Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
Luton has plans for direct rail line to cut train journey from central London to 20 minutes
Luton airport wants to have a rail link that connects directly to the Midlands mainline and reaches central London in 20 minutes. Luton is starting a £100 million project that would increase its passenger capacity by 50%, up to 18 million per year. That follows a significant upgrade of the nearby stretch of the M1 and the creation of its own airport junction. Currently getting to the airport by public transport is a hassle, and airport staff agree that it puts off many travellers despite Luton’s destinations offered by easyJet, Wizz Air and Ryanair. Luton wants to be an integrated part of the transport network. The work starting now is to increase aircraft runway access, the number of boarding piers, and terminal space (including more shops) should be finished by 2020. The airport's operators — Aena, the Spanish-owned largest airport group in the world and Ardian private equity — are funding the present construction programme, the question of who pays for a rail link is unresolved. The airport’s freehold is owned by Luton borough council and Aena and Ardian’s operating concession expires in 2031. So will the taxpayer have to pay for rail improvements? Luton wants to attract Norwegian from Gatwick, and Vueling from Heathrow.
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Colnbrook residents complain Slough refuses to reveal details of secret agreement with Heathrow
Colnbrook Views has submitted an FoI request after Slough Borough Council refused to allow publication of its agreement with Heathrow, made in February. Slough and Spelthorne are the only two councils openly backing a 3rd Heathrow runway. While the Council's CEO is telling business leaders that Slough will be the premier place for businesses to relocate by 2019, there is a veil of secrecy over the nature of its agreement with the Airport , though some bits have been made public. Heathrow has apparently agreed on various conditions including a guaranteed £100,000 annual contribution by the airport for 15 years toward a new “strategic partnership”. Communities in Colnbook and nearby are not persuaded that they will get much benefit, though the Council CEO has said there will be more noise insulation, some "improved infrastructure, roads, bus services" etc. There appears to be little on mitigation for those most affected. However, the heads of agreement from February sets out a commitment to a range of measures to boost the wider Slough economy, improve access to the airport from Slough town centre, and support airport-related expansion beyond Heathrow’s extended perimeter and existing commercial zones in the borough.
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Prestwick Airport losing still more money – Scottish Government may have to “lend” up to £25 million by end of 2016
Losses made by Prestwick airport have increased over the past year, since it was bought by the Scottish government for £1 in November 2013. The airport made a loss of £4.1 million in 2014/15 which was larger than the loss of £3.9 million the previous year. They said it was "another challenging year" but said there were "promising signs in a number of areas" including freight business and military activity. However, the loss of some Ryanair flights (to Glasgow Airport from October 2014) could be "more severely felt" in the current financial year. Pre-tax losses for 2014/15 stood at £8.9 million - almost double the £4.6m loss before tax the previous year. The airport's loan from the Scottish government has also increased, rising from £4.5 million at the end of March 2014 to £10.8m at the end of March this year. That could increase further, with ministers having budgeted for a total of up to £25 million of loan cash for the airport by the end of 2015/16. (Presumably with little prospect of the taxpayer getting much of that back). The government hopes to return Prestwick to a profit before selling it back to the private sector, ministers have warned that could take time. By buying the airport, some 3,200 jobs were safeguarded. The number of passengers using Prestwick was 1,660,811 in 2010; 1,295,676 in 2011; 1,067,243 in 2012; and 1,145,561 in 2013 and 912,400 in 2014.
