PDA

View Full Version : Move Wellington Airport to the Hills....


speaker
9th Feb 2014, 19:54
So a local Councillor and property "investor" think it would be a great idea to move NZWN up into the hills above Wellington harbor where apparently the constant cloud and wind wouldn't affect operations at all and make for a much improved situation!

Airport proposed up in the hills | Stuff.co.nz (http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/news/9702360/Airport-proposed-up-in-the-hills)

Looking forward to watching them sink a few million into a fruitless feasibility study for this one.

John Hill
9th Feb 2014, 21:03
What? An airport 200 metres above sea level? Frankly I dont see much of a problem with that.

reynoldsno1
9th Feb 2014, 21:36
This looks like the aviation equivalent of Transmission Gully .....

waren9
9th Feb 2014, 23:53
thats a fairly cloudy part of the world in a moist southerly john.

cat2/3 ops come with what would be some fairly restrictive wind limitations

still, they'll think about it, study it, design it, cost it and wonder whos funding it and finally when a lot of public money and time has been spent someone will think perhaps running the idea past someone vaguely associated with aviation might be a good idea.

and in any case, god permitting i've got about 20-25 years flying left in me. i doubt it'll be built in time for me to land on it.

NZScion
9th Feb 2014, 23:57
Based on the amount of cloud (and turbulence) you can get sitting on Newlands ridge, you would hope they do their maths on adverse weather conditions affecting operations at the proposed site...

Jet Man
10th Feb 2014, 00:22
Cat 3 ops with a 40 knot crosswind. Yahoo!

MetGirl
10th Feb 2014, 02:50
They can't even get a new road built, I can't see a whole new airport happening

ozziekiwi
10th Feb 2014, 23:05
Newlands ?? DC8 ?? mmmmmm !!

Falling Leaf
11th Feb 2014, 04:22
Waahhaahhaaahaahaah. You've got to be kidding. As a poster said above, transmission gully! There is no money to build anything in NZ. The last major capital works were during Muldoon's era of 'think big', when a few dams were built and the main trunk line was electrified..the motorway into Wellington was built around the same time, in the 40 years since there have been a few trifling extensions and that is it…Victoria tunnel anyone!

When you think about it, the majority of NZ's infrastructure was built during WWII, with help from the US. Since then, hardly anything has been built.:ugh:

27/09
11th Feb 2014, 08:44
Falling Leaf: When you think about it, the majority of NZ's infrastructure was built during WWII, with help from the US. Since then, hardly anything has been built.

A bit like Australia really!!!!!!

500N
11th Feb 2014, 08:47
27

What infrastructure was built in aus by the us ?

Australopithecus
11th Feb 2014, 09:05
I hear it was the septic tanks. No?

Jack Ranga
11th Feb 2014, 11:28
That concrete road out near Kandos

waren9
11th Feb 2014, 16:47
sounds like we all need another war. get the yanks back again to get sh1t done

500N
11th Feb 2014, 21:40
It's NZ, they aren't allowed in because of the won't confirm or deny policy !

speaker
12th Feb 2014, 00:56
Has anyone heard anything lately about the planned runway extension for the current airport? Havent they already spent a ton of money on thinking about that?

theheadmaster
12th Feb 2014, 01:20
Just look at the 'occupation' of the person making the proposal - a property developer. He wants to make money on the sale of land for the proposed new airport, and make money with the redevelopment of the 'old' airport site. Simple explanation for the proposal is blatant self-interest.

TWT
12th Feb 2014, 01:58
What infrastructure was built in aus by the us ?

Pine Gap,Nurrungar,North West Cape Naval Communication Centre ;)

tartare
12th Feb 2014, 02:18
Surely the proposal to extend the runway at WLG isn't at all serious.
They can't extend the 16 end due to the Newlands versus the approach issue, so they would have to extend the 34 end.
Which rapidly heads out into a deep and very rough piece of sea.
Imagine the earthworks!
And instead of lovely, cold southerlies on approach, you'd be getting horrible turbs from the warm northerlies.
As a point of discussion - to get in and get out a reasonable range of different wide-body types at economical take off and landing weights, how many metres would they theoretically have to go out into the Strait?
What's the depth of the seafloor there?
I remember seeing a NIWA 3D sonar printout of the floor of Cook Strait once... it looks like a broken piece of glass because there are so many fractures off the main Alpine fault.
(And yes, I know you can already land a 747 at WLG if you really need to.)

Hmmm - answered my own question.
So they ARE looking at going North an extra 300m - hoping that RNP will allow an approach - presumably straight down the Hutt Valley, then curving onto finals?
But they couldn't take off to the North cos they still can't clear Newlands one engine out, and turning over the Hutt Valley on one donk isn't a good idea :confused:

slamer.
12th Feb 2014, 02:46
tartare ... the Hutt valley SE TFP idea is already in-place and has been for some time.

Capt Claret
12th Feb 2014, 03:15
What infrastructure was built in aus by the us ?

I think they were the original sealers of The Track. Then it was a single lane Stuart Hwy from Three Ways to Darwin. Mrs C tells horror stories of driving out of Darwin in the 70's & 80's and taking days and days to get to ADL as the road, particularly south of Alice was so bad.

500N
12th Feb 2014, 05:16
The Road to Darwin from Adelaide wasn't that bad in the 80's
or from Darwin back.

A bit thin in that it was best to get off when a road train came
towards you but it was still OK tarmac.

27/09
12th Feb 2014, 05:23
slamer: tartare ... the Hutt valley SE TFP idea is already in-place and has been for some time.

BUT will it still work for a runway extended to the North?

tartare
12th Feb 2014, 08:07
Yes - as asked above?
Sorry, I'm a bear of little brain - I assume the SE refers to single engine?
I assume what you are saying is that RNP inbound south down the Hutt Valley for a Southerly landing is already operational?
But could a fully loaded wide body launching to the North from a runway extended to the north into the harbour, then having one engine out, clear the Newlands pylons, or would it have to turn right and divert along an RNP track up the Hutt Valley?

27/09
12th Feb 2014, 19:40
Tartare: I assume what you are saying is that RNP inbound south down the Hutt Valley for a Southerly landing is already operational?
But could a fully loaded wide body launching to the North from a runway extended to the north into the harbour, then having one engine out, clear the Newlands pylons, or would it have to turn right and divert along an RNP track up the Hutt Valley

I think Slamer is referring to the Single Engine departure procedure to the north up the Hutt Valley. It's has some similarities to the RUGDI SID and avoids going direct to WITBY and the gradient on that track. Hence my question.

reynoldsno1
13th Feb 2014, 21:27
But they couldn't take off to the North cos they still can't clear Newlands one engine out
As already mentioned - there is already a procedure in place that tracks up the Hutt Valley, but you have to have the required avionics. NZ is one of the few countries in the world that actually has such procedures in operation.