Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
A45 diversion plan for Birmingham airport runway extension to cost £32 million
Radical plans to move a major trunk road so that the Birmingham International Airport runway extension can take place will cost £32 million. Birmingham City Council and Solihull Council intend to split the cost of diverting the busy A45. It will also provide faster car and bus access to the airport and NEC, and could eventually have a Midland Metro tram line running alongside. (B'ham Mail)
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Heathrow 3rd runway plans grounded but they could still take flight
Immediately after the Heathrow 3rd runway ruling today, Transport Secretary Lord Adonis said he is determined to press ahead with the plans, which could see the number of Heathrow flights soar to 605,000 a year and then to more than 700,000. This may be a bit of bravado, but Adonis says Heathrow is full, it is vital for Britain, and the government had always planned to have another consultation before going ahead with the runway - (if they win the election).
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High Court Ruling on Heathrow 3rd runway throws expansion plans at Scottish airports into question
Plans to expand Edinburgh, Glasgow and other Scottish airports were thrown into serious doubt today when a High Court Judge said that the Government's 2003 aviation policy didn't fully take into account the effects of climate change and the Climate Change Act 2008. The ruling means expansion plans at Heathrow and dozens of other airports around the country, including Scotland, need to be re-thought. The Aviation White Paper has to be be radically overhauled.
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Highland Airways – North-south Wales airline enters administration
Planes flying the north to south Wales air route have been grounded. Highland Airways that operated the service has entered administration with further bookings being taken. Deputy First Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones said the Welsh Assembly Government would take action to restore it. Highland Airways was awarded a three-year contract to run the north-south Wales route from May 2007. The service had £800,000 a year funding from the assembly government. (BBC)
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Heathrow’s third runway ‘dead’ and runway decision ‘untenable’
The ruling of Judge Carnwath at the High Court has set back plans for a 3rd runway at Heathrow for years, with campaigners calling the project "dead". The alliance of local councils and environmental groups has resulted in a resounding defeat for the government. Strangely Andrew Adonis quickly put out a statement saying he welcomed the ruling. If the Government wants to pursue its 3rd runway plans it must now go back to square one.
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GOVERNMENT’S HEATHROW EXPANSION PLANS IN TATTERS AS JUDGE SLAMS RUNWAY POLICY
The Government’s Heathrow policy is in tatters this morning after the High Court ruled that ministers' decision to give a green light to the proposed 3rd runway at Heathrow does not hold any weight. The judge dismissed the Government’s claims to the contrary as ‘untenable in law and common sense’. If the Government wants to pursue its plans for Heathrow expansion it must now go back to square one and reconsider the entire case for the runway. The implications of today’s ruling are profound, not just for Heathrow but for airport expansion plans across the UK. Lord Justice Carnwath ruled that the 2003 Air Transport White Paper – the foundation of expansion plans across the country - is obsolete because it is inconsistent with the Climate Change Act 2008.
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Greenwash by East Midlands: Willow trees to power airport
East Midlands airport will - quote - "become the first in the UK to be powered partly by willow trees". The first cuttings in the 26-hectare willow farm planned at East Midlands Airport have been planted, and will (evenually) produce about 280 tonnes of wood fuel each year for a biomass boiler in the terminal building. This will save 350 tonnes of CO2. Planes from the airport last year emitted around 325,806 tonnes of CO2. Talk about a drop in the ocean.
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Third runway at Heathrow has fewer benefits, Government admits
The Government (DfT) has admitted that a 3rd runway at Heathrow has fewer benefits than originally thought. The massive building project was originally thought to bring in £5.5 billion to the economy, but new ways of calculating the environmental cost (taking into account not only the damage caused by increased greenhouse gas emissions, but the cost of offsetting the pollution) mean that the value has been reduced to less than £1 billion. (Telegraph)
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Hundreds of new jobs to be created at Biggin Hill airport
Biggin Hill airport is benefitting from millions of pounds worth of investment that is set to create 300 new jobs for the area. Middle Eastern jet company Rizon is constructing a £10million, 13,000 square metre hanger with aircraft parking, maintenance and passenger processing facilities, set to open at the end of May. A new 75-bed hotel will open near the airport.(Kent News)
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Southend Airport expansion gets go-ahead from Government
The government has approved plans for a runway extension at Southend. John Denham claimed the right to a final say on the extension earlier this year, and could have called for a public inquiry on the decision made by Southend Council planners. Opponents are concerned about a rise in passenger numbers to 2m a year and the adverse environmental effect on the Southend area. The council, as usual, were persuaded the airport would bring much needed jobs. (BBC)