A South Australian council-owned regional airport is battling a financial crisis as it faces a hefty operating deficit due to the lingering fallout from the pandemic.
Two years after a major $9.2 million redevelopment, Mount Gambier Regional Airport has recorded a $300,000 loss.
The Grant District Council-owned and operated terminal is predicting that figure will rise to around $600,000 next year as the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic continues to hit regional air travel.
Thousands of regional travellers flow through the Mount Gambier air gateway each year, serviced by Regional Express and Qantas.
The challenges come as the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport (RRAT) Legislative Committee last week published their interim report on the senate inquiry into Australia's general aviation industry.
Among a raft of measures aimed at improving sustainability within the sector, the report recommended "the government establish a regional airport infrastructure fund" to provide operators of regional and remote aerodromes "ongoing and long-term funding".
"It's not just infrastructure, but the operational costs as well due to low passenger numbers over the last three years," council chief executive officer Darryl Whicker told ABC South East SA radio this morning.
"In the dark age of despair at the height of the pandemic and lockdowns we had 170 passengers in March 2020 compared to 7,000 in the months leading into the downturn."
Mr Whicker said ongoing, long term funding was needed.
"It's not the first time this has been identified. Back in 2016 a report from Australian Airport Association also identified that around 60 per cent of regional airports sustain ongoing losses."
Council moves to 'stem the losses'
At this week's Grant District Council meeting, mayor Richard Sage called for advocacy for grant and funding assistance for the Mount Gambier Regional Airport.
It is a position Mr Whicker said council would take in a bid to stem the losses.
"We will be seeking appointments and speaking with our federal and state MPs, as well as working with the Australian Local Government Association to plead our case and to help them understand the makeup financially of the support needed for our airport," he said.
"It's fair to say that government has sustained aviation during the pandemic. That service is needed for health, commerce, and community as well.
Mr Whicker said there had been funding from government to council since the pandemic started.
"But certainly council has had to fill a large deficit. Most of our airports and saleyards operate around cost neutral, so it's a big change," he said.
Grant District Council modelling has forecast an overall council deficit of around $200,000 next year.
But Mr Whicker said there was "some light on the horizon" after the airport recorded 6,000 passengers in March.
"Numbers are starting to increase," he said.
"We need to watch that month-to-month and see if the trend continues. With COVID still around, we're still under a cloud of uncertainty.
In 2018, the Mount Gambier airport received $3.5 million in federal funding for upgrades, including a 120-metre runway extension, construction of a heavy aircraft parking area, luggage area, and a covered passenger drop-off zone.
Funding agreements and grants relating to the airport have had a mixed history, with a number of applications rejected in recent years.
Construction on the $9.2 million airport redevelopment project started in October 2018 and was co-funded by Grant District Council and state and federal governments, as well as a $500,000 contribution by the Mount Gambier City Council.
Mr Whicker did not rule out seeking more funding for the ongoing running of the airport from the nearby Mount Gambier City Council.
