Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
Bristol Airport awaits decision on expansion as inquiry draws to a close
The 36-day public inquiry into Bristol Airport's proposal to expand from 10 to 12 mppa has ended, with a decision by the planning inspectors expected early next year. The inquiry is into the appeal by the airport of the rejection in February 2020, by North Somerset Council, of the growth plans; councillors refused the planning permission by 18 votes to seven. The authority’s barrister, Reuben Taylor, said allowing millions more passengers a year to fly from Bristol airport would affect thousands more local people with significant impacts, as well as a negative effect on climate change and the green belt. Mr Taylor said the scheme was unacceptable and unlawful and urged the inspectors to make it clear to airport operators that they do not have a licence to expand. He said the airport "is a company that puts the pursuit of profit before the wellbeing of the people its operations affect." As well as being refused by North Somerset Council, the expansion has been opposed by Bristol City Council, Bath and North East Somerset Council, the West of England Combined Authority and numerous parish councils. There will be a decision letter eventually, after which there is no further right of appeal - other than a judicial review into the process.
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Local Councils asked to reject Newcastle Airport’s request for a £5.1 million loan of taxpayers’ money
Local group, Aircraft Noise Action Group (ANAG), at Newcastle say the 7 North East Councils, which own 51% of the Airport, are being asked to prop up (by £5.1 million of taxpayers' money) for an at-risk business which mostly enables people to take holidays and visit friends and relatives. Newcastle Airport has suffered huge financial losses as a result of Covid with revenues falling by £46 million according to its 2020 Annual Report. The airport is struggling financially - so it is asking for loan facilities to support its continued functioning. As well as the councils, the airport is asking the 49% private shareholder, AMP Capital, for a similar sum £4.9 million. Newcastle Airport claims to be a key driver of business in the North East. In practice, it is primarily a holiday and leisure facility with a small proportion of business specific travellers. Most travellers are British, taking their holiday spending money out of the country. ANAG says people need holidays, but a loan for this purpose is not an investment in the economic future of the north east. They also think it is environmentally short sighted and irresponsible and that the loan request should be rejected.
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Bid to block expansion of Stansted, to 43mppa, hits the final buffers
Uttlesford District Council (UDC) had applied to the High Court to judicially review the decision by the planning inspectorate, to allow expansion of Stansted, citing noise and environmental concerns. A High Court judge has now dismissed UDC's challenge as “unarguable”, and awarded yet more costs against the authority. UDC has decided not to challenge this decision. UDC's Planning Committee originally refused Stansted permission to boost capacity from 35mppa to 43mppa, in January 2020. (Earlier, in November 2018, UDC had approved the plan, when the council was under Conservative leadership). Government inspectors then overturned the UDC decision in May 2021, after a process which cost Uttlesford taxpayers something approaching £2 million. The Council had fought hard to prevent the increase in Stansted flights, largely due to the increased noise problem, as well as the higher carbon emissions. Local campaign, Stansted Airport Watch, says this latest rejection marks the end of the road for moves to block the expansion. However, with the Covid pandemic and growing awareness of climate breakdown, Stansted may never actually reach 43mppa anyway.
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Aviation demand in Scotland needs to fall by one third by 2030 to hit climate aims
The SNP Transport Minister Graeme Dey has demanded “radical behavioural change” in Scots’ transport choices – amid a warning that journeys by both plane and car will need to be permanently cut to end the country’s contribution to the climate crisis. There will need to be a significant reduction in demand for air travel, and technology alone will not achieve the transformational change required. There needs to be a reduction of 33% in the number flight kilometres travelled, between the number in 2019 and 2030. Transport is Scotland’s biggest contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, but there is little progress in making cuts. The SNP government has pledged to cut GHG emissions by 75% by 2030 and to become carbon "net zero" by 2045 (5 years ahead of the UK). An independent report, by consultancy Element Energy, says transformational change in individual and business behaviour, alongside shifting travel choices will be needed as well as advances in technology. The SNP Government has been told to rip up its contract with Heathrow which supports it building a 3rd runway, in light of the findings.
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Extinction Rebellion blocks entrances to Farnborough, protesting about the high CO2 from private jets
Extinction Rebellion Farnborough activists blocked three entrances to Farnborough, which is a private airport in Hampshire. They are protesting at the very high carbon emissions produced by private jet flights - which could be x20 as high carbon as a trip on a commercial plane. Farnborough airport is the largest for private jets in the UK, with no commercial flights and few military. The flights are largely used by the very rich, celebrities and business leaders. Some of the protesters locked themselves to a stretch limousine, with a driver being locked onto the steering wheel, and to fuel barrels and a 3-metre steel tripod. At one point they moved flags blocking a road, in order to allow a car leave the airport to take someone to hospital. The airport continued to operate during the protest. Farnborough boasts of “offering a 5 star service with no compromises.” It operated over 32,500 flights in 2019, with 27% at weekends. There was a reduction in flights in 2020 (Covid) but a far smaller reduction than for commercial airlines. People who could afford to preferred to continue to travel, but on private jets. These jets tend to carry, on average, about 2.3 passengers. The airport hopes to expand to 50,000 flights per year.
