Departure
97%
vs 95% ▲ 2
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Gisborne Airport (NZGS/GIS) serves the city of Gisborne on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island, with a single sealed, lit runway supplemented by three grass strips catering for general aviation. It is a distinctive field for any visiting VFR pilot, not least because a railway line crosses the main runway, and it hosts an active aviation museum alongside its scheduled airline operations.
Gisborne Airport lies in the suburb of Elgin, close to the city of Gisborne on the east coast of the North Island. It is operated by Eastland Group under a long-term lease from Gisborne District Council, which retains ownership of the underlying assets. The field is of particular interest to visiting pilots for its unusual runway/railway crossing and for the light-aircraft grass runways that complement the main sealed strip, making it a varied and engaging destination for both training and touring flights.
The airport sits in the suburb of Elgin, about 4.2 km from Gisborne city centre, on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It covers an area of around 160 hectares.
Gisborne has four physical runways. The main runway, 14/32, is 4,305 ft long, has a hard sealed surface and is lit for night operations. Three grass runways serve lighter traffic: 09/27 at 3,848 ft, 03/21 at 3,836 ft, and the shorter parallel strip 14L/32R at 2,450 ft. There is no ILS at the field.
Gisborne uses 127.3 MHz for approach, tower and as the common traffic advisory frequency, with ATIS broadcast on 126.4 MHz.
Gisborne Airport is notable as one of the few airports anywhere with a railway line, the Palmerston North-Gisborne Line, crossing its main runway. Gisborne District Council operated the airport until 16 December 2004, when it voted to hand management to Eastland Group under a 15-year lease (with an option for a further 15 years) from 1 April 2005, while the Council retained ownership of the assets. Under Eastland Group's management the airport gained a new cafe and airport logo, and in September 2018 a $5.5 million redevelopment loan was announced to give the terminal a design reflecting the Gisborne District's cultural and navigation-themed identity. More recently, Eastland Generation commissioned a 5.2 MW solar farm of nearly 8,000 panels on airport land in November 2023, described as the largest in New Zealand.
Air New Zealand operates scheduled services from Gisborne to Auckland and Wellington, while Sunair links the airport to Hamilton, Napier, Tauranga and Whakatane. The Tairāwhiti Aviation Museum, housing a collection of aircraft and artefacts owned by the Gisborne Aviation Preservation Society, is located in a hangar beside the airport's road entrance, giving visiting pilots and enthusiasts a further point of interest on the field.