Terminal plan shelved airport in strife

Andrew Mathieson
AVALON Airport has revealed new plans for overseas flights as its major tenant battles industrial action threatening Christmas chaos for travellers.
Airport general manager Justin Giddings said Avalon had shelved plans for an international terminal in favour of sending overseas travellers through the airport’s domestic facility.
Mr Giddings said discussions with operators and Federal Government had led to a “compromise”.
“What we hope is to one day have our international operations coming out of the domestic terminal; that is, to have a one-user terminal plan rather than having a separate, stand-alone international,” he said.
“That’s where we’ve moved to because we’ve had those discussions and I think it’s probably commercially and practically the best way to go.”
Avalon Airport committed last year to build Victoria’s second international terminal but Federal Government knocked back the proposal.
The terminal bid failure forced several international airlines keen on operating out of Avalon to switch allegiances to Melbourne Airport.
Mr Giddings said the new plan meant Avalon no longer needed “consent” from Federal Government planning authorities to operate international flights.
He denied that sharing the domestic terminal with international flights suggested Avalon was scaling back operations.
“I don’t think we’re scaling down necessarily. What we’re planning is probably even bigger but it’s more about staging it,” Mr Giddings said.
“To go out and build an international terminal and have an operator come out once or twice a week, it is hard to stack up and reason.”
The terminal plan comes amid security screeners’ planning to walk off the job next Tuesday as part of a pay and conditions dispute with a Jetstar contractor. Staff on $18 an hour want a five per cent increase.
Jetstar and Avalon Airport are bracing for delays leading up to Christmas.
Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Union state secretary Jess Walsh said screeners feared that employer MSS would slash wages.
Jetstar did not return the Independent’s call for comment before the paper went to press.