AviatDataRarotonga International Airport RAR / NCRG
Avarua, Rarotonga · Cook Islands · Airport Authority Cook Islands (AACI) — fully state-owned Crown enterprise under Cook Islands Investment Corporation (CIIC) oversight; also owns/operates Aitutaki Airport
356kpax · 2024
Limited hoursInternational · customs & immigrationJet A-1
ICAO / IATANCRG / RAR
OperatorAirport Authority Cook Islands (AACI) — fully state-owned Crown enterprise under Cook Islands Investment Corporation (CIIC) oversight; also owns/operates Aitutaki Airport
Coordinates21.2013°S, 159.7990°W
Elevation19 ft · 6 m
Time zoneCKT (UTC-10, no DST)
Passengers / yr355,898 (2024)
CustomsYes
Border controlYes
SchengenNo
FuelJet A-1
Bonded—
AIP referenceNCRG — AIP Cook Islands (published by Aeropath, the AIS provider contracted under NZ CAA Part 175 for Cook Islands airspace/Rarotonga CTR-CTA)
Operating hoursNot H24 — ATS/tower operate per NOTAM'd hours of watch (built around scheduled international arrivals/departures); AD administration 0800-1600 Mon-Fri (except public holidays); customs & immigration 0800-1600 Mon-Fri plus scheduled international flights; fuelling Mon-Sat 0800-1600 and by arrangement; MET briefing office H24. Except in an emergency the airport is closed Sundays 0930-1200 LT for church services (AIP Cook Islands AD 2.2/2.3).
TerminalsSingle international terminal (rebuilt 2010, NZ$8.5m project) with an Air New Zealand Koru Lounge airside, plus a separate Inter-Island Passenger Terminal used by Air Rarotonga's domestic network
Runways (1)
- 08/26 · 2,329 m / 7,641 ft · 45 m wide · Concrete · ILS ILS/DME published both ends per AIP Cook Islands AD 2.19 and IAC charts AD 2-41.1/41.2: RWY08 (ident INO, LOC 109.9/DME CH36X, GP 3.00 deg) and RWY26 (ident IAV, LOC 110.3/DME CH40X, GP 3.00 deg) - unusual double-ended precision approach reflecting Rarotonga's status as an isolated single-runway Pacific gateway with no practical diversion field; the AIP prints only aircraft approach category (CAT A/B/C/D minima) on these charts, never an ILS precision category, so ILS CAT I/II/III is confirmed unstated - treat as unconfirmed CAT I rather than assume higher minima capability
Sole international gateway to the Cook Islands, 1.75NM west of Avarua on Rarotonga; hub for Air Rarotonga's inter-island network and served internationally by Air New Zealand, Jetstar, Air Tahiti and (seasonal) Hawaiian Airlines. Single runway 08/26 carries a rare double-ended ILS/DME (INO/IAV) given the lack of any alternate airport within range. Pax figure (355,898) is the Airport Authority's FY-to-June-2024 total (Cook Islands government fiscal year runs 1 Jul-30 Jun) - the latest verified primary figure at the time of this record; no newer full-year total was found published as of, though partial-year 2025 visitor-arrival data (Cook Islands Statistics Office) suggests continued growth.
