General News
Below are links to stories of general interest in relation to aviation and airports.
Councils and campaigners take first step towards legal challenge against government support for Heathrow runway
Solicitors Harrison Grant acting on behalf of Hillingdon, Richmond, Wandsworth and Windsor and Maidenhead Councils, together with Greenpeace and a Hillingdon resident have (17th November) sent a letter, under the Judicial Review Pre-Action Protocol, to the Secretary of State for Transport. The letter gives the Government a period of 14 days in which to withdraw its decision, issued on the 25 October to support a 3rd runway at Heathrow. If it fails to do so, judicial review proceedings will be commenced in the High Court, without further notice to the Government, on the basis that the Government's approach to air quality and noise is unlawful and also that it has failed to carry out a fair and lawful consultation exercise prior to issuing its decision. The 33 page pre-action letter sets out comprehensive grounds for legal challenge, drawing on a broad range of statute and legal precedent, as well as highlighting the many promises and statements made by senior politicians confirming that the third runway would not be built. The move comes shortly after the Government’s air quality plans were overturned in the High Court, putting ministers under greater pressure to reduce illegal levels of air pollution in places like Heathrow. The latest court ruling rejected the current government plans to tackle emissions as inadequate and based on over optimistic assumptions.
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Passenger plane approaching Heathrow ‘in near-miss with drone 650ft to the east of the Shard’
A passenger plane flying near the Shard had a "very near-miss" with a drone as it approached Heathrow Airport, an official report has revealed. The drone, described as black and about 50cm (20in) wide, was spotted out of the right flight deck window at about 12.45pm on July 18, the UK Airprox Board (UKAB) report into the incident said. The A320 aircraft, which was flying at an altitude of 4,900ft near to the Shard skyscraper in central London, "narrowly avoided" colliding with the drone, according to the report. The crew said the drone had "probably" passed above the right wing and the horizontal stabiliser, which is found on the tail of the plane. The UK Airprox Board said the account given of the incident "portrayed a situation where a collision had only been narrowly avoided and chance had played a major part". It deemed the incident to be in the most serious category of risk and said the drone operator had not been traced. Earlier on 17th April 2016 a British Airways flight from Geneva was possibly hit by a drone as it approached Heathrow (in the Richmond area) at about 12:50pm on Sunday 17th. The plane was an Airbus A320, with 132 passengers and five crew on board, that landed safely. The AAIB investigation was closed at the end of April, for lack of evidence. It is thought this may not have been a hit by a drone.
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Sadiq Khan backs councils’ legal action against Heathrow 3rd runway – and TfL will offer help
Sadiq Khan has announced at Mayor's Question Time that he was officially supporting legal action against a 3rd Heathrow runway. He has instructed Transport for London (TfL) to help 4 local councils (Hillingdon, Richmond, Wandsworth and Windsor and Maidenhead) and Greenpeace, which are together bringing the case against expansion. The involvement of TfL was met with delight from many Assembly Members. TfL is expected to be named as an “interested party” in the action. It is believed that the intervention of TfL will strengthen the case of the local authorities' challenge. In the previous Mayor's Question Time, Mr Khan said he wasn't able answer the question on legal action until the government decision had been made. It was made on 25th October. Though Sadiq Khan had in the past backed a Heathrow runway, he changed his mind in 2015 when the extent of the noise and air pollution impacts became clear. He has now said, addressing the full London Assembly: "I promised I wouldn’t just stand by and see hundreds of thousands suffer from the additional noise and air pollution a third runway would cause. That’s why I’ve directed TfL to provide their expert advice and assistance to support" the councils.. "and why I will be ready for us to play an active role in the action if required.” TfL has the most expertise on matters relating to impacts of Heathrow expansion on London's transport network.
