Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
KCC opposes estuary airport but says Manston is the short term answer to airport shortage
Both Medway Council and Kent County Council have described plans for a Thames estuary airport as a "pie in the sky" idea, and believe Manston airport should be developed instead. Kent County Council has recently said "The building of a new airport will take at least a few years to come to fruitition. Increasing the use of Manston airport could help the government’s initiative to boost airport capacity in the South East in the short term.” This is very troubling to people living around Manston. Leaders on Medway Council have called on Transport Secretary Justine Greening to look at "fully utilising the capacity of existing airports including Manston and Birmingham, which could both be joined to London by high speed rail."
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London 2012: Heathrow outlines Olympics strategy with temporary terminal
Heathrow is planning to build and open a temporary Games Terminal for the Olympics. BAA is spending more than £20m on the Games in total and they say it won't use any public funds. Heathrow says 27 June to 1 October will be its critical period, with 80% of Games visitors expected to pass through the airport. On its busiest expected days - 26 July and 13 August - it predicted passenger levels would increase from an estimated 95,000 on a usual day to 138,000. However, various sources suggest that there will be many fewer non-Olympic tourists during the period with bookings down.
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How Boris Island is blocked by his father’s great work
If "Boris Island" is ever to become a fully fledged £50bn international aviation hub with six runways and links to Europe and London, as Boris hopes, the government will need to get round, weaken or somehow overcome the EU Habitats directive, the gold standard legislation that has protected the wild north Kent marshes and its myriad birds, plants, insects, bats and newts from development for nearly 30 years.That was his dad's great work. The EU Habitats directive is the great and lasting endeavour Stanley Johnson, working in Brussels in the late 1970s.
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Medway open letter calls for urgent meeting with Secretary of State over Thames estuary airport
The Leader of Medway Council, Rodney Chambers, and the leaders of three main groups of Medway councillors, have written an open letter to Theresa Villiers, asking for a meeting on the subject of an estuary airport. They say they need to discuss face to face the ramifications of such proposals for Medway, the historic county of Kent and all communities near the Thames estuary. They say "We strongly urge you to keep to government policy and continue looking at fully utilising the capacity of existing airports".
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‘Boris Island’ airport plan grounded over Johnson’s briefing to Telegraph
The Guardian reports that Downing Street is not happy about how Boris and his team gave the Telegraph their story about the estuary airport, and how this has backfired by producing a united and concerted opposition from the Lib Dems. It is thought that the Lib Dems will support a consultation by Justine Greening on how to maintain a hub airport, but they will oppose any new airport. Boris and some business people persist in pushing the line that the UK must have a huge airport in order to compete with European countries (which in turn build larger airports to compete with London), and that this is the only way in which the UK can get flights to lesser known Chinese cities. The only attraction for the government of a massive airport project would be the hope of large numbers of attractive jobs for years.
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John Stewart on Cameron’s change of heart about Boris and his airport
John - Chair of AirportWatch - writes that the high-profile way David Cameron chose to make the announcement that the government will look at the merits of a new airport in the Thames Estuary suggests that it has as much to do with political calculation as aviation policy. He will be hoping that the London mayor’s persistent championing of the proposal will garner him votes from West London in the forthcoming mayoral elections. His announcement also serves the political purpose of reassuring business, which for years has been calling for new infrastructure. The prime minister is aware he is creating a mirage of economic activity. He also knows that the estuary airport may never happen and has staged a drama for political effect.
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David Cameron to give his provisional support to estuary airport
T Cameron is expected to offer his provisional support to Boris's estuary airport scheme. He is now thought to back the project, though he was initially against it. The Thames airport proposal will be in the government's aviation policy consultation that starts in March, though Downing Street says the government will make a final decision on the basis of the consultation process. This announcement may have been intended for earlier in the month, and may have been delayed by doubts by Nick Clegg. The Lib Dems used to have a policy to oppose airport expansion. Since we have committed to spend £32 billion on HST, there isn't a lot of spare money for other projects.
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Luton Airport hopes to boost passenger numbers by 7- 9 million per year
Luton airport - the UK's 5th biggest - has announced a 4 week consultation on its plans that will start on 6 th February. It has plans to increase the annual number of passengers. It would handle 18 million passengers a year under the plan, up from 11.5 million. Work "can be achieved within the airport's existing boundary and using the existing runway". Once the consultation ends, the airport hopes to submit a planning application in April. The airport says: "Impacts on the environment, noise and road traffic flows will be fully evaluated as part of the process." The airport announced plans for road improvements in November to reduce anticipated congestion at the time of the Olympics. Some of the work is paid for by public funds.
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More Operating Restrictions Loom For Frankfurt Airport
Airlines may face not only a permanent ban on night flights at Frankfurt Airport, but also more restrictions on daytime operations following protests about noise since the 4th runway was opened in October. The state Prime Minister - who was earlier against a night time ban - now hopes Germany's highest administrative court will uphold a lower court ruling that imposed a curfew from 11pm to 5am. When the runway opened there was an initial agreement for a curfew in return for the expansion, but the government later temporarily dropped this commitment. Protests are beginning to show their effect ahead of the 2013 elections.
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Edinburgh Airport sale attracts interest of JP Morgan
JP MORGAN, the US financial institution, is believed to be the latest to express an interest in bidding for Edinburgh airport. The bank is believed to be sounding out interested parties ahead of the deadline for offers in March. Potential bidders will submit bids in excess of £400 million. A preferred bidder will be selected by the summer. The growing list of those interested in buying Edinburgh 3i and the US-based Carlyle Group (included Sir Brian Souter) and GIP. Arcus European Infrastructure Fund may also table an offer. Also a consortium of Scottish businessmen. A price of £400 - 600 million is likely.