Associate Transport Minister James Meager backs Whanganui pilot academy amid safety investigation

Minister for Youth, Hunting and Fishing, and Associate Minister for Transport James Meager (second from left) at Whanganui Airport with (from left) Air Whanganui chief executive Dean Martin, Whanganui MP Carl Bates and Whanganui Mayor Andrew Tripe.

Whanganui’s international pilot academy has got the backing of Associate Transport Minister James Meager, but whether the council should be running it is “a question for ratepayers to raise”.

The NZ International Commercial Pilot Academy (NZICPA) is under investigation by the Civil Aviation Authority and the NZ Qualifications Authority for safety and quality of training, respectively.

Meager was in Whanganui this week visiting the airport, Tasman Tanning, Wilsons Hunting and Fishing, and to shoot small-bore rifles at the Westmere Miniature Rifle Club.

He said he had been impressed by the response to safety concerns about NZICPA, made anonymously in May.

“I think everyone has worked well together to get it to a place where flights for instructors have restarted,” he said.

“I’m hoping we’re not too far away from getting the actual training back up and running.”

Meager, also Minister for Youth, Hunting and Fishing and the South Island, said at the end of the investigation process, the district could have “probably the best flight school in the country”.

The Chronicle reported last week that four aircraft had been given the all-clear, with no conditions attached.

Meager said whether local authorities should run pilot academies was an interesting question but one for ratepayers to raise with their councils.

Whanganui District Council is the sole shareholder in NZICPA, which is overseen by the council’s commercial arm, Whanganui District Holdings.

“We [the Government] have got a view that councils should be sticking to the basics, and whether or not a flight school sitting under the airport is one of those, I don’t know,” he said.

“I’m sure they [the council] have learned lessons from this process.

“From what I saw today, from the mayor [Andrew Tripe], [council] chief executive [David Langford] and everyone involved in the flight school, you’ve got exceptional leadership there now who are getting this thing turned around.”

He said he was aware that an interline agreement between Air Chathams and Air New Zealand, giving passengers one itinerary and eliminating the need to recheck luggage, was being talked about.

The Government is a majority shareholder in Air NZ.

“I know there are some challenges with the costs of changing IT infrastructure and contracting arrangements but, if there is something the Government can do to support that, I’d certainly be interested in looking at it,” Meager said.

Air Chathams’ chief executive Duane Emeny said the agreement had moved beyond discussions and he hoped a domestic trial route would begin in October.

“It will be domestic only, and one way. Effectively, it’s only [Air NZ] selling on to us and not the other way around.

“But, it’s happening and it’s a positive.”

Meager said there was room for the Government to provide support for regional connectivity, with some airlines floating the idea of concessional loans to help with capital costs.

“Other airlines have suggested looking at individual routes that are particularly vulnerable, and whether the Government provides some sort of guarantee over those routes,” he said.

“Ministers are actively working on some support in that space and, hopefully, we can make some announcements by the end of the year.”

Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.