Departure
97%
vs 95% ▲ 1
MY FS FLIGHTS
MY FS FLIGHTS
Hobart International Airport (YMHB) is the principal gateway to Tasmania, sited on a narrow peninsula at Cambridge just north-east of Hobart's city centre. A single long instrument runway, curfew-free operation and a scenic approach over water on virtually every heading make it a distinctive destination for the visual or instrument pilot alike.
Hobart International Airport, known by the ICAO code YMHB, is Tasmania's principal aerodrome and Australia's southernmost airport of its kind, located at Cambridge on a narrow peninsula a short distance north-east of the Hobart central business district. It is operated by Hobart Airport Pty Ltd, part of the Tasmanian Gateway Consortium, and hosts a combined international, domestic and general aviation terminal complex. For a simulator pilot the field is notable for its single, long, ILS-equipped runway, its curfew-free operation, and approach and departure paths that are inevitably flown over surrounding water regardless of the runway in use.
The airport sits on a peninsula at Cambridge, roughly 17 km north-east of Hobart's CBD, with the region immediately around the field remaining largely unpopulated. Air traffic service is provided from the tower and, further afield, by Melbourne Centre, which also carries the tower frequency. Most general aviation traffic in the Hobart area uses the nearby Cambridge Aerodrome rather than the international airport itself.
Hobart has a single physical runway aligned 12/30, a hard, lit surface with slightly different declared lengths in each direction: runway 30 is 8,931 feet long and runway 12 is 8,547 feet long. Runway 12 is served by an ILS approach, and the field lies at an elevation of 10 feet above mean sea level.
ATIS is broadcast on 112.7 MHz. The common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) and tower frequency are both on 118.1 MHz, with flight service available on 125.55 MHz, and Melbourne Centre providing area coverage on the tower frequency. An ILS is available for runway 12.
The airport's peninsula setting means that arriving and departing traffic crosses water on almost every approach and departure track, a useful visual cue when positioning for the field regardless of the runway in use.
The airport was commissioned in 1956 as Llanherne Airport, named after the property on which it was built, replacing the smaller Cambridge Airport as air traffic outgrew that site. Prime Minister Ben Chifley announced construction of the new field in June 1948 at a cost of £760,000, partly with an eye to its usefulness as a base for aircraft serving Antarctica. In its first full year of operation the airport handled 120,086 passengers and 11,724 tonnes of freight, then the fifth-busiest airport in Australia. The runway was lengthened in 1964 to accommodate jet aircraft and extended again in 1985 to take large types such as the Boeing 747 and Antonov 124. The current domestic terminal opened on 28 July 1976 and the international terminal followed in 1986. The airport was corporatised under the Federal Airports Corporation in January 1988 and privatised in June 1998 under a 99-year lease held by a consortium including Hobart Ports Corporation, Hambros Australia and Airport Group International. Ownership passed to the Tasmanian Gateway Consortium in 2007 and a stake was sold to Queensland Investment Corporation and Schiphol Group in 2019. A runway upgrade to accommodate Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 aircraft began in July 2024 and was completed in August 2025.
Hobart International Airport remains the principal airport of Tasmania, served by Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia on domestic routes predominantly to Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. Its southern location also makes it the base for Skytraders' regular Airbus A319 flights to Antarctica on behalf of the Australian Antarctic Division. The airport operates without a curfew, and most light general aviation traffic in the Hobart area is instead handled at the nearby Cambridge Aerodrome.