Rotorua Airport is preparing last-ditch legal action to stop the removal of the airport's Air Traffic Control services.
Photo: 123rf
The Airways Corporation of New Zealand announced cuts in April following the halting of flights across the country.
Around 180 staff will be affected, and seven control towers closed down, including the one at Rotorua.
The chief executive of Rotorua Airport, Mark Gibb, has written to government ministers asking them to intervene in the proposal to make the controllers redundant.
He said if no progress was made, legal action will be taken as a last resort.
"We have been working tirelessly to fight this proposal because we firmly believe it will risk the safety of those flying in and out of the airport - and ultimately the airport's future viability."
It comes after the country's largest aviation union, the Airline Pilots Association, announced they were pursuing legal action earlier this month.
Gibb said while it was not their preferred option, it reflected the seriousness of the proposed move and the level of concern the airport has with the proposal.
The heavily tourism-dependent city has been significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Following the Budget announcement yesterday, the general manager of Rotorua-based Canopy Tours,Paul Button, said they needed domestic travel to resume now to help the struggling businesses.
Gibb said they had concerns what the withdrawal of the control tower would do for the economy.
"We've not been consulted properly, we believe there are real safety risks and this decision, in our opinion, will hamper Rotorua's recovery from the economic and social impacts of Covid-19."
Some airports do already operate with uncontrolled airspace, such as Whangārei, but Gibb said as Rotorua was a much busier airport, it was not a useful comparison.
When the decision was announced, the chief executive of Airways New Zealand, Graeme Sumner, said it was "just not true" that it was unsafe.
The decision had the support of Air New Zealand, he said.