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SNP, which won just 1.45 million votes in the election, says it will decide the vote on a SE runway
The SNP have 56 MPs, and each was only voted by an average of about 23,000 voters, which is a much smaller number than even Conservative MPs, and massively less than LibDems, UKIP or the Greens. Nevertheless. Nicola Sturgeon says the SNP will decide on whether a runway is built at Heathrow or Gatwick (they are not wise enough to appreciate no runway is needed). The SNP transport spokesman Drew Hendry said the party was “neutral” between Heathrow and Gatwick, while earlier it had been thought they favoured Heathrow. The SNP will "negotiate" with both airports, to see which gives them a better deal and they will vote for whichever gives Scottish people the cheapest flights, and "guaranteed connections with international flights" which Scotland has not been able to provide for itself. The SNP is aware that people in England, especially those to be adversely affected (or evicted from their homes) by a runway did not get the chance to vote for or against the SNP. The runway is largely an English matter. But Zac Goldsmith warned SNP MPs would be “crossing the line in terms of our democracy” if a deal is struck for cheaper flights for Scottish travellers in return for votes. (Combined anti-Heathrow party votes of LibDems, UKIP and Greens were 7.45 million. SNP votes were 1.45 million).
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Birmingham airport passenger numbers rising, but total number of flights almost the same as in 1998
The total number of flights (ATMs) using Birmingham airport was around 89,000 in 2014, compared to around 88,000 in 1998. The number rose to a peak of around 116,000 in 2003. But due to larger planes and higher load factors, the actual number of flights has fallen in recent years. See below. The airport handled 6,607,000 passengers in 1998. In 2014, the number of passengers using Birmingham airport was about 9,698,340 (6.4% up on the 9,118,570 in 2013 - and 46.8% more than in 1998). ). By comparison, the growth in air passengers across all UK airports last year was 4.3%. Birmingham says the number of passengers in June was 2.8% above the number in June 2013, and the number in May was 1.3% higher than in May 2014. The airport says there was an increase of 20% in long haul routes compared to June 2014, and "demand continues to grow in this market." The airport CEO Paul Kehoe said: “We’re expecting our long-haul traffic to increase further in the coming months, following the recent launch of direct charter flights to Beijing, which will operate throughout the summer with Hainan Airlines." Most passengers are on European leisure flights. A single runway airport could handle over 30 million passengers per year, so Birmingham is very far below its capacity.
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Villagers turn to civil disobedience in battle against third runway at Heathrow
Writing in the Guardian, Sandra Laville reports on how some residents of the Heathrow villages, facing eviction and loss of their homes and communities, refuse to be cowed by the airport threat. Some, who have never broken the law before have been forced by circumstances not of their choosing, to adopt civil disobedience as they fight to save their way of life. Some of the 13 activists from Plane Stupid, who cut through Heathrow's perimeter fence and occupied land close to the northern runway last week came from Sipson. They felt their actions were justified not only because of the homes to be bulldozed and the community to be lost, but because of the hugely increased carbon emissions that a runway would cause. They will appear at the Uxbridge magistrates' court on 19th August, accused of aggravated trespass. One commented: “I find the whole idea of direct action and of being arrested very stressful. But I feel it has to be done.” On the 20th July local builder, Neil Keveren (previously chairman of anti expansion group, SHE) went to court for his action in blocking the access tunnel to Heathrow Terminals 2 and 3 for 20 minutes recently. He was given a £895 fine. Some think this may become like the long battle for Greenham Common.
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Heathrow campaigners provide the (suit)case against the runway, in holiday reading material for David Cameron
On 20th July, the day before Parliament broke for its summer recess, campaigners from national organizations and local groups opposed to expansion at Heathrow packed a holiday suitcase for David Cameron’s summer holiday - with material they believe he should read and view on his holiday before he makes up his mind on a 3rd runway. They were joined by the new Twickenham MP Tania Mathias and the veteran opponent of Heathrow expansion, Baroness Jenny Tonge. Organised by HACAN, some of those at the event were campaigners from Greenpeace, FoE, CBT, AEF, SHE , RHC and CAIAN. Items packed into the suitcase included "Heat," a climate change book by George Monbiot; a video showing Harmondsworth; the most recent IPCC report; AirportWatch briefings on economics, noise, carbon emissions, and air quality; maps showing areas of London to be impacted by flight paths from a 3rd runway; a "No Ifs, No Buts, No third runway" beach towel; and John Stewart's book "Why Noise Matters." The case was then wheeled off in the direction of Downing Street. HACAN chair John Stewart said, “This diverse range of groups gives a flavour of the formidable opposition David Cameron will face if he gives the green light to a third runway."
