Latest News
AirportWatch on 
@AirportWatch
Summaries of, and links to, the latest aviation news stories appear below. News is archived into topics
For a daily compilation of UK articles on national and regional transport issues, see Transportinfo.org.uk | For more stories about specific airports see Aviation Environment Federation Transport & Environment Anna Aero TravelMole Press releases from CAA IATA BA Ryanair easyJet Jet2.com For climate change ECEEE news and Guardian Climate and NoAA monthly analysisCheck Hansard for reports on Parliament |
 |
Latest news stories:
Through WWF “1 in 5” Challenge, Scottish Government cut number of staff flights by about a quarter over 5 years
The Scottish Government has saved more than £500,000 and shrunk its carbon footprint through cutting back on business flights. Their figures show that in the past 5 years, the Scottish government has reeduced yearly flights from 11,169 to 8,036. That is reported to mean a cut of 650 tonnes of CO2. The cuts have means an annual saving of some 31%, from £1.85 million to £1.27m. The total distance flown dropped by 23%, from nearly 8 million kilometres to 6 million kilometres. The reductions are due to the government taking part in the WWF "One in Five Challenge" to cut one flight in every five, in 5 years. The Scotland government is the first administration in the UK to successfully fulfil the WWF's challenge. WWF Scotland said: “By successfully completing WWF’s One in Five Challenge, the Scottish Government has clearly demonstrated that many business flights are unnecessary and can easily be replaced with lower-carbon alternatives such as rail travel or video conferencing." Much time is saved by public servants if they can use video-conferencing instead of flying, and that saves money. Time spent travelling by train, not air, is generally useful time in which work can be done. Scotland is aiming to cut its CO2 emissions by 42% by 2020.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow Airport plans to get residents’ views on preferred option for a 3rd runway attacked by campaign group
Heathrow Airport has intimated to the FT that it plans to consult residents on which of the two options, chosen by the Airports Commission, they prefer for a 3rd runway. This has been condemned by campaign group HACAN as like being asked ‘whether you prefer being murdered by Jack the Ripper or the Boston Strangler.’ Heathrow was probably surprised to find one option proposed by the Commission was by Heathrow Hub. They are not keen on this option. The aim of a consultation will be to get backing for their own scheme, for a northern runway. It will hinge on the noise issue. The extent of respite from aircraft noise will be a critical aspect of any runway proposals.. If there is a 3rd, northern, runway it could mean those living under the existing two runway flight paths would only get a shorter respite period per day, and a whole linear expanse of London would then start to be affected by aircraft noise. For a 3rd northern runway to be profitable, it will have to be used intensively. The reduction in respite periods, perhaps of only one third of a day, rather than half the day (from 3pm as at present) will be deeply unpopular. Even less popular would be the lack of respite at all with the Heathrow Hub northern runway. See Hacan's comment on the two options.
Click here to view full story...
Airports Commission interim report recommends setting up an Independent Aviation Noise Authority
The Airports Commission's Interim Statement on 17th December, advocating runways at Heathrow and Gatwick, also said it also recommended: "The creation of an Independent Aviation Noise Authority to provide expert and impartial advice about the noise impacts of aviation and facilitate the delivery of future improvements to airspace operations." The Commission says that decisions made by the DfT or the CAA at present, and they are often seen not to be fair, and to be driven by political considerations and that the CAA is beholden to the industry that provides its funding. An independent body might over come this. The Commission says: "An independent, national authority with a credible and authoritative voice on noise issues could be of significant value. ....It could also act as a statutory consultee on other noise related issues, including involvement in planning inquiries which would have implications for populations affected by aircraft noise.....The authority could also play a role in the delivery of longer-term plans for additional airport capacity. ....should include responsibilities for advising the Secretary of State for Transport and the CAA in respect of appropriate noise compensation schemes." The establishment of the Independent Aircraft Noise Authority would require primary legislation; setting it up will take time. Meanwhile there is work on noise to be done.
Click here to view full story...
