A-320 is a Tauranga first

Aviation enthusiasts were gifted a rare treat on the Tauranga Airport runway yesterday, with an Airbus A-320 making its first ever stop in the city.

Landing at midday, the Air New Zealand AirBus A300-232 sat on the runway next to the control tower for about an hour before departing for Palmerston North.


The Air NZ A-320 on the runway at Tauranga Airport. Photo: Supplied.

Tauranga Airport manager Ray Dumble confirms the plane touched down in Tauranga to pick up a group of passengers on a chartered flight bound for the Manawatu city.

At 37 metres in length and a wingspan of 35 metres, the aircraft can comfortably seat 150 passengers and as of January, Air NZ had four of the aircraft on their books.

The Airbus A-320 family consists of short-to-medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger twin-engine jet airliners manufactured by Airbus. The family includes the A-318, A-319, A-320 and A-321.

'It's the first A-320 we have had at Tauranga Airport,” says Ray. 'We have had a 7310 and a 737-800, which is about the same size, but it's the first A-320 we have had.

'There were a number of charters going to Palmerston North yesterday.”

Ray admits the size of the plane would have certainly proved popular, and turned a few heads in the process.

And despite it being the first time a plane of its kind has touched down in Tauranga, the airport is more than equipped to cater for its arrival.

'We had no problems at all as we are configured for that,” explains Ray.

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5 comments

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Posted on 26-03-2015 08:25 | By kiwiolchap

we should be taking direct flights from aussie in here


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Posted on 26-03-2015 08:26 | By kiwiolchap

we should be taking direct flights from aussie in here


@kiwiolchap

Posted on 26-03-2015 10:24 | By earlybird

You mean we can introduce the fruit fly directly to Tauranga orchards without them having a layover in Auckland. That sounds like a good idea.


No Thanks to Aussie flights

Posted on 26-03-2015 10:58 | By Murray.Guy

Tauranga airport is subsidized by the ratepayers enough as it is. We certainly don't want to repeat the mistakes of Rotorua District Council which is cancelling it's Aussie direct flights at the end of April having syphoned a $million off ratepayers the past financial year to subsidize the service. The council had been subsidising the Rotorua-Sydney route since 2009. Rotorua Airport chief executive Alastair Rhodes said the decision was backed by the airport board. Trans-Tasman flights from Rotorua were not economically viable, given the airport's proximity to Auckland.


A320

Posted on 26-03-2015 11:36 | By dookie

It was great to see the A320 coming in to land, I'd love to see it more often. But an international airport in Tauranga just would not work yet. Keep in mind though the airport doesnt have to be international to accept larger aircraft. Air NZ operates A320 on domestic routes and maybe in a few years as demand grows they'll upgrade 1 or 2 of the smaller jets with a larger aircraft on a route like Christchurch or Wellington.


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