{"id":646157,"date":"2026-10-30T19:02:12","date_gmt":"2026-10-30T19:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/646157\/"},"modified":"2026-10-30T19:02:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-30T19:02:12","slug":"important-asset-fight-to-save-privately-owned-kapiti-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/646157\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Important asset’: Fight to save privately-owned Kapiti airport"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kapiti locals have protested the proposed closure of their regional airport, calling it an invaluable asset to the community. <\/p>\n

Crowds gathered at a public meeting in Paraparaumu last night to fight the potential sale of the privately-owned Kapiti Coast Airport.<\/p>\n

Local National MP Tim Costley, who organised the meeting, said the airport\u2019s closure could come as soon as the end of next month. <\/p>\n

“I\u2019m really worried that if they come down in the next week, 10 days, and say, \u2018we\u2019re shutting this thing down at the end of November\u2019, that will have a huge implication for our region,” Costley told 1News. <\/p>\n

Pilot Margret Wright called the airport “so invaluable”.<\/p>\n

Another pilot, Hugh Steed, added: “When there are problems due to the curfew in Wellington, medical flights will divert to [Kapiti Coast Airport].”<\/p>\n

Local woman Jill Walters said an emergency flight for a liver transplant from the airport saved her life. <\/p>\n

“If it hadn’t been for this little airport, bless it, I wouldn’t have got there in time. In fact, it got to the stage that one hour would’ve made the difference,” she said. <\/p>\n

“Please don\u2019t take it away.”<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

An aircraft takes off from K\u0101piti Coast Airport. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n

Formerly Paraparaumu Aerodrome, it was selected as an alternative airport for Wellington in 1938 and used by the military during World War II. <\/p>\n

It was privatised in 1995 and has changed hands several times since then. Its current owners don\u2019t want to operate it as an airport. <\/p>\n

A statement from developer Templeton Group, the largest shareholder in the airport, said it had a conditional sale and purchase agreement.<\/p>\n

“And, as part of that agreement, the airport is required to close.”<\/p>\n

Costley told those at the meeting the airport was “a lifesaver”. <\/p>\n

Sounds Air is the only airline operating scheduled flights to the airport after Air Chathams stopped services in July<\/a> due to rising operating costs. <\/p>\n

Kapiti Aero Club uses the airport for flight training, with 256 members \u2013 including 67 junior members \u2013 learning to fly. <\/p>\n

“The sad fact is, people, if the Kapiti Coast Airport closes, there will be no training on the Kapiti Coast,\u201d a spokesperson for the club said at the meeting. <\/p>\n

Alternatives for the club if the airport closes are \u014ctaki Airstrip which isn\u2019t big enough, or Foxpine Airpark, an hour up the road in Manawat\u016b. <\/p>\n

‘We do not want this airport closed’ <\/p>\n

\"Kāpiti<\/p>\n

K\u0101piti Coast Airport. (Source: 1News)<\/p>\n

In a statement, Associate Minister of Transport James Meager said he also didn’t want the airport to close.<\/p>\n

“My hope is that the parties involved can reach an outcome that protects this important asset, supports continued commercial aviation operations and keeps Kapiti connected for generations to come. We do not want to see this airport closed,” Meager said.<\/p>\n

Sophie Handford, Labour\u2019s candidate in Kapiti, attended the event and said she\u2019d like to discuss the airport\u2019s future across party lines. <\/p>\n

“One of the reasons I\u2019m here tonight is because I want to fight for the retention of the airport, doesn\u2019t matter whether this meeting\u2019s being hosted by a different candidate,” Handford said. <\/p>\n

Costley said he\u2019d be willing to have a chat about it after the election. <\/p>\n

“If I\u2019m lucky to stay on as our local MP, I\u2019ll be working with anyone and everyone like I have done for the last three years,” he said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kapiti locals have protested the proposed closure of their regional airport, calling it an invaluable asset to the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":646158,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[15656,42,43,40,38,41,39,52],"class_list":["post-646157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-air-travel","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-wellington"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=646157"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646157\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/646158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}