During February 2020, Flinders Island airport, with cooperation from the airport's primary user Sharp Airlines (SH, Hamilton, VI), will undertake essential runway work to ensure that the facility is safe and compliant for the coming years, according to a press statement on the Australian regional carrier's website.
Over the last four years, the airport's main runway 14/32, which is 1,720 metres long (5,643 feet), has undergone repairs but now requires a substantial overhaul. The AUD3.6 million dollar (USD 2.5 million) project has been on the Flinders Island Council priority job list for some time and upon receipt of the funding from Federal and Tasmanian State Government, the upgrade work can now take place.
Sharp Airlines claims that it is the only airline providing regular public transport services to Flinders Island, and nearby Whitemark Island. However, according to the ch-aviation schedules module, Par-Avion Airlines (Hobart Cambridge) offers a once weekly service to Flinders Island from Cape Barren Island.
Sharp's scheduled services from Flinders Island to Launceston (11x weekly) and from Melbourne Essendon (4x weekly) will be impacted between February 5 and March 4, 2020, when the runway work is planned to be completed.
Earlier this year, the regional airline commenced a 6x weekly service from Griffith, AU to Essendon. Sharp's network also includes services to King Island and Burnie. The carrier's website states that its fleet consists of six 19-seat Metroliners and four Cessna C441 Conquests.
