Ceduna Airport is a public airport in Ceduna,

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. The airport, which is owned by the District Council of Ceduna is located adjacent to the

Eyre Highway Eyre Highway is a highway linking Western Australia and South Australia via the Nullarbor Plain. Signed as National Highways 1 and A1, it forms part of Highway 1 and the Australian National Highway network linking Perth and Adelaide. It ...

, approximately east of the town. It is the westernmost airport that receives regular passenger service in South Australia and is critical infrastructure for the surrounding remote and sparsely populated region. In addition to scheduled flights to

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, the airport caters to charters in support of the mining industry,

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations with the exception of commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services ...

, the

Royal Flying Doctor Service The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), commonly known as the Flying Doctor, is an air medical service in Australia. It is a non-profit organisation that provides emergency and primary health care services for those living in rural, remote an ...

aerial firefighting Aerial may refer to: Music * ''Aerial'' (album), by Kate Bush * ''Aerials'' (song), from the album ''Toxicity'' by System of a Down Bands *Aerial (Canadian band) * Aerial (Scottish band) * Aerial (Swedish band) Performance art * Aerial sil ...

and occasional military use.

History

An aerodrome was first established at Ceduna by the Civil Aviation Branch in 1928, ahead of the commencement of a transcontinental

airmail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be t ...

service between Adelaide and Perth by

West Australian Airways West Australian Airways was an Australian airline based in Geraldton, Western Australia. Established on 5 December 1921 as Western Australian Airways by World War I pilot Norman Brearley, it was the first airline in Australia to establish a sch ...

. The first flight arrived in May 1929, with regular services established in June of the same year. It was cited as an important stopping point on the air route in 1934. The Department of Civil Aviation recognised Ceduna's importance as an intermediate landing ground on an inter-capital air route, in 1939 announcing plans to install lighting to allow emergency landings at night and radio direction finding equipment at the aerodrome. During World War II, the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

used Ceduna as a staging base for moving aircraft between the East and West coast. Ceduna was a focus for

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

work, with the Bush Church Aid Society supporting their local health care facilities with an aviation operation based out of the airport between the 1930s and 1960s. Notably, prominent Australian writer and aviation safety consultant

Macarthur Job Macarthur Job (10 April 1926 in Taree, New South Wales – 6 August 2014 in Melbourne) was an Australian aviation writer and air safety consultant. He published nine books on aviation safety. He was formerly a Flying Doctor pilot, and held ...

began his flying career from this base. In 1950, the Department of Civil Aviation acquired land around the airport, and the current terminal facilities were constructed in 1951. The airport's national importance declined as airlines introduced more capable aircraft that could fly between Adelaide and Perth non-stop. Scheduled services connecting to Adelaide were maintained by Airlines of South Australia from the 1960s through to the 1980s and later by

Kendell Airlines Kendell Airlines was a regional airline in Australia, in the 1990s the largest in the country. It served major regional centres in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania from Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney. Many of its ser ...

, although these did not always operate directly. Ownership of the airport was transferred to the local council in 1991. In 2003,

Rex Airlines Regional Express Pty. Ltd., trading as Rex Airlines (and as Regional Express Airlines on regional routes), is an Australian airline based in Mascot, New South Wales. It operates scheduled regional and domestic services. It is Australia's larg ...

introduced

Saab 340 The Saab 340 is a Swedish twin-engine turboprop aircraft designed and initially produced by Saab AB and Fairchild Aircraft. It is designed to seat 30-36 passengers and, as of July 2018, there were 240 operational aircraft used by 34 different o ...

aircraft on the Adelaide-Ceduna route which had previously been operated by smaller Metroliners. This increase in capacity saw the number of passengers using the airport increase from around 10,000 per year to over 25,000 in 2009–10. By 2013, Rex were operating 12 services per week on the route. The apron was expanded to better accommodate simultaneous handling of these larger aircraft in 2015. In 2020, despite daily flights being reduced to just two per week as a result of

COVID-19 travel restrictions During the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries and regions imposed quarantines, entry bans, or other travel restrictions for citizens of or recent travelers to the most affected areas. Some countries and regions imposed global restrictions th ...

, the council committed to a modest expansion of the terminal building to enlarge the drop off and departures areas, as well as an undercover baggage claim area and new restroom facilities.

Airport facilities and operations

Similar to much of the Eyre Highway's alignment close to the

Great Australian Bight The Great Australian Bight is a large oceanic bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia. Extent Two definitions of the extent are in use – one used by the International Hydrog ...

, Ceduna Airport occasionally experiences issues with fog. The main runway, 11/29 is long by wide. This code 3C runway is equipped with pilot-operated lighting for night operations and can handle aircraft up to the size of a

Boeing 737 The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...

with some restrictions. A secondary gravel runway, 17/35 is long and only suitable for aircraft under

maximum takeoff weight The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) or maximum gross takeoff weight (MGTOW) or maximum takeoff mass (MTOM) of an aircraft is the maximum weight at which the pilot is allowed to attempt to take off, due to structural or other limits. The analogous ...

, however the council has identified potential extension and surfacing of this runway should expansion be required to accommodate regular operation by larger aircraft due to prevailing winds and approach paths that avoid overflying the town. As an uncontrolled airport with a typically a low volume of traffic, pilots are required to communicate via a

Common Traffic Advisory Frequency Common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) is the name given to the VHF radio frequency used for air-to-air communication at United States, Canadian and Australian non-towered airports. Many towered airports close their towers overnight, keeping t ...

(CTAF) to safely co-ordinate arrivals and departures. A

Non-Directional Beacon A non-directional beacon (NDB) or non-directional radio beacon is a radio beacon which does not include directional information. Radio beacons are radio transmitters at a known location, used as an aviation or marine navigational aid. NDB are i ...

(NDB) navigation aid remained in operation at the airport as of March 2023. The small passenger terminal, apron and general aviation parking are located on the northeastern side of the airport with direct access to the Eyre Highway. Both Avgas and Jet A fuel are available in the precinct. The

Bureau of Meteorology The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM or BoM) is an executive agency of the Australian Government responsible for providing weather services to Australia and surrounding areas. It was established in 1906 under the Meteorology Act, and brought together ...

maintains an office and

weather radar Weather radar, also called weather surveillance radar (WSR) and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, and estimate its type (rain, snow, hail etc.). Modern weather radars are mostly pulse- ...

facility on airport land, south of the main runway.

Airlines and destinations

Accidents and incidents

*On 17 January 1942, a

Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and p ...

operated by No. 14 Squadron

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

crashed shortly after takeoff. The aircraft was one of four en route to

RAAF Base Pearce RAAF Base Pearce is the main Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base in Western Australia. The base is located in Bullsbrook, north of Perth. It is used for training by the RAAF and the Republic of Singapore Air Force. Pearce is ...

that had landed to refuel in Ceduna. All six crew on board were killed in the accident. A subsequent board of inquiry did not publicly comment on the cause of the crash. A small memorial beside the Eyre Highway next to the airport was built in 2006, listing the names of those who died.

References

External links