Lismore Airport tenant Fast Aviation to move to Warwick

A Lismore flight school pilot says he is looking for a new place to land as “unfair” fees and charges take a toll on his business.

Fast Aviation owner Izaac Flanagan says he is considering relocating to Queensland after losing confident in the management of Lismore’s aiport. Picture: Alison Paterson

A Northern Rivers aviation business owner says he is thinking about moving to Queensland after losing confidence in Lismore Council’s management of the town’s airport.

Fast Aviation chief pilot Izaac Flanagan, 41, said the council’s “massive” fee rise and a poor understanding of small business drove him to negotiate with Southern Downs Regional Council at Warwick.

He started his Lismore-based business, which specialises in advanced pilot training, in 2016.

“It’s not just the fee increase, they are also making it harder for businesses like mine when they have not undertaken infrastructure such as completing the kangaroo-proof fence to keep the animals off the runway or when they talk about installing an instrument landing system which will be obsolete in two years time,” he said.

Fast Aviation owner Izaac Flanagan says he is considering relocating his business to Queensland after losing confidence in Lismore Council's management of the airport. Picture: Alison Paterson

Mr Flanagan said a lack of support for airport tenants was bad news for the town.

“My training business is closed and charters are 90 per cent down,” he said.

“They gave us six weeks notice they were moving from offering businesses like mine to pay either an annual or monthly landing fee to a $30 landing fee only.

“Previously I was paying $1500 annual fee and last July, which was a quiet month by any means, I received a bill for $1600.”

Southern Downs Regional Council currently charges $10 per landing or an annual $277 fee to use Warwick Aerodrome.

Earlier this year, Lismore Council’s budget papers showed it had been running the airport at annual loss of $800,000.

The report also showed the council’s corporate charges for use of the airport had increased more than 600 per cent from $35,000 in 2020–21 to $218,000 in 2021–22.

Mr Flanagan said the council was trying to fill its financial black hole by overcharging aviation businesses.

“Fast Aviation employs two full-time pilots and several casuals,” he said.

“It’s a shame as Lismore will lose more than my business, the majority of our students are from out of the region, they bring money to Lismore when they stay in our motels and eat in our cafes.”

But Lismore mayor Vanessa Ekins said the town’s airport has a strong future.

“We feel it’s important that people pay their way,” she said.

“If this means a business needs to go to Warwick, that’s a shame as we don’t want to see any businesses leave Lismore.”

A council spokesman said the council had adopted a new fee structure to ensure greater equity for all Lismore Regional Airport users.

“Council scrapped the annualised fee, which was well below market rates and in practice operated as subsidy to the commercial aviation operators,” he said.

“This was replaced with an increase of 6 per cent for our pay-per-use fee.”

He said the revised pay-per-use fee was in line with market averages.

“Under the previous annualised fee, a person who used the airport twice a year paid the same amount as someone who used it a thousand times a year,” he said.

“Under the new fee structure, the more you use the airport, the more you pay.”