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Richard Pearse Airport, also known as Timaru Airport, serves the South Canterbury town of Timaru on New Zealand's South Island. It is a mixed-use field with one sealed, lit runway and two grass runways, home to the South Canterbury Aero Club and host to scheduled Air New Zealand Q300 services to Wellington, making it a useful and instructive stop for the VFR pilot amid a busy training environment.
Richard Pearse Airport is named after the local pioneer aviator Richard Pearse, who is popularly credited with a powered flight before the Wright brothers. It functions as the principal airfield for South Canterbury, combining scheduled airline operations with a strong general aviation and flight training presence, and is the base for the South Canterbury Aero Club as well as IFR training operations by the Canterbury Aero Club and the International Aviation Academy. For the visiting simulator pilot it offers a flat, uncomplicated layout with a sealed main runway and two grass strips, set in open Canterbury Plains countryside.
The airport sits in uncontrolled airspace but within a Mandatory Broadcast Zone (MBZ), so pilots are required to be on frequency and to make broadcasts at the appropriate points as per MBZ rules. It lies off the Pleasant Point Highway on Falvey Road, roughly 4 km north of the Timaru suburb of Washdyke and about 12.6 km north of Timaru itself, situated halfway between Timaru and Temuka and around three miles inland from the coast. The terrain around the field is extremely flat, typical of the Canterbury Plains.
The airport has three physical runways. Runway 02/20 is the main sealed, lit hard-surfaced runway, 4191 ft long. Runway 02L/20R is a grass runway of 3882 ft. Runway 11/29 is a further grass runway of approximately 3119 ft. The two grass runways are described locally as well-maintained and suitable for light aircraft.
Christchurch Control provides flight information and Timaru QNH on 129.3 MHz. An unattended frequency of 119.5 MHz is also listed for the field. There is no ILS at Timaru; IFR training flights conducted by the Canterbury Aero Club and the International Aviation Academy fly RNP approaches from the north and south, overshooting on the sealed 02/20 runway.
All circuits at Timaru are left-hand only; right downwind, base and turnout patterns are prohibited by CAA rule within the aerodrome's Mandatory Broadcast Zone. Visiting pilots are expected to adhere strictly to the published AIP circuit procedures, to give way to aircraft already in the circuit, and to join overhead when possible or via an existing circuit leg. Because a large amount of local and cross-country training takes place in and around the field, visiting pilots are asked to allow trainee aircraft the time and space they need.
The airfield's flat surrounding terrain and its position roughly midway between Timaru and Temuka, a few kilometres inland from the coast, make the coastline and the built-up areas of Timaru and Temuka useful general orientation features when approaching from seaward or from the south.
The airport takes its name from Richard Pearse, a local pioneering aviator who is said to have achieved powered flight before the Wright brothers. Air New Zealand Link has operated scheduled services to Wellington using Bombardier Q300 aircraft, with earlier services having run to Oamaru and Christchurch; Eagle Airways formerly flew Timaru to Wellington using Beechcraft 1900D aircraft. In November 2015 the Timaru District Council approved a 1.3 million dollar upgrade to the terminal, increasing its floor area and adding a new luggage collection area in response to the switch to higher-capacity Q300 aircraft.
Timaru remains an active mixed-use airport. The South Canterbury Aero Club is based on the field and uses it frequently for training and recreational flying, and its clubrooms are available to visiting pilots, offering tea, coffee, parking, wifi and bathroom facilities. The Canterbury Aero Club and the International Aviation Academy also operate regular IFR training flights into Timaru. Air New Zealand continues to run scheduled Dash 8 (Q300) services to Wellington. Landing fees are payable via the Timaru District Council's website.