FAA road map sees challenges in allowing drones over US airspace – but there are to be 6 test sites
The US aviation regulator, the FAA, has announced 6 US states that will host sites for testing commercial use of drones (unmanned aerial vehicles). The sites are part of a programme to develop safety and operational rules for drones by the end of 2015. While drones have till now largely been used by the military, their potential is now being explored by a range of users including estate agents, farmers, film makers and delivery services. They could be used for fugitive tracking, rail surveillance, traffic management, crop monitoring, land management, news reporting, conservation etc. There will be issue of airspace safety to be resolved. Drones will need to be able to sense and avoid each other and aircraft, and communicate with and respond to air traffic controllers. The FAA says safety is the priority, but there are also issues of privacy and security, before drones should be allowed in domestic skies. An act in 2012 requires the FAA to implement rules and procedures for licensing drone use by government agencies, commercial entities, hobbyists and others. There are fears that drones equipped with high-tech cameras and listening devices would be able to conduct unprecedented and persistent surveillance of civilians.
Click here to view full story...
Kannur airport deal in southern India: Land owners seek compensation
Yet another new airport is to be built in southern India. At Kannur, on the west coast south of Manglaore, an airport is planned. The state of Kerala boasts this will be the 4th international airport, and it is expected to be operational in 2015. The airport needs some 800 hectares of land, much of which has already been bought. However, the Times of India reported in June that there were problems that land owners who agreed to sell and had signed the agreements had still not received their compensation...."even after nine months, nothing has moved and there is no idea when the property would be registered and the money would be given," said V R Bhaskaran, the convenor of the action committee formed by the land owners, who would lose their land for the proposed airport. If the compensation was given in time, it would have benefitted the people but now many of them are in a quandary as they are unable to plan their future. "...the government has not announced any rebate on the stamp duty for the land registration or tax rebate on the compensation amount, which has further panicked the people." "When the people sacrifice their properties for a common good, the authorities should have the sensibility to understand it and make sure that their future is not affected."
Click here to view full story...
HACAN’s New Year Quiz
HACAN's quiz. Test yourself with these 10 questions on Heatthow (mainly). You may be surprised by some of the answers ... For example, Who said: “Whatever technological advances in noise and air pollution reduction have been — or will be — made, common sense dictates that the additional 260,000 annual flights facilitated by a third runway would entail a commensurate reduction in the quality of life of many Londoners”.
Click here to view full story...
Surrey Chambers of Commerce delighted Airports Commission short-listed a new Gatwick runway
Gatwick Airport is a member of the Surrey Chambers of Commerce. It is therefore no great surprise to find the Chamber has expressed its pleasure that the Airports Commission has short -listed Gatwick as one of two sites for a new runway. They say businesses in the south east would benefit. They also believe businesses (ignoring affected residents?) would benefit even more by having a new runway at Heathrow too. They have in the past backed Gatwick's idea of a new runway at both Gatwick and Stansted - though that has been ruled out for the time being, by the Commission. In the view of the Chamber, a new runway would provide" significant economic benefit and sustainable employment in the South East." And they want it as soon as possible. They want "access to excellent overseas connections, not only for our local businesses but also for the multi-nationals that locate here rather than in other parts of Europe." The Chamber will hold a panel discussion at Epsom racecourse on 12th March on the Heathrow, Gatwick and Grain runway options. "Whilst there are still decisions to be made we are confident that investment in the South East will bring an excellent rate of return," says the Chamber.
Click here to view full story...
Anger of residents near Sevenoaks over NATS’ Gatwick flight plan proposals
There is currently a consultation, by NATS, on changes to flight paths to and from Gatwick (as well as London City, Southend, and Biggin Hill airports) that ends on 21st January. There is real concern in the Weald area, that is overflown by Gatwick flights, that planes may bring them flights overhead flying at less than 4,000 feet over them from 2015. NATS and Gatwick claim the changes will "make the airport more efficient, reduce delays and allow more departures per hour", so making things more convenient for air travellers. Weald residents are outraged at the disturbance these changes, for passenger benefit, could cause them. They have formed a campaign - the Weald Action Group Against Noise - and have organised petitions. They will deliver the signatures to Sevenoaks MP Michael Fallon and are urging people to contact him directly via e-mail and to object through the online Gatwick Airport and National Air Traffic Services public consultation as well. The action group fears the proposals would "bring considerably more flights directly over Weald village at a height of under 4,000 feet", creating noise up to 70 decibels, equivalent to the sound of a vacuum cleaner, with more than 20 flights an hour at peak times." Gatwick says "overall" the changes will reduce noise for those living below - but that ignores far worse conditions created for some.