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easyJet is planning to set up a separate airline in Europe, to avoid Brexit risks in UK
EasyJet reported slightly lower profits in the year to September. Their results state: "As a result of the UK’s referendum vote to leave the European Union, easyJet plans to establish an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) in another EU member state. This will secure the flying rights of the 30% of our network that remains wholly within and between EU states, excluding the UK.....The primary driver of the cost is the re-registering of aircraft in an EU AOC jurisdiction." The BBC reported that Carolyn McCall "also confirmed that Easyjet is in the process of setting up a separate airline based on the European mainland, in readiness for when the UK leaves the EU. Current EU flying rights might have to be renegotiated and the new company would ensure Easyjet could operate within the EU." She said they don't have the luxury of waiting to see what happens with Brexit, but there was no question of job cuts or moving from the current headquarters at Luton. It was about registering aircraft and "securing flying rights." Though easyJet already has a Swiss subsidiary, Easyjet itself will become the entity inside the EU with the union. "The British airline will become the subsidiary, with the existing UK airline operating certificate ring-fenced, so that it remains majority-owned by British shareholders."
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BATA changes its name to “Airlines UK” – to lobby ever more effectively for benefits to airlines
The British Air Transport Association (BATA) has changed its name to "Airlines UK - the association of UK airlines". It is the trade body for UK-registered airlines, and they say they "work with governments, regulators and legislators to promote the interests of UK airlines, and with organisations across the sector to encourage long-term and sustainable growth in aviation." ..."We formulate opinions and engage with stakeholders on a number of issues, including airport capacity, taxation, sustainable aviation, disruptive passengers and regulation and consumer protection. We are proud members of the Sustainable Aviation, A Fair Tax on Flying and The Sky’s the Limit industry campaigns." In other words, they lobby like crazy with their public relations team for more, cheaper flying and they have repeatedly lobbied for lower Air Passenger Duty. Back in January a group calling itself “Airlines for Europe” (A4E) was set up, consisting of Europe’s 5 largest airline groups – Air France KLM, easyJet, IAG, Lufthansa Group, and Ryanair. It wants to “represent the interests of its members when dealing with the EU institutions, international organisations and national governments on European aviation issues.” What that means is that it wants to lobby against anything that does not lower air fares, or increase airline profits. This was based on the group “Airlines for America” (A4A) which lobbies/advocates Congress and the Administration on behalf of its member airlines.
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Autumn financial statement coming soon – so it is time for the regular industry lobby against APD ….
Airlines are, yet again, trying to put pressure on the Chancellor to cut rates of Air Passenger Duty, so flights are cheaper, more people fly (and the airlines make more money). They do this every time there is a budget or financial statement, with monotonous regularity. The airlines hope to persuade the government that aviation should be virtually untaxed, and always conveniently ignore the reason for APD - that air travel pays no VAT and no fuel duty. The Treasury has reiterated many times that this is the reason APD is charged. More flights are taken by British people spending leisure time abroad, taking cheap flights, than overseas residents flying to the UK. The net effect of further reducing APD would not only be a cut in government revenue, but an even larger UK annual tourism deficit (at £16.9 billion in 2015). APD for the longest flights was reduced in 2015, so any flight of more than 2,000 miles only pays £146. Before that, in 2014, flights over 6,000 miles paid £194. Children also now pay no APD, making holiday flights cheaper for families. Now some 53 MPs have written to Hammond, again calling for a cut in APD - playing the "need to connect Britain to the world" after Brexit card. It is estimated, and not challenged by the government, that the absence of VAT or fuel duty effectively gives the aviation industry an annual subsidy of around £10 billion (compared to the cost of paying VAT and fuel duty).
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DfT publishes proposed route of northern section of HS2, including property compensation details
The DfT has announced the second phase of HS2, north of Birmingham. It is intended to go to Leeds, Manchester, Wigan etc. which would mean journeys to and from London from these areas could be faster than they are now. That would reduce the demand for domestic flights, for connections to Heathrow. Many homes would be demolished to make way for the rail route, and there are compensation arrangements to help those affected. The DfT says compensation (by the government) measures would apply immediately, including a premium on compulsory purchases and moving costs. By contrast with Heathrow, which says compensation (the airport pays) would only start once they have full planning consent - and if their compulsory purchase is agreed in their development control order - which could be another 4 years away. The compensation is un-blighted price + 25% + stamp duty and costs for those in the "Express Purchase" scheme, and un-blighted price + 10% with no costs for the "Need to sell" scheme. The DfT documents say the compensation schemes are the same as the southern part of HS2, and "Two of these schemes will enter into operation from today on an interim basis - these are Express Purchase and Need to Sell, and if confirmed by the government, all the schemes will be in place until 1 year after the railway is fully operational."
