Paua Airport

Military Decommissioning and Economic Non-viability. The airfield was constructed for military use during World War II. With the end of the war, the strategic need for a forward operating base in this remote location ceased to exist. The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) decommissioned many such temporary airfields. It was never developed for civilian use due to its isolation and the existence of the more established Kaitaia Airport (NZKT) to the south, which better served the region's population.

The site is now private farmland, believed to be part of Parengarenga Station. Satellite imagery shows the faint outlines of the two original runways, which are now completely overgrown with grass and scrub. The land is used for grazing livestock. There is no remaining aviation infrastructure such as hangars, buildings, or runway markings. Access is restricted as it is on private property.

The site was historically known as RNZAF Station Parengarenga, a satellite emergency airfield for the main base at RNZAF Station Waipapakauri during World War II. Its primary role was to support coastal patrol and anti-submarine operations off the northern coast of New Zealand. The airfield's strategic location at the top of the North Island was critical for aircraft, such as the Lockheed Hudson, that patrolled the vital sea lanes. It featured two unpaved runways arranged in a crossing pattern to accommodate different wind directions. The airfield was purely military and did not handle any scheduled commercial or passenger operations.

None. There are no known plans, proposals, or prospects for reopening the Paua/Parengarenga airfield. The region is adequately served by Kaitaia Airport for commercial flights and smaller airfields for general aviation. The high cost of acquiring the private land and rebuilding the infrastructure from scratch, combined with a lack of demand in such a remote area, makes any potential reopening economically infeasible.