Clarifying some truths about the airport

I write in reply to the letter Putting good money after bad into airport (CCN 503).

The writer says the airport is losing more than $150,000 per year.

Airports are critical infrastructure.

They exist to serve an amenity for the community – much as (do) boat ramps, libraries, waste disposal, stadiums etc etc.

The cost to the community was $158,000 last financial year.

This equates to each taxpayer contributing less than one cent per week.

Thus, for around the price of one cup of coffee each once every 12 years, Central Coast residents have access to an airport which provides the following:

A base and landing site for emergency services, including aerial firefighting, patient transfer, Polair etc.

The RFS actually stores retardant on site so the airport can act as a staging area in the event of a fire emergency on the Central Coast.

The Charmhaven emergency services centre is slated to move to Warnervale Airport after the Masterplan has been completed.

Flight training for our youth to supply the nation’s airlines, emergency services sector, flight training sector and charter operators.

The Central Coast Aero Club trains hundreds of pilots every year via our award-winning flight training operation.

An education role for our public.

The CCAC partners with the CSIRO to deliver STEM tours and careers guidance free of charge to local schools and other institutions.

A base for one of the Central Coast’s largest public tourist events – the Central Coast Airshow.

The airport allows for rapid transit in and out of our region.

External charter operators, the CCAC and local pilots all use the airport regularly to enable efficient access into and out of our region.

An example is a local dental surgeon who flies weekly in and out of Warnervale to enable fast access to regional and remote areas to provide much needed dental care to communities that lack these services.

If someone asked if you would be happy to pay 40 cents per year to enable the capability of aviation emergency services, aviation training and aerial access to our region, would you agree?

The writer also claims potholes can’t be repaired due to the airport expenditure.

Repairing potholes and having an airport is not a zero-sum decision.

The idea that because Council must spend money on one aspect of its operation, money cannot be spent elsewhere is unusual to say the least.

Last year, Council’s total expenditure according to its 2024 financial statements was $677M.

The airport, at $158,000 represents around 0.023% of that expenditure.

Two hundredths of one percent is not going to impact whether Council attends to critical roadworks when required.

He said the airport was for an elite few – this is an old chestnut.

The anti-airport types tend to delight in painting the airport as a place where the well-heeled, Ferrari driving elite come out for a bit of a fly when the mood strikes them.

This is inaccurate and laughably off the mark.

Around 90% of aircraft movements are carried out by the flight training school.

This is a mix of recreational, private and commercial licence trainees, with various other licences and endorsements mixed in, such as multi-engine, instrument and night ratings and flight instructor ratings.

Around 60% of these movements are carried out by our commercial trainees – mostly younger students who are working very hard, often in two jobs to pay for their training to realise their dreams.

Essentially, it is like a university, in that we have a lot of young students working hard in the air and on the ground to put themselves through a course to prepare them for a rewarding career in a sector which is currently crying out for more entrants.

One last point – the airport was managed on behalf of Council by the Central Coast Aero Club at no cost to the Central Coast ratepayer from the airport’s construction in the early 1970s, until Council resumed direct management in 2015.

The $158K yearly shortfall to run the airport (remember – this is not an unrealistic amount to keep the airport running) would evaporate were the CCAC to resume site management once again on behalf of Council.

It is important that Council uses its funds wisely, but keeping the Central Coast’s only aviation asset running for 0.02% of the expenditure budget is hardly going to fail any fiscal scrutiny as the author of the letter tries to point out.

The CCAC is always very happy to show anyone how we operate at Warnervale, as many locals know who bring their kids out to watch aeroplanes on the weekend.

We are approachable and friendly – and carry out a much-needed function on the Central Coast.

Email, Sep 14
Andrew Smith, General Manager, Central Coast Aero Club