Tag: Brisbane Airport

Brisbane Airport Continues to Expand as a Transport and Commercial Hub

Latest research findings show overwhelming satisfaction of Brisbane Airport Corporation tenants and employees ahead of the completion of its several key projects.

The survey was aimed at current businesses and BNE workers and it provided insights from its over 425 businesses and 1,000 (out of more than 23,000) airport workers. The results showed that four out of five established businesses at the Brisbane Airport indicate that performance is either “very good” or “excellent”. Ninety percent of current airport workers enjoy working at Brisbane Airport.

BNE Property, Brisbane Airport’s property division, attributes this satisfaction to their vision of developing a partnership with BAC and its growing tenant base at the airport.
BNE Property is currently responsible for the development and management of property portfolio valued at over $1.265 billion, employing 90 percent of its workers from South-East Queensland and sourcing 90 per cent of construction equipment from local areas.

BNE Airport – An Ideal Business Destination
Video credit: Brisbane Airport/YouTube

The latest addition to their portfolio is the $300 million BNE Auto Mall which is touted to be the only automotive precinct in Australia offering 24/7 operation with no noise restrictions. Construction works had begun for this project which is going to be located next to the International Terminal. Delivered in three stages, stage 1 of BNE Auto Mall development is expected to be completed in 2021.

The BNE Auto Mall will feature a track with high-speed straights, skid pan, handling, and off-road circuits. The track will be available to use for manufacturer launch events, media driving events, driver training, and vehicle engineering, among other purposes.

Each of these projects coincides with the development of Brisbane Airport’s new runway. The survey said that 70 percent of businesses in the precinct believe the new runway will have a positive impact on their business.

Brisbane’s New Runway Achieves Construction Milestone

The construction of Brisbane’s new runway has achieved a critical milestone with the completion of the first portions of the link taxiways. The completed works will connect the new runways system with the existing system and terminals.

The recent milestone is part of the $120 million Dryandra Road Underpass contract, which includes the delivery of a public roadway. The public roadway, due to open in late September, will travel under the taxiways. It will allow access to the General Aviation Precinct and the Plane Spotters’ Area on Acacia Street.

Brisbane’s New Runway – Project Overview


Video credit: Brisbane Airport/YouTube

“As the finish line for the construction of the biggest aviation project in Australia draws close it is easy to forget just how much planning it has taken to get to this point,” Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) Chief Executive Officer, Gert-Jan de Graaff said.

“Brisbane’s new runway has been on Master Plan documents since the 1970s, so to be here where we can physically stand on taxiways and see the foundations of the runway being laid is a huge achievement for the thousands of people who have been involved with this project since its very early days,” he said.

The milestone is a great achievement for the project; it is, however, just the “tip of the iceberg”. Together with the runway and taxiway construction, a number of other constructions will also be underway like the High Intensity Approach Lighting system to both the north and south of the runway centreline and the landscaping of the 300ha site, Mr de Graaff said. These constructions will be completed ahead of the opening in mid-2020.

Landing on Brisbane’s New Runway


Video credit: Brisbane Airport/YouTube

“The Underpass is an engineering feat, being 1.6 metres thick at the deepest point, these bridges are designed to withstand the weight of a fully-laden A380 as well as any planned, future variants,”Jim Frith, McConnell Dowell Managing Director said.

The Underpass, being constructed five metres below sea level, will require a de-watering system that will remove the equivalent of the volume of two Olympic swimming pools in a single, 24-hour period. The physical structure, on the other hand, is comprised of approximately 20,000 m3 of concrete and 4,000 tonne of reinforced steel.

The enormity and complexity of the construction works also meant the employment of around 300 people, Mr Frith said.

