Heathrow and Gatwick fighting to get support from Scottish MSPs for their runway plans

Continuing with their lobbying across the country, to try to get support for their runway plans, both Heathrow and Gatwick say they would provide more flights to Scottish airports. Both Mr Holland-Kaye and Mr Wingate are due to appear before a cross party group on aviation at the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood. The improved links to London is sold as providing better links for Scotland to global markets. Heathrow says getting a new runway would enable there to be more flights to the regions. These have been cut back in recent years, as they are less profitable than international flights. Heathrow is keen to tell Scottish leaders how very useful Heathrow will be for them, (though they have been conveniently ignored in the past – it is now time to try to win their support).  Stewart Wingate is doing his usual negative campaigning, pointing out, helpfully, all the deficiencies of Heathrow’s plans, while being conveniently blind to the deficiencies of his own runway plan.  Both airports hype economic benefits … lots of figures …The reality is that increasingly flights can be point to point, and people in Scotland have less need to transfer to London, before flying elsewhere.  More long haul flights from Heathrow would cut demand for these to develop at Scottish airports.
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Flights alert amid runway rivalry

Thursday 28 May 2015  (Herald Scotland)
THERE could be fewer direct flights in and out of Scotland if plans to expand Heathrow Airport get the go-ahead, the boss of a rival London airport has claimed.

Gatwick chief executive Stewart Wingate argued that building a new runway at Gatwick would lead to more competition between UK airports, which would in turn benefit Scotland.

But he has warned that if the plans to expand Heathrow are approved, some long-haul flights in and out of Scotland, including those to North America and the Middle East, could be under threat from the creation of a “monopolistic mega-hub” in the South East of England.

However, the CEO of Heathrow Airport John Holland-Kaye is preparing to tell MSPs today that an expansion of his terminal will create 16,000 new jobs, compared with 4,000 from an expansion of Gatwick.

He will argue that an expansion of Heathrow is the “only option that will grow Scottish exports, increase tourism and attract foreign investment to create local jobs”, arguing that the rival airport mainly flies to leisure destinations already served by airports north of the border.

Both men are speaking to MSPs on the cross-party group on aviation today as the Airports Commission continues to consider the best way to increase runway capacity at UK airports.

The commission, which is examining plans to build a new runway at either Heathrow or Gatwick, is expected to make its recommendation to the UK Government in the coming weeks.

Mr Wingate insists that the decision about where the new runway is located is an “important debate for Scotland” and will later address MSPs on Holyrood’s cross-party group on aviation.

He said: “The choice boils down to competition versus monopoly. Do we want to protect and strengthen Scotland’s growing network of routes by creating a competitive system across the UK, or put that at risk by creating a monopolistic mega-hub at London Heathrow?

“The Airports Commission itself found that in every future scenario, Scotland will have a larger share of the UK airports market if Gatwick expands.

“That amounts to 14 per cent more daily scheduled international services from airports outside London and 50 million more passengers through Scotland’s airports.”

Mr Holland-Kaye, meanwhile, will tell MSPs the next few weeks are “crucial” for those campaigning for an expansion of Heathrow.

He will say: “To win the global race for jobs, trade and convenient flights for growth, Scotland must have easy access to long-haul growth markets with frequent and Scottish airports have secured direct connections to key markets in Europe, the Middle East and North America over recent years.  [sic   misquoted ….]

“I have no doubt that within the next decade we will see Glasgow or Edinburgh secure a direct flight to Beijing.

“But there will always be cities that local demand alone cannot sustain but the Scottish economy needs to be connected to. To access that wealth, investment and export potential, Scotland – and the rest of the UK – needs to connected as conveniently as possible.”

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/transport/flights-alert-amid-runway-rivalry.127289758

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Rival London airports bid for Scots support

28 May 2015  (BBC – Scotland)
The Airports Commission is to choose between expanding Heathrow or Gatwick
Plans to expand Heathrow Airport could mean fewer direct flights to and from Scotland, if they are approved, according to bosses at Gatwick Airport.

But Heathrow bosses insist that expansion there would better improve Scotland’s links to global markets.

It comes as the Airports Commission is due to give its recommendation to the UK government on whether a new runway should be built at Heathrow or Gatwick.
The chief executives of both London airports are to appear at Holyrood.

The UK’s need to expand its airport capacity in a bid to meet growing demand for air travel means introducing an extra runway in the south east of England.

The short-listed options include a new runway for Heathrow, a new runway for Gatwick, or the extension of an existing runway at Heathrow.

Competitive system

Stewart Wingate, chief executive of Gatwick Airport, believes Scotland’s direct air routes would be at risk if Heathrow were to gain a monopoly by being chosen over Gatwick for expansion.

He said: “The choice boils down to competition versus monopoly. Do we want to protect and strengthen Scotland’s growing network of routes by creating a competitive system across the UK, or put that at risk by creating a monopolistic mega-hub at London Heathrow?

“The Airports Commission itself found that in every future scenario, Scotland will have a larger share of the UK airports market if Gatwick expands.

“That amounts to 14% more daily scheduled international services from airports outside London and 50 million more passengers through Scotland’s airports.”

The Airports Commission will recommend one of three expansion options at either Heathrow or Gatwick Airports.

But John Holland-Kaye, the chief executive at Heathrow, claimed that an expansion at Gatwick would result in Scottish firms losing out to rivals based near London while a Heathrow option would “drive more value for the Scottish economy”.

He said: “It would mean 16,000 new jobs in Scotland, £14bn to the Scottish economy and that’s because Heathrow helps connect Scotland to more global markets that aren’t serviced by Scottish airports directly.”

Mr Holland-Kaye added that there are currently 15 to 20 long-haul direct routes to and from Scottish airports and a further 75 routes are covered by Heathrow.

He conceded that flights between Scotland and Heathrow had reduced but added that this was because “Heathrow is at capacity so airlines have had to make a choice between adding new flights to long-haul destinations and maintaining flights to Scotland”.

Both Mr Holland-Kaye and Mr Wingate are due to appear before a cross party group on aviation at the Scottish Parliament.

The Airports Commission will deliver its final recommendation to Westminster in the coming weeks.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-32914089

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