Mildura Airport upgrade
Mildura is Victoria's most geographically isolated regional centre and its airport is of strategic importance to the city's strong economy. The large agriculture and food processing industries depend on reliable air services, as do local businesses for a steady flow of tourists.
The airport is regional Victoria's largest and busiest, providing a vital commercial link between Mildura, Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide. It currently services 200,000 passengers a year and demand is continually growing.
Passenger numbers had been growing steadily since the 1960s and, by the 1990s, the original terminal building was becoming increasingly inadequate.
In 2004, RDV's Infrastructure Development Fund provided $600,000 to Mildura Rural City Council towards a $1.4 million airport upgrade. A further upgrade has since been completed to make the airport suitable over the longer term for regular jet services to and from Mildura, such as the daily jet flights commenced by Virgin Blue in late 2008.
RDV's Infrastructure Development Fund contributed $5.72 million towards the total cost of $7.72 million for the most recent works, which has strengthened the airport's surface infrastructure and passenger screening facilities to the level required for jet and larger propeller aircraft services.
Regular jet services will increase the accessibility, affordability and comfort of travel for residents and the increasing number of visitors discovering the region's many attractions, such as the Murray River.
Funding from RDV's Infrastructure Development Fund has been integral to the development of the airport, which was originally established in 1942 as an RAAF training centre.
