Source: Radio New Zealand
Oamaru Airport. (File photo) ODT / Hamish MacLean
Oamaru Airport will lose its flight school after the business opted not to renew its lease, the Waitaki District Council says.
The New Zealand Airline Academy opened at the airport in 2018 with student numbers exceeding 200 in the past year.
It sought more land for hangars, increased airport access and a drop in landing charges as part of a new lease proposal last year.
The council said it offered substantial discounts to encourage growth when the school was starting out, but ongoing ratepayer subsidies weren’t appropriate for a large, successful business.
The lease would end in June.
The Airline Academy was contacted by RNZ for comment.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand