger and aircraft statistics for Gladstone[2]
Year Revenue passengersAircraft movements
2014–15
443,730
9,586
2015–16
368,039(-17.0%)
7,836
2016–17
303,263(-17.6%)
6,148
2017–18
265,613(-12.4%)
4,904
2018–19
246,640(-7.1%)
4,807
2019–20
187,280(-24.0%)
3,982
2020–21
128,880(-31.2%)
3,211
2021–22
155,429(+20.6%)
3,401
2022–23
207,246(+33.3%)
4,134
2023–24
240,229(+15.9%)
4,245
2024–25
221,503(-7.8%)
3,799

Accidents and incidents

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 YGLA – Gladstone (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia, effective 9 July 2026, Aeronautical Chart Archived 11 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Airport Traffic Data 1985 to 2025 (financial years)". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). 24 July 2026. Retrieved 7 August 2026. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
  3. ↑ "Gladstone Airport (GLT / YGLA)". Aviation Safety Network. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
  4. ↑ "Airport Guide: Gladstone Airport". Qantas. Archived from the original on 23 October 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  5. ↑ "New Gladstone airstrip has been carved out of scrub". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane. 7 July 1952. p. 6. Retrieved 7 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ↑ "Dream True. To get an airport - at last". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane. 29 November 1954. p. 3. Retrieved 7 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "Equal rights for TAA at two towns". The Canberra Times. Canberra. 22 October 1966. p. 3. Retrieved 7 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ "New TAA services". The Canberra Times. Canberra. 23 November 1966. p. 3. Retrieved 7 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ↑ "Choose access". The Australian Jewish News. Sydney. 15 March 1985. p. 12. Retrieved 8 August 2026 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ↑ Local Government Reform Implementation Regulation 2008 No. 23 (QLD)
  11. 1 2 Laura McKee (25 November 2014). "Qantaslink to drop Gladstone to Rockhampton flights". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  12. ↑ "Gladstone Regional Airport Re-Construction Project". Gladstone Regional Council. Archived from the original on 12 November 2009.
  13. ↑ "Gladstone airport plans finally set to take off". The Courier-Mail. 30 April 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  14. ↑ "Airport will remain open". The Observer. 2 December 2008. Archived from the original on 19 September 2009. Retrieved 23 May 2009.
  15. ↑ "Federal Government commits funding for Gladstone terminal". Australian Aviation. 17 February 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  16. ↑ Lisa Griffin (16 February 2011). "Airline takes strategic approach to Gladstone flights". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
  17. ↑ "Strategic cuts back on Bali flights, pulls out of Gladstone and Townsville". Australian Aviation. 8 August 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
  18. 1 2 David Flynn (17 October 2011). "Virgin Australia debuts Brisbane-Gladstone flights". Executive Traveller. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  19. ↑ David Flynn (6 May 2012). "Virgin Australia adds more daily flights to Gladstone". Executive Traveller. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  20. ↑ John Walton (14 September 2012). "Qantas to launch direct Sydney-Gladstone QantasLink flights". Executive Traveller. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  21. ↑ Mara Pattison-Sowden (18 October 2013). "$10.5m airport landing gear touches down in Gladstone". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  22. ↑ "Fire stations of the world: Gladstone Airport's ARFF fire station in Queensland, Australia". Fire and Rescue International. 10 October 2025. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "Jetgo inaugural RPT service lands in Gladstone". Australian Aviation. 1 December 2026. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  24. ↑ Zara Margolis (4 February 2015). "Jetgo suspends Gladstone-Sydney flights saying investment required too much". Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  25. ↑ Tegan Annett (29 May 2018). "Gladstone airport passengers drop by 200k in four years". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  26. ↑ "Virgin to end turboprop operations in Queensland as ATR fleet reduced". Australian Aviation. 28 April 2017. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  27. ↑ Alliance Airlines (11 May 2017). "Alliance to Increase Regional Queensland and Wet Lease Services" (PDF). Australian Securities Exchange. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  28. ↑ "Gladstone Airport ILS Decommissioning and Downgrade to Code 3". Aviation Projects. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  29. ↑ Inga Stünzner; Erin Semmler (16 April 2020). "Regional airports brace for full impact of airline cutbacks due to coronavirus downturn". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  30. ↑ "Virgin Australia, Alliance Airlines drop Bundaberg flights". Executive Traveller. 16 September 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  31. ↑ James Harrison (12 May 2023). "Another day, another route! Bonza launches Melbourne-Gladstone". travelweekly.com.au. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  32. ↑ Jessica Moran; Adam Holmes (15 December 2023). "Bonza Airline cancels flights after trying to lease Canadian aircraft and crew before approval". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  33. ↑ Jessica Ross; Josh Dye (30 April 2025). "Budget airline Bonza collapsed one year ago. Will another cut-price carrier take its place?". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  34. ↑ Andrew Curran (9 June 2026). "Virgin Australia winding down use of wet-leased Fokkers". Aero South Pacific. Retrieved 11 August 2026.
  35. 1 2 "National Geographic Editor Unhurt in Australian Crash". The New York Times. 31 October 1969. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
  36. ↑ "Aircraft Accident Investigation Summary Report AS 691/1035" (PDF). Australian Transport Safety Bureau. Department of Civil Aviation (Australia). 18 August 1970. Retrieved 7 August 2026.
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