Ashburton Aerodrome facts for kids

Ashburton Aerodrome (airport codes ASG and NZAS) is a small airport located about 2 nautical miles (which is about 3.7 kilometers) east of the town of Ashburton in New Zealand. Ashburton is on the east coast of the South Island. This airport helps connect the local area to other parts of New Zealand by air.

In the 1980s, an airline called Newmans Air used to fly from Christchurch to Queenstown. Their flights would stop in Ashburton. This was helpful for skiers who wanted to get to the nearby Mt. Hutt ski field. Today, there are no regular passenger flights operating to Ashburton.

How Ashburton Aerodrome Works

This section explains some important details about how the Ashburton Aerodrome operates. It covers things like runway lighting and flight paths.

Runway Lighting

• Pilot Controlled Lighting is available for Runway 16/34. This means pilots can turn on the runway lights themselves using their aircraft radio. This is useful for flights at night or in low visibility.

Flight Paths (Circuits)

• The circuit refers to the path an aircraft follows when taking off or landing.
• For all runways at Ashburton Aerodrome, pilots use a left-hand circuit. This means they turn left after takeoff and before landing.
• The Circuit Height is 1300 feet AMSL. AMSL stands for "Above Mean Sea Level." This is the height pilots should fly when they are in the airport's traffic pattern.