Airport type Public and Military 06R/24L 1,425 Elevation 33 m Serves Blenheim | Elevation AMSL 33 m / 109 ft Code BHE Phone +64 3-572 8651 | |
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Operator Marlborough Airport Ltd Location State Highway 6, Blenheim, New Zealand Website www.marlboroughairport.co.nz Address Tancred Cres, Blenheim, Woodbourne 7206, New Zealand | ||
Woodbourne Airport (IATA: BHE, ICAO: NZWB) trading as Marlborough Airport is a small, controlled airport located 3 nautical miles (8 km) west of Blenheim in the Marlborough region of New Zealand, on State Highway Six, Middle Renwick Road. It is co-located with RNZAF Base Woodbourne in the Wairau Valley on the north-eastern corner of the South Island of New Zealand. The airport has a single terminal and 7 tarmac gates.
History
Woodbourne was one of the first airports in New Zealand. Today it is one of the few remaining air force bases (RNZAF Base Woodbourne); with general maintenance and initial training conducted there.
It also serves as the civil airport for Blenheim. Runway 06R/24L was sealed for Fokker Friendships in 1961, and was one of the first regional airports in the country to take turboprop aircraft.
Today it has more frequent operations, with Air New Zealand's regional subsidiary Air Nelson using Bombardier Q300 and Mount Cook Airlines using ATR 72-600 aircraft. The busiest route from Blenheim remains across the Cook Strait to Wellington, 80 km to the north-east; flights take only 25 minutes. Nightly Airwork flights, operated by Fokker Friendship aircraft carry post from the North Island. Air2there operates from Nelson and Kapiti Coast. Sounds Air operates a Cessna Caravan and Pilatus PC 12 from Wellington, Napier, Kapiti Coast, Kaikoura and Christchurch.
The terminal building was renovated in 2014/15 to cope with growing passenger demand and increased use by larger aircraft types. The redevelopment included an extension of the apron along with new check-in, baggage clam facilities and extension of the departure lounge.
The airport was the 13th busiest in New Zealand during 2015, based on passenger numbers.