Airport director given a second term

Chairman of directors of Hawke's Bay Airport Limited Tony Porter has been endorsed for reappointment for a second term.

Tony Porter's skills as director of Hawke's Bay Airport Limited has earned him a second term.

This afternoon Napier City Council will ratify its endorsement of Mr Porter as director.

He has been a director of the Airport Company since 1997 and was elected as chairman of directors in July 2014 following the retirement of incumbent chairman John Palairet.

The recommendation Mr Porter be reappointed as director for a further term of two years until June 30, 2018, was carried in a finance committee meeting earlier this month.

While the recommendation will be ratified at this afternoon's council meeting, Napier mayor Bill Dalton said technically the appointment had been made by himself and Hastings mayor Lawrence Yule.

"He's done an excellent job as chairman," Mr Dalton said.

With the upcoming construction of a new terminal, Mr Dalton said it was great to have a man with Mr Porter's skills as chairman.

Mr Porter said he really enjoyed his role, especially with all the positive things happening at the airport.

During his past term, Mr Porter said they had experienced big growth in passenger numbers, driven partly by the arrival of two new airlines - Jetstar and Sounds Air.

The Kete Kai caf operated by Orton Tailored Cuisine had also opened, and new facilities were completed to make way for the upcoming visitor car parking extension.

With the increase in passenger numbers, a terminal redevelopment was planned, and once complete the airport's name would change to Ahuriri Airport Hawke's Bay.

As Hawke's Bay Air Limited was a council controlled organisation, the appointment of a director required council approval.

Mr Porter had informed the chief executive that he would be happy to be reappointed for a further term.

The most recent Hawke's Bay Airport Interim Report showed a 13.5 per cent jump in passenger numbers in the first half of the financial year to December 2015.

Total revenue of $2,519,047 was 3.6 per cent above budget while profit after tax at $645,294 was 1.2 per cent above budget and increased by $23,809 on the same period the year before.