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Norman Foster, still hopeful of a Thames estuary airport, considers Heathrow will eventually not be fit for purpose
Norman Foster, a key promoter of a Thames estuary airport instead of Heathrow, has again criticised the government's backing of a Heathrow 3rd runway, saying it is a ‘short-term’ solution to Britain’s infrastructure needs. He still believes a large hub airport in the Thames would be a "better" solution (ignoring the problem of carbon emissions), and presumably he would make a lot of money if his scheme ever went ahead. Norman Foster describes Heathrow's 3rd runway as "a band-aid solution. It is short-term. It’s not thinking in terms of the wider issues of transportation." He says: "’What is guaranteed is that when that third runway comes into action, Heathrow will again be at full capacity. ...I would guarantee the absolute inevitability that one day [Heathrow] will no longer be sustainable in community terms, political terms – just [on account of] the sheer logistics. It cannot continue." The DfT announcement on 25th October, backing Heathrow for a new runway, made no mention of the Airports Commission condition that Heathrow would not be permitted a 4th runway. An article in Prospect Magazine comments that what the Airports Commission should have looked at was whether there should be airport expansion at all in the southeast. Instead, as their brief was to focus on hub capacity, it meant their focus was wrongly on spreading expansion across London airports rather than properly assessing the regions.
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Edinburgh airport publishes draft Master Plan for high growth out to 2050 for consultation, but no 2nd runway plan
Edinburgh Airport has produced a draft master plan for consultation (deadline for comment is 23rd December) about its future development up to 2050. The airport says "The Masterplan highlights how we aim to grow and develop the airport responsibly over a 25 year period whilst improving the experience" ....benefits to the economy etc etc." It plans to increase its passenger number from about 11.1 million in 2015, to 19.2 million in 2030, and 35 million in 2050. It will continue to safeguard land for a possible 2nd runway, if there is enough demand after 2040 if there are 30 million passengers by then. The numbers of passengers and ATMs in the current master plan are much higher than in the 2011 plan (eg. 2011 plan anticipated about 200,000 ATMs by 2040, but the 2016 plan expects 208,000. For passengers, the 2011 plan anticipated 20.5 million passengers in 2040, but the 2016 plan expects 25.8 million.) There is little on noise to encourage those already negatively affected by the airport's flight paths. It says it has a noise action plan that "sets out the actions we propose to take to manage and, where possible, minimise aircraft-related noise at Edinburgh Airport." But "as long as people want to fly, there will be noise from aircraft landing and taking off." Local groups Transform Scotland, the campaign for sustainable transport, and Edinburgh Airport Watch criticised the plans for yet further expansion, and the negative environment impacts.
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Seven more purely, unashamedly, low cost leisure destinations for 2017 from Heathrow
So much for the claims that Heathrow is ensuring Britain is "open for business" and creating "trading links to the growing markets of the world" or "connecting Britain to global growth". The reality is that many of the landing slots at Heathrow are used for leisure flights, and many are for cheap European leisure flights. British Airways has announced 7 new routes from Heathrow for 2017. These are to Murcia, in "stunning" southern Spain "known for its world renowned golf courses". There is also Brindisi, in Italy "ideal for holidaymakers looking for some sun to soak up in." And Nantes, in western France, which is a "gateway to Brittany and Loire Valley as well as being home to the world famous Muscadet wines." Also Montpellier, in southern France, with "a blend of the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea and the mountains of the Pyrenees.. Also Pula, in Croatia "an increasingly popular destination for families who want a cheap summer holiday, replacing the likes of Spain and France." Then there is Tallinn, in Estonia, which is cheap and "one of the most preserved medieval cities in Europe". And Zakynthos "This Greek island in the Ionian Sea is nicknamed the flower of the East. It is home to the Navagio beach, the most famous landmark on the island which is a stunning setting for a day lounging in the sun. Price: from £65". There are also flights for cheap holidays to Menorca. This demonstrates, yet again, that Heathrow is not full of flights to vital, far flung, business-related destinations. It has flights that make money. ie. cheap holidays.