Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
Flybe accuses Gatwick of ignoring UK regions
Saad Hammad, the chief executive of Flybe, has criticised Gatwick for failing to address the needs of Britain’s regions, in its attempt to win support for its second runway. The head of the UK’s biggest regional airline said that Heathrow had been “more specific about what they are going to do” on take-off and landing slots and on charges for domestic flights and “I don’t think Gatwick has been as sensitive as we would like.... Heathrow has one up on Gatwick in terms of listening to regional needs and requirements.” Heathrow has said it would look at cutting charges for regional flights as part of a regular review of fees, though no binding commitment has been made. These cuts are largely to deter passengers flying via Schiphol or other European hubs, rather than concern for the regional airports. Flybe has no flights into Heathrow and only one from Gatwick to Newquay. It sold 25 pairs of slots to easyJet in 2013. A spokesman for Gatwick said that it had the “best” regional links of any London airport and would remain significantly cheaper than Heathrow, even if Heathrow reduced their domestic fees. Gatwick said it is planning to give details of its proposals on fees further later this month. It has claimed its landing charges would not rise above £15 per passenger, but only it gets a 2nd runway and Government agrees a contract not to allow any other runway in the south east for 30 years ....
Click here to view full story...
Campaigners at London City Airport demand true noise measurement – combining Heathrow + London City flight noise
Campaigners at London City Airport are calling for a change in the way aircraft noise is measured, and more needs to be done to protect people living under noisy flight paths. The group’s chair, John Stewart, says the problem is partly down to a lack of measurement of the cumulative noise produced by flight paths from several airports (Heathrow and London City here) which both affect one area. He believes separate measurements of just each airport’s noise fail to give a true picture of the impact on residents, resulting in official statistics that underestimate aircraft noise levels. Both need to be combined in order to get a figure for the total noise in order to get an accurate assessment of the real noise levels experienced by residents. John said: “In the areas of east and south east London, where people get planes from both London City and Heathrow, noise levels will be a lot higher than official statistics show.” The concerns remain despite mayor of London Boris Johnson’s blocking of London City Airport’s proposed expansion. HACAN East says the Greater London Assembly backed cumulative noise readings, from both airports combined, two years ago, and that the airport should recognise this. It suits the aviation industry to deliberately keep the noise figures separate.
Click here to view full story...
Historic village of Harmondsworth, threatened by Heathrow 3rd runway, opens its doors on Sunday 12th April
The ancient village of Harmondsworth, which originated as a Saxon manor and is now facing demolition if a 3rd Heathrow runway is built to the north-west of the airport. It is staging an Open Day on Sunday 12th April to give the media and members of the public a chance to see what would be destroyed. The focus of the event is the re-opening of the celebrated 15th-century Great Barn for the first time since the completion of major repairs by English Heritage. The Barn, described by poet Sir John Betjeman as “the cathedral of Middlesex”, was saved from developers by the intervention of a group of determined villagers. There will also be the unveiling (1.30pm) of a huge mural, especially created for the occasion, illustrating the proposed airport boundary cutting through the heart of picturesque Harmondsworth. There will be a visit to the newly-planted trees on the Recreation Ground which demonstrates that the community intends to fight to preserve its historic roots for future generations to enjoy, rather than watch it obliterated by further expansion of the airport. And there will be Morris dancing at various times throughout the day, as well as walking tours. Organisers, SHE (Stop Heathrow Expansion) say this is a great opportunity to see the unique village of Harmondsworth, and "also to show to the world that we are utterly determined to fight for our homes and our community. We will not be going anywhere else.”
Click here to view full story...
