Your Destination - Hobart Airport Runway New Upgrade Pt 2 - 190524

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's both this morning and welcome back. We're talking your
destination with Matt Cocker, the COO from Hobart Airport. Now, Matt,
we've talked about the fact that there's more money going
into upgrading the runway. Wasn't this done just a little
while ago.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
Yeah, back in twenty seventeen, we actually extended the length
of the runway. So that was the first step in
a couple of steps. One we needed to lengthen it
to ensure that it was long enough for wide body
aircraft to operate. And over the COVID period we saw
Cafe Pacific, for example, operating freight flights into Hobart and
they worked effectively and efficiently. But what it does mean

(00:35):
is that those heavy aircraft when they take it off
from here in Hobart, they do need to land again
on the mainland to refuel, to get enough breach or
range to go to Asia. So what we're doing on
this occasion is actually strengthening the run way so that
will allow for those heavy lift aircraft to actually take
off fully laden.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Yeah. Right, So how do you go about strengthening the runway.
Do you just put like another layer over the top,
or do you build it next to the runway that's
all already there.

Speaker 2 (01:00):
No, we're actually doing work on the existing runway. So
what we're doing is strengthening underneath the current runway and
then an overlay that is actually happening over a year period.
So we're starting in July, we're ending in June of
next year, and we're continuing twenty four to seven operations
while we're doing that. So effectively we're moving along the
length of the runway bit by bit to pull it up,

(01:20):
strengthen it, overlay it, and by the end of next
financial year all bit complete.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
That's incredible, So it's not going to affect the flights
in and out in any way, shape or format.

Speaker 2 (01:29):
We are trying to minimize any impact upon flights. Now,
there will be at times over the summer period, for example,
we won't be operating between twenty two hundred and zero
six hundred, not that that meets out operational times anyway,
but we're working with operators such as Raw Flying Doctor
Service to ensure that they have ongoing supply of service.
So it's pretty pretty impressive.

Speaker 1 (01:48):
It's a huge undertaking. Are you likely when you come
in and land to see a bunch of dudes in
hard hats sitting around having their sandwiches next to the runway.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
Highly likely. Yeah, between July and say November, a lot
of the works will be happening during the day, so
those people who are arriving into Hobart will see works
occurring on the runway. We will actually shorten the runway
for periods of time so that there'll be a thing
where it's called a displaced threshold, where we reduce the
length of the runway so it can conduct works on

(02:17):
either end. And then over that summer period we'll do
the middle of the runway, but that work will happen
of a nighttime, so under the cover of darkness we
will magically upgrade this runway.

Speaker 1 (02:25):
That's amazing. I love the idea that this is all
going to happen and you're really going to have such
minimal impact that's going to take. And I guess if
you're getting the bigger planes in that means that you
can take a huge amount of passengers and up the
amount of people that will be able to come in
and out from international destinations. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (02:40):
Absolutely so, if we're to talk in terms of size
of aircraft at the moment, we operate what are called
codec or narrow body aircraft to those usual domestic aircraft
like an A three to twenty one. Now they can
handle around two hundred odd passengers. What we're looking at
doing is creating an airfield that is able to allow
for A three fifties or seven eight seven operations, which

(03:01):
are the wide body aircraft, which increased passengers around four
hundred or just shy a four hundred, A massive uplifting passengers.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
My mind's kind of melting with all this information. So
we're going to take a break. We'll come back and
we'll talk a little bit more with Matt Cocker, the COO,
and Norris Carter, the CEO of Hobart Airport. It's your destination.