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Ciudad Real airport, cost €1.1 billion to build, sold for €10,000 to Chinese group, perhaps for cargo airport
An abandoned Spanish airport which cost about €1.1bn to build has been sold for €10,000 (about £7,000) in a bankruptcy auction. The deal includes the runway, hangars, the control tower and other buildings. However, the terminal and parking facilities were not part of the sale. Ciudad Real's Central airport, located about 235km south of Madrid, became a symbol of the country's wasteful spending during a construction boom that ended with the financial crisis of 2008, the year the airport opened. It was meant to be an alternative to Madrid's Barajas airport. The operator of the airport went bankrupt in 2012 after it failed to draw enough traffic. Ryanair used it briefly. A group of British and Asian international investors, Chinese group Tzaneen International, tabled the single bid in Friday's auction. There was no other interest. The receiver had set a minimum price of €28 million. If no better bid is received by September, the sale will go through. Tzaneen reportedly plans to invest €60 - €100 million in the airport and make it a cargo hub. The offer is for the airport infrastructure only, not adjacent land. It has a long runway and was designed to handle 2.5 million passengers per year. It is thought that Chinese companies want to make it their "main point of entry into Europe”.
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Heathrow gets 270 businesses to ask David Cameron to support building 3rd runway
Heathrow has got some 270 business people, many from companies with a clear direct financial interest, to write an open letter to David Cameron to ask him to get on quickly with building a Heathrow runway. They make the usual claims about the lack of a runway holding back the growth of UK business across the UK, and of limiting future investment in the UK. The actual connection between the runway, and all these good things, is never clearly set out, and the runway would in reality largely be used for holidays or visiting friends and family. The business people say in their letter that the runway would " improve connectivity both within and outside the UK, driving exports and stimulating growth across the country." Curiously, they never mention stimulating imports. They want the UK to be macho and show it is willing and able to "take the steps needed to maintain its position as a well-connected open trading economy in the 21st century" and "doing nothing will put Britain’s economy in a perilous position." It claims "a majority of people in Heathrow’s local communities" back the runway. No evidence for that is given. Meanwhile Heathrow is encouraging passengers to send an easy-to-fill-in-with-no-effort postcards, to David Cameron, asking him to expand Heathrow immediately. Daniel Moylan tweeted: "Move fast on Heathrow? Before we work out the cost to taxpayer and passenger and the harm to residents? Got it."
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Report finding air pollution kills 9,500 Londoners revives Mayor’s opposition to Heathrow runway
A new study by Kings College, London, commissioned by the GLA and TfL, has shown that London’s pollution killed 9,500 people in 2010. It showed that about there were about 3,537 early deaths in 2010 due to PM2.5s, and about 5,879 deaths from NO2 (ie a total of about 9,416 in 2010. NO2 is largely created by diesel cars, lorries and buses, and affects lung capacity and growth. The findings have prompted Boris to renew his calls for abandoning the expansion of Heathrow Airport on air quality grounds, saying: "My greatest priority remains to protect the well-being and environment of Londoners.” Roads around Heathrow are among those in breach of EU rules. Johnson’s office said that the latest study means “the government must now rule out expansion of Heathrow.” But Boris has also said that he will not resign as Mayor, or as MP for Uxbridge, if the Conservative party back a Heathrow 3rd runway. He had earlier said he would lie down in front of the bulldozers to stop it. Now he says the runway plan is “crackers” and “I don’t think the Heathrow third-runway option has ever been credible ... It’s just going to be politically undeliverable, and we need a better long-term solution.” But Zac Goldsmith has said he would resign as an MP, and stand as an independent, if the Tories back the Heathrow runway.