The light hand behind the development of Australia's newest international airport

Abstract

Canberra Airport, until recently, was an aviation backwater. The state of the airport masked its importance to Australia's aviation infrastructure network as the gateway to the nation's capital and the only unrestricted major airport along the most populous stretch of the country's eastern seaboard. Canberra Airport is now being transformed through an AUS$1 bn investment programme, with its centrepiece, a new AUS$420m terminal, scheduled for completion in early 2013. This major investment programme, however, was all but abandoned in the face of regulatory failure that stymied investment in airport infrastructure in Australia. The subsequent introduction of lighter-handed economic regulation has seen airport infrastructure investment in Canberra, and Australia, flourish to meet the demands of users. This paper highlights the regulatory hurdles faced by Canberra Airport and how they were ultimately overcome on the way to delivering Australia's newest international airport.