Schiphol airport unfazed by prospect of new London runway – many UK passengers prefer transferring from Schiphol
Schiphol Group president and chief executive Jos Nijhuis, described Amsterdam as “London’s second hub”. Schiphol now handles up to 8 million UK passengers a year, 60% of whom connect to onward flights. Schiphol believes passengers from UK regional airports will continue to choose Amsterdam rather than Heathrow to connect to long‑haul flights, even if Heathrow gets a 3rd runway. 13 UK airports have services to Amsterdam and this will rise to 14 next month, with the addition of Belfast. The loss of UK regional traffic to Amsterdam because of capacity constraints at Heathrow has featured heavily in Heathrow's lobbying for a new runway, wanting to prevent the loss of customers to Schiphol. And wanting to keep on being the biggest international airport, by far, in Europe. Jos Nijhuis said: “We are London’s second hub and doing very well. ...I tell [Heathrow chief executive] John Holland-Kaye: ‘Consider our most western runway as yours. We can rename it Heathrow Runway Three....We are a much better transfer airport [than our rivals]. We designed the airport for transfers.” KLM chief executive Pieter Elbers said: “I don’t think additional capacity in London would make Heathrow more attractive than Schiphol to passengers in Newcastle or Humberside." He felt higher charges needed by Heathrow to pay for a new runway would mean the runway would not reduce the traffic going via Schiphol.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow to reduce charges on domestic flights from £29.59 to £19.59 from 1st Jan 2016 – to deter passengers flying via Schiphol etc
Heathrow plans to cut the fees it charges airlines for domestic passengers. It says that from 1st January 2016 it will reduce the minimum departure charge for all flights (currently £1,406) to £1,268.40 per domestic flight. It will also cut the charge from £29.59 to £19.59 per passenger, in a bid to increase the number of passengers flying between UK regional airports and Heathrow. Heathrow serves just 7 regional destinations, down from 18 in 1990. It hopes the lower charges on domestic routes would encourage fuller planes and make more efficient use of the limited number of slots for regional flights, which are less profitable for airlines than long haul flights. Heathrow also says it will reduce minimum charges per plane to £1,592.15 for EU flights and £2,689.82 for non-EU destinations. It will also cut the per passenger charge for passengers flying to European destinations by £5 to £24.59. They plan instead to charge more for the noisiest planes, and those that emit more NOx - with the overall changes revenue neutral. The aim is discouraging passengers flying via European airports like Schiphol, and using Heathrow instead. The environmental fees would rise from being 21% to being 28% of total airport charges. Heathrow also say that, if they get a 3rd runway, they would open 5 new domestic routes, including Humberside, Newquay and Liverpool.
Click here to view full story...
Flybe to start “up to 3 flights per day” between Liverpool and Schiphol for links to destinations across the world
Regional airline Flybe will be starting flights between Liverpool and Schiphol (Amsterdam) from September 7th 2015. From Schiphol, passengers can transfer to a range of long haul destinations, avoiding having to fly to Heathrow in order to transfer. There will be up to three flights per day. The airport says: "Details of which airlines passengers will be able to connect onwards with will be announced shortly, but flights are expected to coincide with onward connections at Amsterdam to destinations such as New York, Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Shanghai and Toronto." Interlining is crucial to the route's success. Re-establishing the link to Amsterdam is a cause for celebration for the airport, which was dismayed when KLM, withdrew its Schiphol connection in 2012 following a cull of its route network. Liverpool airport hopes the Schiphol link would benefit Merseyside and North Wales travellers who want to connect with the rest of the world, for business. As well as making it easier for Brits to fly abroad on leisure trips, it might encourage inwards tourism too. Heathrow has offered to spend money getting links with Liverpool, and now Gatwick is trying to as well.... to avoid the business going to Schiphol.
Click here to view full story...
Access to expanded Heathrow could cost £20 billion, TfL warns – maybe £15 billion more from the taxpayer than Commission estimate
Transport for London (TfL) has raised "serious concerns" about congestion and the costs of expansion at Heathrow just weeks before the Airports Commission's final recommendation is due (end of June?). TFL Response to APPG on Surface Access Feb 2015 In response to questions by Zac Goldsmith, TfL said both Heathrow and Commission had "significantly underestimated" the challenge of improving transport access to the site, with the Airports Commission estimating £5 billion would be enough to make the improvements. TfL believes to provide an optimal level of service, the figure would be nearer to £20 billion, raising questions about who would pay the additional costs. TfL said population growth of 37% by 2050 has also not been taken into account, with regards to the increased pressure on London's roads and public transport infrastructure, Zac said: "TfL is better placed than any other organisation to understand the effects Heathrow expansion will have on London’s transport network, and it is extraordinary therefore that the Commission never bothered to ask for its assessment. This raises serious questions about the thoroughness and reliability of the Commission’s work. If TfL is right, the taxpayer may end up having to cough up an additional £15 billion to help Heathrow secure its monopoly, in addition to all the associated problems of gridlock, noise and air pollution."
