The major airports in the NT are Darwin and Alice Springs, which serve local communities and industries as well as a thriving tourist industry. Darwin is the tenth busiest airport in the country and Alice Springs airport is the eighteenth busiest.536 The total DEC for all the airports in the NT is projected to grow from $519 million in 2011 to $997 million in 2031, representing an average annual growth rate of 3.3 per cent.
Table 95: Northern Territory airport passenger and freight volumes - 2013-14
| Revenue passenger (No.) | International Freight (tonnes) | ||||||
Airport | Domestic (incl. Regional) Airlines | International Airlines | Total passengers | Total as % of national total | Inbound | Outbound | Total | Total as % of national total |
Darwin | 1,705,830 | 338,826 | 2,044,656 | 1.40% | 355 | 46 | 401 | 0.01% |
Alice Springs | 677,533 | 0 | 677,533 | 0.46% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% |
Ayers Rock | 236,837 | 0 | 236,837 | 0.16% | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% |
Source: Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (2014i)
Remote regions in the NT are dependent on air travel to access the main centres. The operation and maintenance of regional airports and airstrips is largely dependent on government funding.
Darwin Airport is both a military and commercial airport. Its commercial operations are privately owned and managed. The 2010 Darwin Airport Master Plan forecasts that passenger numbers will increase to around four million by 2030, compared to two million in 2013-14.537 International freight is expected to increase dramatically from 298 tonnes per year (combined inwards and outwards freight) to around 1,400 tonnes per year by 2030.538
Alice Springs Airport is forecasting growth in annual passenger numbers of approximately 29 per cent to 2030, from 670,000 per year in 2013/14539 to 940,000 in 2030.540
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536. Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (2014i)
537. Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (2014i)
538. Darwin International Airport (2010)
539. Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (2014i)
540. Alice Springs Airport (2010)