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Advertising Standards Authority to launch crackdown on ads falsely claiming low-carbon credentials – including airlines
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) will conduct a series of inquiries into environmental advertising claims and practices by companies in several sectors - energy, heating and transport. Airline ads that encourage people to take flights and carmakers that show SUVs too positively are set to fall foul of a crackdown on marketing that encourages environmentally irresponsible behaviour. The intention is to support global efforts to reduce carbon emissions. In early 2022 the ASA will expand its investigation to look at the accuracy of green claims made by companies around waste - and then later it will look at meat and food sustainability advertising. The ASA hopes their "work will continue to positively influence the fight against climate change.” It will also commission research into what the public understands by terms such as “carbon neutral” and “net zero” in order to inform its policing of claims. It has already clamped down on Ryanair – which got caught using outdated information to claim it was the UK’s lowest emission airline. The UK Competition and Markets Authority is also launching its own review of misleading green claims next year.
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Report finds Heathrow is world’s 2nd most polluting airport (after Dubai)
London's 6 airports make it the most polluting city by aviation emissions, according to a new interactive tool and accompanying report. The tool allows users to explore emissions data for the world’s airports. It shows Heathrow is the 2nd highest-emitting airport in the world, (after Dubai) and accounts for two thirds of the aviation carbon from the London area. It is (2019) the single biggest polluter in the UK. The authors of the report, by Transport & Environment, ODI and the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), said they hoped its findings would support challenges to airport expansion and force a “focus on the infrastructure that enables air travel and leads to more CO2 emissions in future decades”. The report shows that 86 of the 100 most polluting airports are located in the Global North - and that about 1% of the global population responsible for over 50% of all aviation-related CO2 emissions. But the climate impact of air travel is not only from the fuel burned, but also the non-CO2 warming impacts, including the insulating effect of contrails. The report says the global aviation sector was responsible for 2.5% of global CO2 emissions in 2018, with total emissions increasing by 5% annually in the 5 years before that.
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BA plan for new low cost “BA Lite” at Gatwick, for short-haul flights, abandoned
At the end of August British Airways announced that it hoped to start a new low-cost airline, called "BA Lite" to operate from Gatwick, and compete with Ryanair, EasyJet and Wizz. BA would therefore move short-haul flights back to Gatwick, after deciding to move them to Heathrow because of the pandemic. BA had consultations with trades unions – telling them that change was essential if it was to return to Gatwick. But the contracts for staff were less generous than before. Now the plan to create "BA Lite" has been scrapped, as agreement could not be reached with the pilots' union, BALPA. The union says the benefits and protections its members would have under the new company are not good enough. So BA has shelved the plan and will now cut the short haul routes it already flies from Gatwick.The news may come as a blow for Gatwick Airport as well, as it looks to grow passengers numbers and bring its emergency runway into regular use to increase its capacity. The loss of BA and its routes means Gatwick has even less need for its costly, climate-wrecking, expansion plans to bring its standby runway into full use, by 2029.
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Heathrow hopes to be allowed to increase long-haul passenger charge from £38.33 to £67.86 in 2022
The Telegraph has obtained details of plans by Heathrow to increase its charges for long-haul passenger next year, by about £30 per person, up from about £38. Heathrow has massive debts, bad before Covid and far worse now. It has one of the biggest debt piles in British corporate history. Heathrow says it is not expecting more than a quarter of the number of passengers in 2022, compared to the number (81 million) in 2019 - so it has to increases prices. It has had to ask lenders for waivers on banking conditions, to avoid defaulting on its loans. Heathrow will have to get agreement from the CAA for an increase in costs, under its regulatory framework. The CAA is likely to decide on this in the next month, and it may not be favourable to Heathrow. The airlines are predictably angry. However, in order to reduce aviation carbon emissions, some demand reduction is needed - such as higher prices - though the government will not consider that. Heathrow is also planning a new levy on air cargo, to make more money. It is also planning to introduce a new lower noise level, to encourage less noisy planes.
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West of England leaders to formally oppose expansion of Bristol Airport
Leaders of the west region (Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) and North Somerset) are expected to change their minds, and instead of backing expansion of Bristol airport, now oppose it. Metro mayor Dan Norris is tabling a motion at a special meeting on 21st September of the West of England Combined Authority’s (Weca’s) joint committee, which he leads, that would scrap its previous endorsement of the plans. The motion could be carried by a majority vote of the 5 members, so the motion will be carried if Mr Norris (Bristol) and Cllrs Guy (B&NES) and Davies (North Somerset) support it as expected. Cllr Guy said: “Airport expansion is fundamentally incompatible with local councils’ commitment to tackling the climate emergency." Mr Norris’s motion includes the statements that: There is a climate and biodiversity emergency ... The West of England has ambition net zero targets for 2030 ...The proposed expansion of Bristol Airport is one of the biggest carbon decisions in the region for the coming decade. And “The Joint Committee resolves: To oppose the latest plans to expand Bristol Airport.”