TAMWORTH Regional Airport continues to grow, with the government announcing $4 million to expand the terminal, add new passenger lounges and upgrade the kiosk.
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The work is expected to start early next year, after Tamworth Regional Council completes construction plans and the tendering process.
The airport was one of 10 projects to receive money from the NSW government’s Regional Tourism Infrastructure Fund.
Tamworth MP Kevin Anderson said the funding showed the state government was looking at Tamworth as a growth centre in regional NSW.
“Upgraded facilities mean more opportunity for growth,” Mr Anderson said.
“We have already seen Virgin Airlines announce extra flights, JetGo increase the number of flights they offer and QantasLink continue to deliver services seven days a week.
“Further growth is bound to bring more services and hopefully cheaper airfares.”
The announcement follows the $2.1 million grant to upgrade the apron to cater for larger aircraft, which was announced earlier this year.
The whole airport upgrade project, which includes improvements to the car park, apron and the terminal, cost about $7.5 million, of which more than $6 million has been provided by the state government.
Tamworth mayor Col Murray said the council had invested $700,000 in developing the airport’s facilities in the past 12 months to cater for additional carriers and a growing number of passengers. He said it was great to see the state government investing in regional Australia.
“So often we see these mind-boggling numbers going into infrastructure in the cities, so this is fantastic to see,” Cr Murray said.
The airport has about 185,000 passengers a year, and with the additional flights Cr Murray expects that number to jump to 200,000 a year.