Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
Heathrow air pollution in relation to 2013 being the “Year of Air”
The European Commission has announced that 2013 is the ‘Year of Air’ with key European air pollution legislation up for review. The review represents a tremendous opportunity to improve public health by tightening air quality standards. Clean Air in London (CAL) believes that key outcomes from the ‘Year of Air’ must include continuity and the further tightening of health and legal protections. Increasing ‘flexibility’ in air pollution laws would weaken existing health and legal protections and is therefore unacceptable. There is a consultation by the EC, on options for the revision of the EU Thematic Strategy on air pollution and related policies, with the closing date on 4 March 2013. Heathrow is a major contributor to air pollution in West London, both from the airport itself and associated road traffic. Information from Hillingdon Council showed a clear correlation between the number of air transport movements and the levels of NOx.
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Heathrow residents disappointed there is still no night flight ban in the DfT consultation
Commenting on the publication today of the DfT's consultation into a new night flight regime at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, HACAN (the Heathrow Association for the Control of Aircraft Noise) said is was disappointed that the Government has still not committed itself to a night flight ban. However, they have welcomed the fact that the Government is prepared to look at measures which could mitigate the noise. These include increasing the angle of descent on approach; guaranteed respite periods; changing the existing scheduling or operating bans which affect the noisiest aircraft types. John Stewart, Chair of HACAN, which represents residents under the Heathrow flight paths, said: “We are very clear that we want a ban on night flights before 6 o’clock and a progressive reduction between 6am and 7am. Many people under the Heathrow flight paths don’t need an alarm clock; the first plane wakes them at 4.30 am.”
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DfT announces start of 3 month consultation on night flight regime at Heathrow, Gatwick & Stansted
The government has begun a 3 month consultation into night flights at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted Airports. It is calling for views and evidence on "the effectiveness of the current regime, the costs and benefits of future options and airlines' fleet replacement plans". The consultation closes on 22nd April 2013. Transport Minister Simon Burns says: "This consultation includes a review of current evidence on the costs of night flights, particularly noise, and the benefits of these flights. It sets out our thinking on how we would expect to appraise the policy options for the next night flights regime." The government will publish the 2nd consultation later this year. It will include specific proposals for the new regime, such as the number of permitted night flights. The proposals in the 2nd consultation will be informed by the evidence received from this 1st stage consultation. The Dft says it aims to strike "a fair balance between the interests of those affected by the noise disturbance and those of the airports, passengers and the UK economy."
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Manchester Council to cut share in MAG from 55% to 35.5% and 9 other councils cut theirs from 45% to 29%
The Manchester Evening News looked at the recent purchase of Stansted airport, by MAG, and assessed what this means for Manchester taxpayer, Manchester airport and the region. 10 councils currently own MAG and they have not had to pay anything towards the deal. The cash has been raised through a combination of MAG selling a 35.5% stake in itself to IFM and agreeing a new debt package with its banks. The deal will see Manchester Council reduce its stake in MAG from 55% to 35.5%. The other 9 councils, which currently have a 5% stake each, will share equally the remaining 29% of MAG. After buying Stansted, MAG will control nearly 19% of the UK aviation market, and this may strengthen its bargaining power when negotiating with airlines. The 10 councils hope to get a larger annual dividend now. In 2012, £20m was paid out, of which £11m went to Manchester and £1m each to the other 9 councils. MAG hopes to increase profits at Stansted, which is operating now at 47% of capacity, by increasing income from shops, restaurants and bars.
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MAG have no plans for a 2nd Stansted runway but want more airlines other than Ryanair
The Times reports that Stansted's new owners, Manchester Airports Group, do not have any plans to build a second runway. MAG take up ownership at the end of February. Industry Funds Management helped MAG buy the airport, by taking a 35.5% stake. It told the Times that it now wants to attract other airlines, as Ryanair has around 70% of flights at Stansted. Even perhaps some full service airlines. Stansted no longer even makes full use of its one runway, with the number of passengers falling from almost 24 million in 2007 to some 17.4 million in 2012, due to easyJet taking many of its flights to Gatwick instead, and the closure of some small low cost airlines. IFM said the airport is only working at about 47% capacity. Charlie Cornish, MAG’s chief executive, indicated the company had little appetite for competing with Heathrow. He called Stansted “the London airport for Europe”.
