Airport News
Below are news items relating to specific airports
New fears over Suffolk air traffic
Campaigners fighting a 2nd runway at Stansted have claimed closer scrutiny of the plan reveals there could be a major impact on the peaceful Suffolk countryside. Campaigners and the Suffolk Preservation Society have joined forces to call for the plans to be shelved. People in the Lavenham and Newmarket areas particularly have voiced concerns. They say the county's tranquility would be "severely" shattered. (East Anglian Daily Times)
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London City Airport Flash Mob – 8th October 2008
There will be a flash mob about London City Airport's expansion plans, on Wednesday 8th October, outside Newham Town Hall, Barking Road, East Ham, London E6, where the Development Control meeting will take place. The meeting is expected to give permission for expansion of the airport, from its current 80,000 to 120,000 a year. The increased flights will be highly detrimental to the local community, in terms of noise and air pollution. Come and support the flash mob!
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Manchester ‘Flash mob’ protest over airport
PROTEST groups descended on the Labour Party conference to oppose the expansion of Manchester Airport. The flash mob, from the new environmental pressure group Stop Expansion at Manchester Airport (SEMA), was designed to highlight the 'madness' of plans that would see the number of passengers double to 50 million a year by 2030. SEMA protester Robbie Gillett said the airport already responsible for as much CO2 per year as Uganda. (Manchester Evening News)
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(Lydd Airport) Zaher Deir in shock resignation
Zaher Deir, managing director of London Ashford Airport (Lydd), has announced his resignation with immediate effect following a top-level bust-up. He cited differences with the shareholders and a member of the board of LAA who are responsible for running the business. Under his direction, LAA has submitted 2 planning applications - one for a new terminal building, the other is for a 294-metre runway extension. A decision is expected shortly. (Kent News)
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(Southend) Bigger airport means ‘more noise for Leigh’
More than 200 people attended a meeting organised by the local branch of Friends of the Earth to draw up battle lines against the expansion, and to form a new committee to fight it. The larger airport, which could mean the demolition of some houses, is expected to cater for two million passengers a year, which equates to 40 flights a day. While there are restrictions on night passenger flights, there are none on night freight flights. (Echo)
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(Anglesey) Island airport seeks new routes
A 45-minute service started between Anglesey and Cardiff in May 2007, but there are now proposals to connect with London and Dublin. Plans are at an early stage, but a feasibility study is being carried out. The airport was built and is managed by Anglesey council, while the Welsh Assembly Government subsidises the north-south air service. The Welsh Assembly Government invested £1.3m in the project. Highland Airways is the airport's sole airline. (BBC)
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Consultation begins on Heathrow equalities impact assessment
The DfT has today begun a consultation on how airport development at Heathrow might affect different demographic groups living near to the airport. The Equalities Impact Assessment (EqIA) forms part of the Impact Assessment underpinning the 'Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport' consultation, and seeks to establish the impact of airport development on different groups in terms of race, disability, age and social deprivation. Ends 9th November. (DfT)
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(Bristol) Campaigners hit out at airport plans
SBAE has hit out at plans to increase passenger numbers at Bristol Airport (BIA) to 10 million a year by 2016. The figures were included in a planning document submitted to North Somerset Council, which shows proposals to extend part of the terminal to make room for more aircraft and also expand car parking facilities. Hilary Burn said that given aviation's contribution to climate change, it would be madness to allow it to expand in this way. (Mercury)
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(Aberdeen) Airport bosses blame credit crunch for fall in passengers
Aberdeen Airport has seen a fall in passenger figures for the 4th month in a row. The figures cap a disappointing summer for the airport, with lower figures than 2007. Footfall was down 5.4% in August compared with 2007. The airport handled 299,197 passengers last month, and saw a sharp decline of 8.4% in customers on domestic flights, but did see an increase of 1.4% in inter-national passengers. In July passenger numbers fell by 2.6%. (Press & Journal)
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Mayor backs London City Airport’s plan to boost flights by half
Boris Johnson has given the "green light" to City Airport plans for a 50% increase in flights. Newham Council delayed the planning decision last month after Mr Johnson intervened, saying he wanted the project to meet certain conditions first. He is now happy to back the proposal, which would see an increase in the number of flights from 80,000 to 120,000 a year by 2010. Green Assembly member Darren Johnson criticised the Mayor's decision. (Standard)