Olympic Dam Airport

Olympic Dam Airport
IATA: OLP ICAO: YOLD
Summary
Airport type	Private
Operator	BHP, Olympic Dam Operations
Serves	Olympic Dam mine
Elevation  AMSL	344 ft / 105 m
Coordinates	30°29′06″S136°52′36″E / 30.48500°S 136.87667°E / -30.48500; 136.87667
Map
YOLD Location in South Australia
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 07/25 1,860 6,102 Asphalt
Statistics (2024/25 [1] )
Passengers 101,784 Aircraft movements 1,303
Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart, [2] passenger and aircraft movements from the Department of Infrastructure and Transport [3]

Olympic Dam Airport( IATA : OLP ^[4] , ICAO : YOLD) is an airport that serves the Olympic Dam mine in South Australia. Alliance Airlines operate a public transport service between Olympic Dam and Adelaide, with planned expansions for the airport starting in 2006 and ongoing in 2011.

General information

The airport is located at Olympic Dam, South Australia with the terminal located at 30°29′02.0322″S136°53′02.7954″E / 30.483897833°S 136.884109833°E / -30.483897833; 136.884109833 (Olympic Dam Airport Terminal) with the local time zone (Australian Central Standard Time (ACST)) of +9:30 hours from UTC. ^[4] The airport's codes are OLP for FlightStats and IATA, YOLD for ICAO and it does not have an FFA code, ^[4] several car rental companies operate from the airport. ^[5]

In 2007, there was a near mid-air collision between an Alliance Airlines plane and a charter flight, ^[6] flooding in the region in 2010 did not affect the airport. ^[7]

2011 expansion proposal

Relocation discussions were underway in 2006, with a discussion about either expanding the Olympic Dam airport or building a new one close to Andamooka. The area was set to have 5,000 contractors brought in by BHP, ^[8] being planned that the airport would be relocated should the Olympic Dam mine expand to an open-cut configuration, ^[9] the planned location was between Roxby Downs and Andamooka. ^[10] Expansion plans outlined in 2011 included improving the airport to accommodate jets and passenger service, ^[11] and making the runway all-weather capable. ^[10] In March 2020, NRW Holdings was awarded a contract to upgrade the airport, ^[12] by August 2021, a new larger runway had been built, and the older one closed and partially demolished. ^[13]

Airlines and destinations

Airlines	Destinations
Alliance Airlines	Charter: Adelaide [14]

Statistics

Olympic Dam Airport was ranked 46th in Australia for the number of revenue passengers served in financial year 2023–2024. ^[15]

Annual passenger and aircraft statistics for Olympic Dam ^[3]

Year [16]	Revenue passengers	Aircraft movements
2001-02	19,289	1,304
2002-03	24,973	1,411
2003-04	25,715	1,727
2004-05	27,262	1,723
2005-06	37,112	1,924
2006-07	57,639	2,593
2007-08	74,099	2,278
2008-09	76,118	2,254
2009-10	60,168	1,809
2010-11	72,215	1,875
2011-12	90,438	2,462
2012-13	83,583	2,563
2013-14	76,103	2,233
2014-15	74,346	2,234

References

1. "Domestic aviation activity 2024-25". Bureau of Infrastructure & Transport Research Economics . 6 November 2025.
2. YOLD – Olympic Dam  (PDF). AIP En Route Supplement from Airservices Australia , effective 27 November 2025, Aeronautical Chart Archived 10 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
3. "Airport Traffic Data 1985-86 to 2010-11". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). May 2012. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012. Refers to "Regular Public Transport (RPT) operations only"
4. "(OLP) Olympic Dam Airport". Flightstats.com. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
5. "Yellow Pages® | Data Protection". www.yellowpages.com.au. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
6. "Mid-air collision avoided". The Advertiser. Adelaide. 26 July 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
7. Pedler, Emma (9 April 2010). "Roxby flood damage". ABC North & West SA . Retrieved 3 July 2012.
8. "New airport mooted in BHP expansion". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 9 June 2006. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
9. "Olympic Dam Expansion: Infrastructure". BHP. Archived from the original on 24 December 2007.
10. "Olympic Dam Expansion 2011: Materials handling and transport" (PDF). Australia: BHP. p. 19. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
11. "Olympic Dam Expansion 2011" (PDF). Australia: BHP. p. 5. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
12. Contract Award: Olympic Dam Airport Upgrade NRW Holdings 18 March 2020
13. "Google Earth Engine". August 2021.
14. BHP re-signs Alliance for Olympic Dam flights Archived 17 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine Australian Mining 22 October 2020
15. "Airport Traffic Data 1985–86 to 2023–24—XLSX". Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE). 3 February 2025. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
16. Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June