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Snow problems at Heathrow being used as opportunity to lobby for another runway
Around 2 inches of snow at Heathrow has caused many cancellations and delays to flights. Meanwhile, three inches of snow at Gatwick has not caused any significant disturbance. And Gatwick only has one runway. Heathrow claims that poor visibility conditions mean more separation distance has to be allowed for planes, and thus imply that they could do better with more runways. It seems the snow is being used as an opportunity to stress how difficult it is for the airport to operate at over 98% of capacity. However, much of the problem appears to be internal organisation within Heathrow, rather than any lack of runway space. Heathrow Airport has spent £36m on its Winter Resilience Programme since 2010 and now has 130 snow-clearing vehicles and equipment. But this does not appear to have been very effective. Gatwick spent £8 million on "snow kit", the airport's snow-clearing capacity is now on a par with icy Oslo, and say its snow-clearing equipment now comprises 98 vehicles, up from the 47 it had in 2011. Gatwick said the 50 cancellations it had made were all due to disruption at other airports. So don't be taken in by Heathrow using this as "proof" it needs to expand.
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Stansted to be sold for £1.5bn to Manchester Airports Group
Manchester Airports Group has won the bidding process to buy Stansted, at £1.5 billion - higher than commentators though the price would be, when bidding closed two days ago. MAG will now own Stansted, Manchester, East Midlands and Bournemouth airports. Heathrow Airport Holdings, will retain only 4 UK airports compared with its original 7 - Heathrow, Glasgow, Southampton and Aberdeen. The sale is expected to close by the end of February. MAG also includes the commercial property company, MAG Developments, which has a £350m portfolio across its existing 3 airports and is leading the £650m Enterprise Zone development, Airport City, at Manchester. MAG also runs businesses in car parking, airport security, firefighting, engineering, advertising and motor transport. As part of the transaction, Australian infrastructure investment group Industry Funds Management (IFM) will become an investor in MAG, invest new equity and take a 35.5% stake in the enlarged group. Gatwick sold for £1.51 billion and Edinburgh sold for £807 million.
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Blog by John Stewart on Heathrow: “It’s the Politics, Stupid”
In a new blog, John Stewart writes that it will be the politics - not economics, noise or climate change –-that will determine where, if anywhere, new runways will be built. Many politicians now understand this. Willie Walsh of BA understands it. But it appears that those still backing a 3rd - even a 4th - runway at Heathrow have not fully understood the extent of the political opposition. Across London almost three quarters of a million Londoners are affected by aircraft noise already. The extent of the opposition there would be, on noise grounds alone, if another runway affected hundreds of thousands more Londoners, would be immense. That coalition that fought the 3rd runway plans is merely dormant, and it would come back - more confident than before with even more opposition. It has provided inspiration to campaigners across Europe – from Munich to Siena – who are now seeing off their runway proposals. The reality is that this opposition would make another Heathrow runway politically undeliverable.
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Outline planning application for Manchester Airport City Enterprise Zone approved
Following on from the approval given to the £100m World Logistics Hub at Manchester Airport in November, outline plans for a 2nd major development, Airport City North, went out to public consultation that started in November and closed on 20th December. The plans went the Wythenshawe Area Planning Committee and were then approved by the Manchester City Council Planning and Highways Committee meeting on 17th January. It is intended that the 65-acre site will become a ‘Major International Business Park’, or "Airport City", containing 4182 car parking spaces, 1293 hotel rooms, manufacturing, offices and retail space. The World Logistics Hub is just part of the project. Others are MedCity with the University Hospital South Manchester Foundation Trust. There are huge claims of some 11,400 jobs to be created at Airport City which will include offices, hotels and factories. However, in reality, many of these jobs transfer from elsewhere.
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Berlin Airport CEO Rainer Schwarz “dismissed” as opening delayed indefinitely
Berlin Brandenburg Airport’s CEO Rainer Schwarz has been dismissed from his role “with immediate effect”. He has been CEO since 2006. The opening of the airport is now delayed indefinitely, with no date given. This has caused great embarrassment for Berlin's authorities. Originally due to open in June 2012, this date was first delayed until March 17, 2013, when problems with the airport’s fire safety systems were discovered. In October 2012 it was announced that the opening would be October 27, 2013. But now fire problems are still on-going and October is no longer realistic, and even setting a new date is at least several months away. At its meeting on January 16, the board and appointed as its new chairman, Matthias Platzeck, Prime Minister of the State of Brandenburg. He will succeed Klaus Wowereit, mayor of Berlin, who held this position since 2001. The board said that in future a triumvirate would head the company.