Toowoomba City Aerodrome

Toowoomba was once a port of call on a Qantas International Airline Service and a Qantas flight between Brisbane and Toowoomba was the first unsubsidized passenger service in Australia. This regular daily service commenced on 9 May 1928 with a de Havilland DH.50.

Several notable people have landed in Toowoomba. Bert Hinkler, born in Bundaberg, Queensland, was another pioneer aviator. In 1928 he flew the first solo flight from England to Australia, for this achievement he flew his Avro Avian G-EBOV. It was on 16 June 1928 that Hinkler landed in Toowoomba at the Clifford Park racecourse flying G-EBOV. On 29 May 1930, the first woman to fly from England to Australia, Amy Johnson, landed at the Werrington Park Aerodrome – now called the Toowoomba City Aerodrome (also known as the Wilsonton Aerodrome). In August 1932 Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith, a pioneer Australian aviator, landed at Toowoomba in his Fokker Trimotor named the 'Southern Cross'. It was in this plane that he made the first non-stop flight across the Australian continent and the first flight across the Tasman Sea to New Zealand.

Between 1939 and 1945, the airfield was used at various times by Defence Assets with the cooperation of its owner, Mr Rankin. In January 1944 the Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF) Directorate of Works and Building (DWB) prepared the airfield for a flight of No 5 Army Co-op Squadron in its move to Toowoomba. The unit was quartered and its Wirraways were dispersed in trees across the Western Highway some 200–300 m (660–980 ft) north of the Wilsonton Post Office, and 500–600 m (1,600–2,000 ft) north of the present runway location.

In June 1946 the Darling Downs Aero Club was formed on the grass paddock at Wilsonton by a small yet eager group of pilots. Initially, it operated only on the weekends (out of a borrowed tent), and flying training was conducted for and on behalf of the club by the Royal Queensland Aero Club (Archerfield).

In the 1960s the then Mayor of Toowoomba, Jack McCafferty, expressed interest in upgrading the airport and extending the runway, however these proposals were met with opposition from within the council. In the intervening years several developments near the airport boundary were allowed, effectively confining the airport and limiting expansion options.

Throughout the airport history there have been many other pilots who have helped put the Toowoomba City Aerodrome on the map, including well-known Australian and international pilot, Guido Zuccoli. Toowoomba is the home of the famed Zuccoli Collection of aircraft and other vehicles.

• CTAF(R) 127.65 (Adjacent to Oakey Control Zone)
• NDB 386
• AWIS 127.05
• BN CEN 121.2
• PAL 122.4

• Darling Downs Aero Club
• LifeFlight
• Royal Flying Doctor Service
• Toowoomba City Airport Services

Toowoomba City Aerodrome has been subject to much debate from the 1960s to present, with conjecture centred on development of the existing site versus a new green-field development. In 2010 the Toowoomba Regional Council decided to develop the Wilsonton site with additional Queensland State Government funding allowing a $10 million expansion. The development followed industry recommendations to extend the main runway to 1,400 m (4,593 ft), and to increase the ramp space for passenger aircraft parking. However, the airport terminal was not redeveloped despite some community sentiment suggesting it is inadequate. The main runway was primarily extended to the east within the confines of the existing airport boundary, with the earthworks extension completed in July 2011. Further runway surfacing work was delayed until warmer weather allowed the tarmac to cure.[4]

Development was spurred on by Council business surveys conducted in 2009 that suggested there was sufficient traffic to sustain both direct Brisbane and Sydney flights. The Toowoomba Mayor has alluded to the fact that Council is continuing negotiation with several regional airlines to develop and commence RPT flights direct to Sydney or other centres. The commencement of Skytrans Dash-8 services on the Western Route via Toowoomba has assisted to demonstrate the effectiveness of regional turbo-prop aircraft operating directly in Toowoomba with a low noise footprint. In July 2011 it was reported in the local media that Skytrans has suggested it is interested in expanding its network to include Toowoomba to Sydney services,[5] whilst an advertising campaign by the council is imminent to attract interest in airline services more generally. The council has suggested the process of attracting potential airline services and destinations and routes would be determined by the airlines which may allow the case for direct flights to centres other than Sydney, such as Newcastle, Gold Coast, Moree or Charleville.

In July 2011 the Queensland State Government released a statewide infrastructure review which re-stated the view that a new and larger jet runway airport will be necessary to support regional development in the Toowoomba, Darling Downs and Surat Basin regions. Green field sites to the south and south west of Toowoomba have long been under consideration however expense is a concern for Toowoomba Regional Council without actual Federal or State Government assurances.

The use of the Army Aviation Centre in Oakey is consistently asserted by elements of the community, however Army circuit training traffic loads are high and the prevailing training circuit directly conflicts with the most likely civil approach and departure paths. This conflict could prove unworkable for permanent co-location without significant changes to existing runway infrastructure, navigation aids, and improvements to airport access. The lack of direct vehicle approaches to Oakey Airport from Toowoomba are not ideal, as is the isolation from supporting infrastructure. The Oakey Civil Terminal co-located with the Army Aviation Flying Museum is relatively new and not highly utilised, which makes sharing of this location somewhat commercially attractive.

Regional services operated under contract to the Government of Queensland was transferred to Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport on 1 January 2015, which left Toowoomba City Aerodrome without any regular passenger services.[6]

No scheduled services currently operate from Toowoomba City Aerodrome. Services operated under contract to the Government of Queensland transferred to Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport on 1 January 2015.[6]

• On 27 November 2001, a Beechcraft King Air C90 (registration VH-LQH) operated by Eastland Air on a charter flight to Goondiwindi crashed shortly after takeoff from runway 29. It was ultimately determined that the left engine lost power just as, or shortly after, the aircraft became airborne. The pilot continued the take off, however the aircraft could not gain altitude and crashed into a nearby industrial estate. All persons on board (the pilot and three passengers) were killed in the accident. No injuries were reported on the ground. The cause was ultimately determined to be a combination of maintenance and operational issues. The ATSB also noted that the characteristics of the placement and design of runway 29 were a possible contributing factor, due to the limited margin for runway overrun in case of an aborted take off.[7][8]

• List of airports in Queensland
• Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport

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• Official website