Mackay Airport

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"MKY" redirects here. For the airport with this FAA location identifier, see Marco Island Airport.
Mackay Airport
IATA: MKY - ICAO: YBMK
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Mackay Port Authority
Serves Mackay, Queensland
Elevation AMSL 19 ft (6 m)
Coordinates 21°10′15″S, 149°10′58″E
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
14/32 6,499 1,981 Asphalt
05/23 4,409 1,344 Asphalt

Mackay Airport (IATA: MKY, ICAO: YBMK) is located in Mackay, Queensland, Australia.

Contents

[edit] History

Moves to establish an airport at Mackay began in 1927, when Captain Ron Adair selected the site of the town commons for the construction of an aerodrome, and landed the first plane in Mackay there, his own Avro biplane. The Mackay City Council agreed in February 1930 to apply to excise land from the commons for aviation purposes, and the controller of civil aviation in Australia issued an airport licence on 9 March 1931. The airport opened later that year.

In 1938, the airport held an airshow featuring ten aircraft, which attracted over 8,000 spectators.

Mackay Airport had grass landing strips until 1940, when the Commonwealth Government extended the airport's boundaries and upgraded the runways to unsealed gravel for use during World War II. Until 1945, Mackay Airport served as an important operational military base due to its proximity to the South West Pacific Area. In 1948, the main runway was extended, and in 1958 it was further upgraded, sealed and strengthened.

In 1941, the Commonwealth Government took control of the airport from the Mackay City Council, and built a new passenger terminal in 1953. In 1984, the government offered control of the airport back to the council, which refused. It then offered the airport to the Mackay Port Authority, then changed its mind and announced the airport would be run by the Federal Airports Corporation. This move prompted an angry local reaction in Mackay, which eventually lead to the port authority gaining control of the airport.

[edit] Mackay Airport today

Mackay Airport is used by all four major airlines operating in Australia: Qantas subsidiaries QantasLink and Jetstar, Virgin Blue and Tiger Airways.

Despite the collapse of airlines Ansett Australia and Flight West in 2001, Mackay Airport has experienced considerable growth in recent years, due to the use of the airport by Virgin Blue and the expansion of QantasLink services, and handles over 620,000 passengers through the terminal per annum.

[edit] Airlines and Destinations

[edit] External links