Brisbane’s New Runway – Construction Timelapse


Video credit: Brisbane Airport/YouTube

Brisbane’s new runway by the numbers

  • Brisbane’s new runway site is 360 hectares (2.5 times the size of the Brisbane City CBD)
  • The runway is 3.3 km long and 60 metres wide
  • The taxiway system will be made up of 12 km of taxiways (25 metres wide)
  • The runway is made up of three layers: 2,475 mm sand, 600 mm of crushed rock and 125 mm asphalt
  • The taxiways are made up of three layers: 1,500 mm sand, 200 mm crushed rock and 490 mm of concrete.

Project contribution to SEQ:

  • 90 per cent of project employees live in South East Queensland (SEQ)
  • 90 per cent of construction equipment to be sourced from SEQ
  • Up to 675 people to work directly on the project during peak period
  • Additional $5 billion in annual economic benefit to the region by 2035
  • 7,800 jobs generated by the new runway by 2035

Dryandra Road Underpass

  • 750,000 cubic metres of sand was moved for construction of the underpass
  • 5 km of water and sewer pipes were installed
  • 35 km of conduits installed
  • Nearly 20,000 cubic metres of heavily reinforced concrete poured
  • More than 700 concrete piles driven to an average depth of more than 30 metres below ground level
  • 1.1 km of separated roadway
  • Four lanes – two airside, two landside
  • Designed to withhold the weight of a fully-laden A380 and future variants (approx. 710 tonne)
  • More than 700 metres of sheet piles installed

 

Brisbane Airport Domestic Passengers Registered Biggest Growth in Five Years: FY18 Report

The BAC fiscal year 2018 report indicates the biggest growth in five years for Brisbane Airport domestic passengers. There were additional 263,000 domestic passengers for  a 1.5 per cent increase from FY17. The domestic passengers volume totaled 17.5 million.

For FY18, Brisbane Airport international passengers grew by 5.2 per cent or more than 5.9 million. The China and Hong Kong market registered its largest year-on-year passenger volume growth so far, up by 20 per cent. Following China and Hong Kong are Malaysia (up by 19.6 per cent), India (up by 14.7 per cent), and Korea (up by 13.9 per cent).


Video credit: Brisbane Airport/Youtube</span

Overall, the FY18 saw a 2.4 per cent year-on-year increase in passenger numbers, including domestic and international traffic. Passenger numbers grew to more than 23.4 million passengers.

More Direct Flights, Seats, and Partnership With Local and State Government Fueled Passenger Growth

BNE attributes the increase in passengers numbers, both international and intrastate, from direct flights and more seats to and from Brisbane Airport. During the same period, there was also a 5.8 per cent increase in seats to global destinations.

“There’s no doubt Brisbane, South East Queensland and Queensland as a whole, offers many compelling and unparalleled reasons for new airlines to consider bringing their aircraft into this market,” Gert-Jan de Graaff, Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) Chief Executive Officer said.

“This is why BAC aggressively competes to attract new airlines, bigger and more efficient aircraft, and additional flights from our city to unserved direct destinations.” he said.

For the first time in three years, intrastate passengers traffic grew owing to increased seat capacity to/from Brisbane. Some intrastate routes showed good growth with  Proserpine, Mackay, and Townsville outperforming other destinations and absorbing the additional seats.
Video credit: Brisbane Airport/Youtube</span

“The figures show the considerable efforts we undertake in aviation attraction, along with the contributions our partners in local and state government make through various incentive schemes, trade missions and campaigns, boosts visitors to Queensland, with Brisbane the gateway to the city, as well as the broader region, from northern NSW to Tropical North Queensland,” Mr de Graaff said.

Looking Forward to 2019

“As the opening of Brisbane’s new runway draws near, we remain committed to championing Brisbane and Queensland to the world, while continuing the roll-out of our extensive multi-billion dollar infrastructure program, growing and updating our facilities and services with a keen focus on providing an exceptional customer experience,” Mr de Graaff concludes.

Brisbane Airport Corporation expects that the capacity growth will spill over into the next 12 months. New services will open next year to reinforce international passenger growth. Domestic passenger growth, on the other hand, is expected to show modest growth in FY19.