Click here to view full story...
1st April. “Heathrow in secret plan to compulsory purchase Sunbury Golf Course for housing”
Unfortunately this story was an April Fools joke. Howewer, the number of homes to be demolished (783), the number of homes Heathrow has had to offer to buy (3,750), the shortage of land to build houses in areas around Heathrow, are all accurate and true. So is the absence of any plan to move those who will have their homes compulsorily purchased to alternative sites, let alone to move people as a community.... The story said: "Harmondsworth and Longford residents, who are facing the bulldozers if Heathrow's north-west runway goes ahead, could be offered new homes on Sunbury Golf Course. Heathrow Airport Ltd are understood to have been in negotiation for the compulsory purchase of the golf centre site, that includes a popular 6,000-yard course. MPs and local authorities around Heathrow have expressed concern about the housing crisis in London and the South East, and the necessity to re-house those currently living in the 783 homes that will be destroyed. In addition Heathrow has offered to buy up 3,750 houses that will become almost uninhabitable due to the noise and air pollution. These people also need to be found new homes. Heathrow bosses have been looking at possible solutions, wishing to be fair to local communities and foster community cohesion.They have therefore been in covert discussions with neighbouring councils during the past 6 months, to find suitable sites for the relocation of the villagers. Spelthorne Council, a strong supporter of a Heathrow 3rd runway, has played an important behind-the-scenes role in this search. Sunbury Golf Course site provides the ideal location. The planning process for this major project is expected to be fast-tracked so that initial work can begin this autumn."
Click here to view full story...
Stobart have applied for part of the £56 million government funding for three domestic flight routes
Stobart Air, the aviation subsidiary of airport-owner Stobart Group, has applied for start-up aid from the Government’s Regional Air Connectivity Fund. It has asked for funding support for daily services from Carlisle to Southend, Belfast and Dublin to begin in April 2016. In January the Government announced that small airports, that handle fewer than 5 million passengers a year, were encouraged to bid for a share of the £56 million over 3 years to subsidise new routes. The three routes from Carlisle are among 19 under consideration for the latest tranche of aid. Others wanting the aid include Norwich to Paris and Southampton to Lyon with Flybe, and Oxford to Edinburgh with Links Air. Stobart should find out in May if its bids have cleared the first hurdle, and by July if they have been successful. A £12 million redevelopment of Carlisle Airport is under way and should be complete by this September. Stobart is building a freight distribution centre and resurfacing the runway. Previous attempts over many decades to launch scheduled flights from Carlisle have ended in failure. Aviation Minister Robert Goodwill said: “The range and ambition of the bids shows how smaller airports can transform their local areas with new connections and trade links."
Click here to view full story...
CAGNE sends complaint to Airports Commission on poor level of local engagement by Gatwick
CAGNE, the local group set up in 2014 at Gatwick, in response to the trial of new, concentrated flight paths, has written to the Airports Commission, to complain about the activities of Gatwick Airport. Local groups have persistently complained that senior airport staff have declined invitations to attend meetings of communities around the airport. The airport is aware of the huge amount of local opposition. Instead, Gatwick has focused its advertising money and its PR on the London area. It has also contacted a large number of councils, in areas closer to Heathrow (where a Heathrow runway would be opposed) to try to get them to support a Gatwick runway instead. CAGNE points out that the Airports Commission's own work, in its Appraisal Framework, expects runway scheme promoters will show "evidence of sustained and meaningful engagement with local and community stakeholders including highlighting any changes of features of scheme designs arising as a result of this engagement." The Commission also expects the runway promoters to work on managing their "engagement with communities throughout the lifespan of the proposed project, including the period after any new infrastructure is delivered.” CAGNE has little confidence, considering the poor record of Gatwick airport so far, in its future engagement with local people.