Broome Airport
Broome International Airport is the regional hub of the northwestern part of Western Australia. It is considered the gateway to the Kimberley region. In the year ending 30 June 2011 the airport handled 409,663 passengers. It is ranked the 20th busiest airport in Australia.
History
- World War II
The airport field was attacked on the morning of 3 March 1942, during World War II. The attack on Broome resulted in at least 88 deaths. The airport field was being used by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and allies, the Japanese raid destroyed at least 22 aircraft, parts of which are still on display to this day at Broome Historical Museum.
- Post–war
The airport runway was extended in around 2004–2006. It also has had several upgrades to helicopter infrastructure. It is home to state-of-the-art firefighting equipment.
The airport entry road, Macpherson Road, is named after the man who helped pioneer the town. The road was purpose built for the cable that ran from 200 meters east of vine walking trail at a junction box now enclosed in private property to Broome Court House, formerly Cable House.
From 18 November 2010 Broome International became a Class D non-radar controlled aerodrome which means that aircraft are separated by air traffic controllers based on estimates provided by pilots and reporting their distances and altitudes from the airfield.
The Kimberly Qantas lounge was upgraded in 2014–2015 when the terminal had landscaping and maintenance work carried out.
SilkAir operated four charter flights to Broome from Singapore; the first flight began on 22 May 2018 and the last flight operated on 2 June 2018. This was repeated in 2019.
A Qantas A330 landed in Broome on 14 May 2019 after an electronics failure on QF44 DPS-SYD, making it the largest aircraft to ever land there.
Airlines and destinations
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Airnorth | Darwin, Kununurra |
| Jetstar Asia | Seasonal: Singapore (resumes 1 February 2025) |
| Nexus Airlines | Darwin, Geraldton, Karratha, Kununurra, Port Hedland |
| Qantas | Perth Seasonal: Melbourne, Sydney |
| QantasLink | Perth |
| Skippers Aviation | Fitzroy Crossing, Halls Creek |
| Virgin Australia | Perth |
| Virgin Australia Regional Airlines | Perth Charter: West Angelas |
Operations
| Rank | Airport | Passengers carried | % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Perth Airport | 313,627 |  2.7
|
Accidents and incidents
- On 21 January 1974, Douglas C-47A PK-GDC of the Burmah Oil Co was damaged beyond economic repair in an accident.
- On 11 July 2012, a Piper PA-34 Seneca of Golden Eagle Airlines crashed into sand dunes near the runway threshold. The aircraft, registration VH-LCK was operating a scheduled cargo flight to Port Hedland in good weather conditions at night. The pilot was the sole occupant. He was killed in the accident. Investigations by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau into the cause of the accident found that the collision was due to a likely loss of engine power.
See also
- Attack on Broome
- Broome Seaplane Base
- Australian Overland Telegraph Line
- List of airports in Western Australia
- Aviation transport in Australia
- Submarine communications cable
References
- ^ Fiscal year 1 July – 30 June
- ^ YBRM – Broome (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia, effective 13 June 2024, Aeronautical Chart Archived 17 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Airport Traffic Data 1985–86 to 2010–11". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). May 2012. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
- ^ Thomas, Geoffrey; Cordingley, Glenn (14 May 2019). "Qantas Bali flight diverts to Broome after electrical fault". The West Australian. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
- ^ "Jetstar Asia announces direct flights from Broome to Singapore, promises low airfares". Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
- ^ "Broome, Australia to see int'l ops in late 2Q18". ch-aviation. 28 November 2017. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
- ^ "Domestic Totals & Top Routes July 2004 – March 2013". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). May 2013. Retrieved 16 June 2013. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
- ^ "PK-GDC Accident description". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Press Release" (PDF). Golden Eagle Airlines. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
- ^ "Investigation AO-2012-093". Australian Transport Safety Bureau. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
- ^ "WAToday Online". 12 July 2012.
