Gold Coast Airport | |||||||||||||||
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| Summary | |||||||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||||||
| Owner/Operator | Queensland Airports | ||||||||||||||
| Serves | Gold Coast–Tweed Heads | ||||||||||||||
| Location | |||||||||||||||
| Focus city for | Virgin Australia | ||||||||||||||
| Operating base for | Jetstar | ||||||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 21 ft / 6 m | ||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 28°09′54″S153°30′22″E / 28.16500°S 153.50611°E /-28.16500; 153.50611 | ||||||||||||||
| Website | goldcoastairport.com.au | ||||||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||||||
 Interactive map of Gold Coast Airport | |||||||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||||||
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| Statistics (2016/17) | |||||||||||||||
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| Sources:AIP[1] passenger and aircraft movements from theBureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE)[2] | |||||||||||||||
Gold Coast Airport (IATA:OOL,ICAO:YBCG) – formerly known asCoolangatta Airport[3] – is aninternational airport located at the southern end of theGold Coast. The entrance to the airport is situated in the suburb ofBilinga, located approximately 90 km (56 mi) south ofBrisbane as part of theSouth East Queensland agglomeration. The main runway itself cuts through theAustralian state borders ofQueensland andNew South Wales, though the airport operates on Queensland Time (year-round AEST / UTC+10).
The facility occupies 371hectares (917acres) of airport property.[4]
Until 1989, the airport was known asCoolangatta Airport. This is anAboriginal word meaning "Place of Good View". It originally consisted (1936) of three grass strips with the intention of only providing an emergency landing ground for airmail aircraft transiting between Brisbane and Sydney. Passenger flights took off for the first time in 1939 using the then grassy field of the currentCoolangatta site. Regular services were started by Queensland Airlines andButler Air Transport afterWorld War II. Ansett started its own services in 1950 usingDC-3s, whileTrans Australia Airlines did the same in 1954 using DC-3s, too, as well asDC-4s andConvairs to link other Australian cities.[5]
By 1958, the taxiways and runways were fully paved, with the latter upgraded a decade later to allow jet operations withDC-9 andL-188 Electra aircraft to begin. The current terminal, known as theEric Robinson Building, was officially opened in 1981 by Acting Prime MinisterDouglas Anthony, when at the time more than 650,000 passengers were using the airport. The following year, the main runway was lengthened to 2,042 m (6,699 ft), thus permitting the use ofwide-body jets by the two domestic operatorsAnsett Australia and Trans Australia Airlines and theirBoeing 767 andAirbus A300 respectively on flights from Melbourne and Sydney.[5]
From 1 January 1988, the airport was managed by theFederal Airports Corporation on behalf of the Government. A decade later, on 29 May 1998, the airport was privatised via a long-term lease toQueensland Airports (QAL). By 1999 the company's name had changed to become Gold Coast Airport Pty Ltd (GCAPL).[6] The airport then suffered from the collapse of Ansett in 2001, as Ansett had operated direct services from the Gold Coast to 12 Australian destinations.
In 2003, GCAPL was taken over by QAL, which today also leases and operatesMount Isa Airport,Townsville Airport and Longreach Airport.[7]
Despite the name change fromCoolangatta Airport toGold Coast Airport, the airport retains its originalIATA code,OOL andICAO code, YBCG. The Airport ownership remains with theGovernment of Australia.
In 1989, the airport welcomed its first international charter service from New Zealand, and by 1999Air New Zealandlow-cost subsidiaryFreedom Air started scheduled no-frills service fromHamilton, New Zealand withBoeing 737s. In 2007 the airport celebrated the arrival ofAirAsia X, which began services directly toKuala Lumpur, Malaysia, andTigerair Australia, which started services to Melbourne. Subsequently, the airport has had flights fromAir Pacific fromNadi, Fiji.Jetstar toTokyo andOsaka. Services to New Zealand increased as well, with Jetstar, Air New Zealand andPacific Blue flying toAuckland,Wellington andChristchurch.Airnorth also started services to the airport fromDarwin, viaMount Isa. In addition,Virgin Blue announced direct services fromCanberra andTownsville. This opened up connections between all threeQueensland Airports-owned airports –Mount Isa Airport,Townsville Airport and Gold Coast Airport.