Services
Available
On request / PPR
Seasonal / ageing
Unconfirmed / not listed
Ground handling
Available
Air Rarotonga
Sole ground handler at Rarotonga International Airport; provides full passenger and ramp handling (check-in, baggage, marshalling, pushback) for the scheduled carriers serving RAR (Jetstar, Air Tahiti, Hawaiian Airlines) and is a codeshare partner of Air New Zealand for the Rarotonga-Aitutaki sector; also handles itinerant/private aircraft. Confirmed phone ••• matches Air Rarotonga's published contact; the "since 2007" codeshare date and RNZAF/RAAF military-visit handling could not be independently corroborated.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Aircraft fuel
Unconfirmed
Pacific Energy (Cook Islands)
Pacific Energy is a known regional fuel distributor operating across several Pacific Island nations and is generally understood to be the main Jet A-1 supplier at Rarotonga International Airport, refuelling domestic and international carriers. The specific RNZ quote, 2.6-million-litre storage figure, and pipeline/tanker-truck delivery detail could not be independently re-confirmed from a primary source during (the Logistics Cluster document and RNZ article referenced were not reachable), so treat the operational detail as unverified pending a direct source.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
De-icing
Not listed
Part-145 line maintenance
Available
Air Rarotonga
FBO site lists "Engineering Assistance" among its RAR services, and Air Rarotonga necessarily line-maintains its own based fleet (confirmed via Wikipedia: 2x Saab 340B+, 2x Embraer EMB-110P1 Bandeirante, 1x Cessna Citation II). The specific claim of a Cook Islands Part 119 AOC with an associated Part 145 AMO certificate could not be independently confirmed from a primary regulatory source during.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Part-145 base maintenance
Unconfirmed
Air Rarotonga
Any heavy/structural maintenance capability at the RAR base for its own fleet is unconfirmed; scope of ratings and whether heavy checks are outsourced overseas could not be independently verified.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Component shops & overhaul
Not listed
Flight catering
Available
Air Rarotonga
FBO division (fbo-cookislands.com) lists "Catering" among its services for private/itinerant aircraft at RAR — confirmed directly on the FBO's own site.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Aircraft cleaning
Available
Air Rarotonga
FBO division (fbo-cookislands.com) lists "Cleaning and Laundry" among its services for itinerant and private aircraft transiting RAR — confirmed directly on the FBO's own site.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Ground support equipment
Unconfirmed
Air Rarotonga
Presumed to operate its own ramp equipment (tugs, GPU, steps, belt loader) in support of full top-and-bottom aircraft handling at RAR as the sole ground handler; no independent confirmation found, and no separate third-party GSE rental/maintenance business identified at the airport.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Cargo handling
Unconfirmed · 2 providers
Air Rarotonga
Reported to operate a "JetX Air Cargo" freight division handling scheduled and itinerant flight cargo at RAR, including specialised packaging/handling of restricted or hazardous consignments (paint, chainsaws, motor scooters); this division could not be found on Air Rarotonga's own website or corroborated via any other public source during, so its current existence/branding is unconfirmed even though the airline plausibly carries some freight on its own aircraft.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Rarotonga Freight Services Ltd
Freight-forwarding/customs-agent business named for and plausibly based at Rarotonga (Nikao), handling air and sea cargo through RAR. The company's domain (rarofreight.co.ck) is registered but currently serves an expired TLS certificate, so page content (including the specific IATA-accreditation and licensed-customs-carrier claims) could not be read or verified during; contact details are carried forward unverified.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Aviation security
Unconfirmed
Cook Islands Aviation Security Service
International-departures security screening (passenger and cabin-baggage/LAGs) does take place at Rarotonga Airport, but the specific administering-body name "Cook Islands Aviation Security Service" could not be located on the Airport Authority Cook Islands site (nav menu and About Us page checked) or any other public source during; the entity may be an internal Airport Authority or Police function rather than a separately named organisation.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Passenger & crew transport
Available · 3 providers
Air Rarotonga
FBO site lists "Crew Transport, Tours and Accommodation" among its services for private/itinerant aircraft crews and passengers transiting RAR — confirmed directly on the FBO's own site.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Avis Rent A Car (Rarotonga)
Confirmed via aviscookislands.com: counter in the RAR terminal Arrivals area (6am-11pm daily, international flights only), plus Avarua (CITC Shopping Centre Complex, Mon-Fri 8am-4pm/Sat 8am-12pm) and Pacific Resort Muri offices; available for crew and passenger ground transport. · international flight hours
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Cook Islands Taxi Association (CITA)
Official taxi-rank operator at RAR Arrivals per Cook Islands Airport Authority (confirmed directly on airport.gov.ck): fixed-price airport transfers NZ$15-40 and metered NZ$3/km fares, 24/7, licensed and insured vehicles; available for crew and passenger transport. Email ••• confirmed on the airport's own site. · 24/7
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Flight support
Available
Air Rarotonga
Full-service FBO at RAR (fbo-cookislands.com): landing permission and liaison with border agencies, aircraft parking/fuelling coordination, consolidated single invoicing, and crew/trip-support arrangements for private jets and itinerant aircraft; contacts Ross Warwick (FBO Manager, •••) and Ewan Smith (•••), both confirmed on the FBO site. A dedicated "private airport lounge" was not listed among the FBO's own advertised services and could not be corroborated.
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source
Hotel & travel
Unconfirmed
The Islander Airport Hotel
24-hour hotel roughly 150m from the RAR terminal on Main Road, Panama Beachfront; marketed on its own site (islanderhotel.co.ck) for guests "arriving, departing or exploring the island," open daily 24 hours. Phone ••• confirmed directly on the hotel's site; contact email corrected to ••• (the site does not list "•••", which appears to belong to a different reservations platform). A specific airline crew-accommodation contract is not confirmed. · 24 hours
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Verified 2 weeks ago · unconfirmed source