Providence International Airport

Providence International Airport is the main airport of Arcacia located in Providence it serves metropolitan Arcacia and serves as a hub for Arcacian Airlines. It also serves as an air base for the Arcacian Coast Guard, though it is not listed as a military airfield. As well as serving metropolitan Arcacia, the airport is also used extensively by Australians from the area around Byron Bay and Ballina as it is the closest international airport to them and allows them to travel internationally without needing to go to Brisbane or Sydney.

History
Providence Airport started as a small grass airstrip in 1929 and was used predominantly for air mail until Arcacian Airlines began operations 2 years later. The grass strip was extended and a small terminal building, which was little more than a waiting room, was built. The grass strip was extended further in the 1940s to accommodate the new Douglas DC-3 airliners.

The runway was moved East to its present location and paved in 1948. The first paved runway in the country, it was barely 1500 metres long, but was sufficient for the existing fleet. The runway was extended to it's present northern threshold in 1960, giving the runway a total length of around 2200 metres, allowing jet airlines to land. It remained at this length until 1980, when a southern extension was built on reclaimed land, bringing the runway to its present length, more than twice the length of the original paved runway, and allowing large aircraft to use the airport.

The terminal building expanded alongside the runway until 2001 when the old terminal was gradually replaced by the new Terminal 1. A second terminal was built in 2008-2009 for use by Skycruiser and a third, smaller terminal was opened in 2011.

Terminals
Providence Airport has 1 main passenger terminal and a specialised business terminal.

Main Terminal
The Main Terminal contains 22 gates on 4 concourse, or "Aeroquays" as they are referred to at the airport. The terminal is the largest and busiest and is the only terminal used by the commercial flights into and out of Providence. The terminal stands on the ground used by the original airstrip. A replica of the original terminal building stands at its original location in the main concourse between Aeroquays 2 and 3.

Aeroquay 1 (Gates 1-6) is used for long-haul international flights. It has larger bays, capable of handling aircraft up to and including the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8.

Aeroquay 2 (Gates 7-12) is used exclusively by Arcacian Airlines and SouthAir Boeing 737s.

Aeroquay 3 (Gates 13-18) is used for other short to medium range flights operated by airlines from around the South Pacific.

Aeroquay 4 (Gates 19-22) is used only for short range flights.

Business Express Terminal
The Business Express Terminal used by business jets and the Arcacian Coast Guard to board VIPs. Because of its location on the general aviation apron, it is used by flying schools, general aviation and helicopter pilots.

Runway
Providence has 1 runway, 17/35, which is aligned North-South. It is 3,392 metres (11, 194 ft) long and 45 metres (148 ft) wide. The high strength, flexible runway was constructed with an asphaltic concrete surface and is adequate for unrestricted operations up to and including Boeing 747 and Airbus A380 aircraft. The runway is equipped with high intensity lighting, high intensity approach lights and instrument landing systems (ILS) at both ends. The airport is currently looking at a plan to build a second, shorter runway for general aviation operations which would be on the eastern side of the airport and run parallel to the existing runway.

Freight
Arcacian Air Freight operates from the cargo apron on the eastern side of the airport, which is integrated into Port Providence by road and rail. Other freight operators also use the apron, though most of Arcacia's freight is still moved by sea. The current freight apron has 4 large bays for cargo aircraft, along with a freight management centre and an air-to-rail freight transfer station.

General Aviation
A number of private aircraft use the airport, predominately small, propeller driven planes. A number of executive jets also use the airport due to its proximity to the city. Flight training is also available at the airport.

Coast Guard
The Arcacian Coast Guard has its air fleet based at the airport. It uses the airport as a base for air patrols, search and rescue and personnel transport. It makes use of the general aviation apron and Business Express Terminal, as well as the cargo apron.

Hotel
Doubletree by Hilton currently operates a hotel on the airport grounds. The hotel comprises 150 rooms, a restaurant/café and a number of conference and meeting places. The hotel employs 55 people. The hotel is predominantly used by international transfer passengers who have a connecting flight a day or more after their arrival in Providence.

Airlines and Destinations
Seventeen airlines currently operate regular flights from Providence to 43 destinations worldwide.

Ground Transport
Providence Airport has a large car park that caters for short, medium or long term parking. There is also a well-service taxi-rank and limousine service operating at the airport. There are numerous car rental operators at the airport, these include Hertz, Avis, Budget, Europcar and Thrifty. Providence Airport has its own railway station operated by the Arcacian National Railway and a station on the Providence Metro. Airport express buses run between the transport interchange centre and Providence city centre. The Airport Expressway connects the airport with the Trans-Arcacia Highway. On average, it takes less than an hour to get to the airport from anywhere in Metropolitan Arcacia and a matter of minutes to get from the airport to Providence city centre.