2010 saw Jetstar announce the airport as its newest hub, increased services toCairns[8] and new direct services toPerth[9] (discontinued in 2013) andQueenstown.[10] Tiger Airways also announced their newest base atAvalon Airport inGeelong, and said that services from Avalon to the Gold Coast would commence later in the year;[11] however, services toAdelaide would be cut due to delays in receiving new aircraft which were intended for their new Avalon base.[12]
On 26 October 2010, Gold Coast Airport was named the 2010 Major Airport of the Year 2010 by the Australian Airports Association (AAA).[13]
The Gold Coast Airport served as the official airport of the2018 Commonwealth Games.[14]
In July 2023,Scoot suspended its Gold Coast route indefinitely, citing operational costs, leaving no direct route between theGold Coast andSingapore.[15]
On 1 August 2023,Bonza announced it would open its third base at Gold Coast Airport, flying on 14 routes, 11 of which are not flown by other airlines.[16][17] Bonza launched the new routes starting November 2023, but ceased all operations when it declared bankruptcy in April 2024.[18]
In October 2023,Jetstar replaced itsGold Coast toTokyo route withBrisbane, to better utilize resources.[19]
On 17 July 2024,AirAsia X announced it was ceasing operations to the Gold Coast from 1 December 2024 due to operational costs. Gold Coast airport now has severely limited international connections.[20]
However, despite numerous international service reductions, Gold Coast Airport will be the most connected Australian airport with New Zealand when, in June 2025, Jetstar will commence flights to Hamilton and Dunedin.
In 2008, theTugun Bypass opened with a 334 metre tunnel under therunway.[21][22]
The airport opened an extension to the main runway as well as a full-length parallel taxiway in May 2007. The runway is 2,482 m (8,143 ft) long, allowing for heavier aircraft with greater range totakeoff.[23][24]
On 16 May 2007, the runway extension was officially inaugurated byMinister for Transport,Mark Vaile.[25]
Gold Coast Airport appointed ADCO Constructions as the principal design and construct contractor for a $100-million redevelopment of the airport's main terminal. Completed in 2010, the project doubled the size of the existing facility to almost 27,000 m2 (290,000 sq ft), incorporating domestic and international operations with self-service kiosks and 40 common-usercheck-in desks. The works will accommodate forecast growth for the next 10 years with a further expansion, stage two, scheduled to kick in upon demand. The main terminal – Terminal 1 – currently houses operations forQantas,Jetstar,Virgin Australia,Rex,Air New Zealand andScoot.
Before moving to the main terminal,Tigerair Australia flights previously operated from a low-cost terminal with basic amenities, located approximately 200 m (660 ft) from the main terminal building.
Aninstrument landing system (ILS) was scheduled to be installed at the airport by June 2015 to enable planes to land during adverse weather conditions. It would be arequired navigation performance (RNP) system rather than a traditional ILS as this would allow planes to cross the coast atCurrumbin rather thanSurfers Paradise and therefore fly over fewer houses. The proposed ILS had become an issue with residents concerned with noise.[26] In January 2016 theMinister for Infrastructure and Regional Development,Warren Truss, approved the installation of an ILS at Gold Coast Airport. Due to ground contamination that was found at the ILS location, it will not be able to be installed before the Gold Coast2018 Commonwealth Games.[27]
In 2016 Project LIFT commenced. was an approximate $300 million upgrade featuring two new wide-bodied aircraft stands and a three-level terminal development with four aerobridges and improved ground transport facilities. It enabled up to 19 additional aircraft to take off and touch down.
In July 2019, work began on the 30,000-square-metre (322,917 sq ft) southern terminal expansion.Lendlease was appointed to deliver the project.[28]
By August 2022, much of the expansion work was complete and 400 volunteers participated in a mass trial at the Gold Coast Airport's new terminal on 30 August 2022.[29]
Gold Coast Airport has two airline lounges: one, operated byVirgin Australia, has been operational since 30 May 2012,[30] and is available to business class passengers, Virgin Australia lounge members, andVelocity Frequent Flyer Gold and Platinum members. AQantas Club has been operational at the airport as of 3 December 2012,[31] and is available to business class passengers, Qantas Club members, andQantas Frequent Flyer Gold and Platinum members.
The following airlines operate scheduled and in some cases chartered passenger flights from Gold Coast Airport. All passenger airlines operate flights from the main terminal (T1) with the exception of Seair Pacific, which operates from their own hangar in the general aviation part of the airport and Eastern Air Services which operates from the General Aviation apron.[32][33]
The nearest international airport isBrisbane Airport, which provides 35 direct international destinations to Asia, New Zealand, North America, South Pacific, and the Middle East. The airport is located 110 km (68 mi) north west of Gold Coast Airport.
