Learmonth Airport

This article is about the civilian aerodrome. For the military air base, see RAAF Base Learmonth.

Learmonth Airport
IATA: LEA ICAO: YPLM
Summary
Airport type	Civil aviation
Owner	Department of Defence
Operator	Shire of Exmouth
Serves	Exmouth, Western Australia
Elevation  AMSL	19 ft / 6 m
Coordinates	22°14′09″S114°05′19″E / 22.23583°S 114.08861°E / -22.23583; 114.08861
Website	Learmonth Airport
Map
YPLM Location in Western Australia
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 18/36 3,047 9,997 Asphalt/concrete
Statistics (2012/13)
Passengers 90,861 Aircraft movements 1,938
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart [1] Passenger and aircraft movements from the Bureau of Infrastructure & Transport Research Economics [2]

Learmonth Airport( IATA : LEA, ICAO : YPLM) is an airport, co-located on the site of RAAF Base Learmonth, a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base. The airport is located near the town of Exmouth on the north-west coast of Western Australia.

Established in the 1940s as an airfield, the current airport is operated by the Shire of Exmouth under a lease from the Department of Defence and occupies an area of 23.9 hectares (59 acres) on the RAAF Base Learmonth site. The terminal opened on 3 December 1999. ^{[3] [4]}

On 7 October 2008, Qantas Flight 72 made an emergency landing at RAAF Learmonth. On 1 June 2012, an AirAsia X flight to Perth made an emergency landing at Learmonth Airport for refuelling. ^[5] Learmonth is designated an emergency alternative airport in the case of fog or bad weather affecting Perth Airport. ^[6]

In October 2023, CPB Contractors was awarded a contract to upgrade the airport. ^{[7] [8]}

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
QantasLink	Perth

Statistics

Learmonth Airport was ranked 49th in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in 2012/13. ^[2]

Annual passenger and aircraft statistics for Learmonth ^[2]

Year	Revenue passengers	Aircraft movements
2001-02	13,498	742
2002-03	17,428	986
2003-04	18,840	751
2004-05	25,374	859
2005-06	30,292	884
2006-07	36,840	1,052
2007-08	44,674	1,390
2008-09	43,210	1,260
2009-10	45,667	1,264
2010-11	55,759	1,429
2011-12	87,260	1,667
2012-13	90,861	1,938

References

1. YPLM – Learmonth  (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia , effective 4 September 2025, Aeronautical Chart Archived 11 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
2. "Airport Traffic Data 1985-86 to 2012-13". Bureau of Infrastructure & Transport Research Economics. March 2014. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 20 March 2014. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
3. Learmonth Australian Aviation issue 145 November 1998 page 25
4. "About the Airport". Shire of Exmouth . Retrieved 26 August 2017.
5. "Computer fault blamed for QF72 Qantas nose dive". Australian Aviation. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
6. "First steps to second Perth airport". PerthNow . 24 September 2013. Archived from the original on 26 September 2013.
7. CIMIC's CPB Contractors selected for upgrades at RAAF bases Curtin and Learmouth CPB Contractors 4 October 2023
8. CPB Contractors selected for upgrades at RAAF Bases Curtin and Learmounth Australian Defence Magazine 6 October 2023

External links

• Learmonth Airport Shire of Exmouth