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Dear Airport Community,

I’d like to pass on a big thank you to everyone for your teamwork, support and care for each other during this challenging time. As you are aware, the Government has introduced strict but necessary measures to minimise the spread of COVID-19 within our borders.  From today, all e-Gates across NZ will be closed to arriving and departing international travellers which is putting extra pressure on our border agencies.  All travellers arriving into New Zealand, except those coming from the Pacific Islands, are now required to self-isolate for 14 days.  The Council and the Southern District Health Board are working through self-isolation protocols and accommodation options for those who don’t have anywhere to stay.

These new travel restrictions, together with those being announced around the globe, will affect QAC and other aviation and related businesses at Queenstown and Wanaka airports as well as our broader economy.

While the Prime Minister has announced that NZ’s travel restriction measures will be in place until 31 March, QAC is working on the assumption that they could be in place for a longer period.

From this week onwards, we expect a significant reduction in passenger movements at Queenstown Airport which will have an immediate impact on our airport community and region.  Today, Air New Zealand has announced that all trans-Tasman services from/to Queenstown will be suspended from 30 March to 30 June.  Domestic services across New Zealand will also be reduced significantly.

At Wanaka Airport, the organisers of Warbirds over Wanaka have announced that this year’s airshow has been cancelled.  NASA also confirmed yesterday that it has cancelled this year’s super pressure balloon launch which was scheduled for mid-April.  We share the disappointment of the Warbirds and NASA teams, as we know how much work has already gone into the preparations, but we fully support their call.

In terms of COVID-19 cases in NZ, the Ministry of Health confirmed on Sunday the first case in Queenstown.  The person is an international visitor and travelled to Queenstown in a private vehicle. She did not travel through Queenstown Airport.  She is currently in isolation, receiving appropriate healthcare, and her close contacts are also in self-isolation.

Our response

We know that this is a very unsettling time for all of you and our priority is the health, safety and wellbeing of our people – our staff, airport communities, customers and the wider community.  Please be assured that we are doing everything we can to mitigate the public health risk and the wider economic impact.

Operations:  As a lifeline utility, we are taking significant steps to try to contain and slow the spread of COVID-19 and maintain our airport operations – this we have been doing for some weeks now.  We’re working together with the airlines and border agencies to understand the latest information and the potential impacts on our operations.  We will arrange meetings with retailers/F&B, ground transport providers and general aviation operators early next week, so please keep an eye out for communications from our team.

Regional response:  We are part of the district’s emergency response team and are following all advice and actions from the lead agency (Ministry of Health).  We are also closely liaising with the other regional response agencies.

Local business support:  QAC has joined the newly formed Business Response Group to assist with the region’s economic outlook and recovery.  The Government is due to announce its Business Support Package today with the aim of trying to keep as many people in their jobs as possible and to offer further support to the health system.  Another helpful resource for business information is located here.

Health and hygiene:  Please review the attached infographic for an overview of the steps we are taking in this critical area and as a reminder of the important hygiene protocol we must all continue to observe.  Please remember to wash your hands regularly and maintain a social distance from each other.