The following airlines operate scheduled cargo flights from Gold Coast Airport.
| Airlines | Destinations |
|---|---|
| Qantas Freight[43] | Sydney |
Qantas Freight uses the cargo space of Jetstar aircraft to transport cargo domestically. It is also contracted for Jetstar international flights and Air New Zealand flights from the airport. It offers same day/overnight and standby services domestically airport to airport and airport to door from Gold Coast Airport.[44] All cargo services operate from the Freight Terminal. Coast Cargo is a registered Cargo Terminal Operator (CTO) and currently handlesVirgin Australia. It is also the agent for Toll Air Express.[45]
| Year | Domestic | International | Total | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 1,840,196 | 14,519 | 1,854,715 |  -2.0% |
| 1999 | 1,882,696 | 16,923 | 1,899,619 |  2.4% |
| 2000 | 1,857,572 | 28,138 | 1,885,710 | -0.7% |
| 2001 | 1,792,051 | 41,581 | 1,833,632 | -2.8% |
| 2002 | 1,887,834 | 113,127 | 2,000,961 | 9.1% |
| 2003 | 2,116,525 | 138,938 | 2,255,463 | 12.7% |
| 2004 | 2,677,820 | 136,408 | 2,814,228 | 24.8% |
| 2005 | 3,232,944 | 203,523 | 3,436,467 | 22.1% |
| 2006 | 3,423,358 | 193,441 | 3,616,799 | 5.2% |
| 2007 | 3,735,826 | 210,762 | 3,946,588 | 9.1% |
| 2008 | 4,183,352 | 339,144 | 4,522,496 | 14.6% |
| 2009 | 4,246,436 | 636,332 | 4,882,768 | 8.0% |
| 2010 | 4,729,951 | 786,669 | 5,516,620 | 13.0% |
| 2011 | 4,581,300 | 715,863 | 5,297,163 | -4.0% |
| 2012 | 4,854,885 | 824,424 | 5,679,309 | 7.2% |
| 2013 | 4,902,269 | 864,905 | 5,767,174 | 1.5% |
| 2014 | 4,947,853 | 880,971 | 5,828,824 | 1.1% |
| 2015 | 5,081,391 | 942,967 | 6,024,358 | 3.4% |
| 2016 | 5,317,757 | 1,093,558 | 6,411,315 | 6.4% |
| 2017 | 5,398,985 | 1,080,098 | 6,479,083 | 1.1% |
| 2018 | 5,461,184 | 1,025,198 | 6,486,382 | 0.1% |
| 2019 | 5,543,608 | 940,995 | 6,484,603 | 0.0% |
| 2020 | 1,514,472 | 207,744 | 1,722,216 | -73.4% |
| 2021 | 2,038,812 | 44,244 | 2,083,056 | 21.0% |
| 2022 | 5,317,495 | 391,192 | 5,708,687 | 174.1% |
| 2023 | 5,439,546 | 790,625 | 6,230,170 | 9.1% |
| 2024 | 5,577,882 | 628,344 | 6,206,216 | -0.4% |
| Rank | Airport | Passengers | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney | 2,917,700 | 2.3% |
| 2 | Melbourne | 2,462,200 | 9.9% |
| 3 | Adelaide | 316,600 | 6.6% |
| 4 | Canberra | 209,900 | 1.1% |
| Rank | Airport | Passengers | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auckland | 320,289 | 10.8% |
| 2 | Christchurch | 83,221 | 0.0% |
| 3 | Denpasar | 72,792 | 285.9 |
| 4 | Wellington | 59,741 | 2.7% |
| 5 | Kuala Lumpur | 59,367 | 334.3% |
| 6 | Queenstown | 51,925 | 7.4% |
The airport is located on the western side of theGold Coast Highway in Bilinga, the terminal is 300 metres from the highway. The Gold Coast Highway passes through all the coastal suburbs of the city and is the most direct route to most of the major holiday destinations on the Gold Coast.
ThePacific Motorway (M1) interchange is 1.5 km south of the airport just over the NSW border in Tweed Heads West. The Pacific Motorway connects the city to Northern NSW, Gold Coast's western suburbs, and Brisbane CBD.
All bus services are operated byKinetic Gold Coast.
There are a number of private operators offering transfers between Gold Coast Airport and Brisbane. Scheduled transfers are available for arriving and departing passengers.[51][52]
The Gold Coast City Transport Strategy 2031 includes an extension of theG:link light rail to the airport, while theSouth East Queensland Infrastructure Plan and Program envisions extending theGold Coast Line train line to the airport. As of 2025, neither have been approved to begin construction.
In March 1949, aLockheed Lodestar aircraft became airborne atBilinga airstrip for a flight toArcherfield Airport. Before reaching a height of 500 ft (150 m) itstalled and crashed. All 21 occupants died in the crash or the ensuingconflagration. It was Queensland's worst civil aviation accident.[53][54]
Gold Coast Airport received the "best airport award for customer experience" at the 2018 National Airport Industry Awards hosted by the Australian Airports Association inBrisbane.[55]