Click here to view full story...
Chris Huhne: “It won’t be long before the victims of climate change make the west pay”
Chris Huhne, writing in the Observer, says the poorer countries, that have been adversely affected by climate change, have an increasingly strong legal argument against the rich countries that have been the historical main emitters. The more certain is the attribution for blame, the more justified many developing countries will feel in protesting. There is the possibility that the victims of climate change could begin to take international legal action against the countries responsible, particularly the early industrialisers, such as Britain, Belgium and Germany, whose carbon continues to warm the planet a century after it was emitted. "Legal action is not a substitute for politics, but it could highlight the evidence in an uncomfortable way." Philippe Sands QC, the UCL professor of international law, said: "There will definitely be a case in my lifetime and probably within five to 10 years .... The only questions now are where, how and to what purpose." Huhne says: "It is not a defence that we did not know what we were doing, nor does a case have to target everyone who might have historic responsibility: countries are jointly and severally liable."
Click here to view full story...
Action group critical of ‘expensive charade’ of Luton council meeting approving airport expansion
The controversial decision by Luton Borough Council to approve the expansion of Luton Airport has been widely criticised by community groups. Michael Nidd, secretary of the London Luton Airport Town and Village Community Committee (LLATVCC),has described the delayed, 8-hour meeting on 20th December, in which the decision was made as a “very, very expensive charade.” Only 6 of the development control committee’s 11 members attended the meeting, which had already been postponed. This came after Herts County Council demanded a second, impartial, legal opinion on Luton Borough Council’s suitability to make the decision, given it owns all of the shares in the airport. Michael Nidd said: “Only six of [the councillors] bothered to turn up, and we had hours and hours of very highly-paid people in the morning saying what a splendid scheme it is, but when it came time to debate, discuss and vote they spent as long as 10 minutes on it." There is concern about the manner in which this decision, which has such colossal effects on all the surrounding communities, has been taken. Hemel Hempstead MP Mike Penning has written to Eric Pickles, to request that the decision be called in, due to the impacts on his constituency.
Click here to view full story...
Nick Clegg says the Airport Commission’s interim report findings “not set in stone”
Nick Clegg has said the Liberal Democrats may reject the Airports Commission’s final blueprint for a new runway in the South-East. He does not feel he is under any obligation to accept it, and said: “He’s producing an authoritative, independent report. He’s not producing a biblical tablet of stone which needs to be followed by everybody,” He refused to accept the conclusion of the Commission’s interim report that the South-East needs a new runway by 2030, and possibly another by 2050. He also said the Commission's interim report, to be published after the 2015 election, would not be a “biblical tablet of stone” that all politicians would have to support. The party's current policy is, and has been since before the 2010 election, that there should be no new runways in the South-East. The Standard says he has suggested he might back a new runway at Gatwick. On climate he said: "... the reason I’m against airport expansion, and certainly against the expansion at Heathrow, is that all the evidence I’ve seen until now has suggested that it’s impossible to do that without adding to current noise and air pollution levels and breaking the projections on carbon emissions under the Climate Change Act.”
Click here to view full story...
Consumerism gone mad: Dubai Duty Free smashes all records with 30th anniversary sales of US$30.65 million
To mark its 30th anniversary, on 20th December, Dubai International and Dubai World Central airports set about beating their sales records for their anniversary day. Dubai Duty Free (DDF) set an all-time daily sales record with turnover of US $ 30.65 million. That is 40% more than on 20th December in 2012. They gave their customers up to 30% discounts, to get them to buy more and more. Dubai boasts that some of their customers even"book their flights in order to shop on that day.” By 6pm, DDF sales reached US $23.2 million and an amazing 158,931 transactions. By the end of the day it was US $30.65 million with 208,000 transactions. Sickening. Consumerism out of any reasonable scale. Perfume was the highest selling category with sales of US $8.5 million and representing 27.9% of the total daily sales. Watches & clocks was the second most popular category with sales of US$7 million. Cosmetics in 3rd place, category wise, with sales of US$3.9 million. Alcohol in 4th position followed by cigarettes. Other notable increases were seen in confectionery, which rose by 33% to US$1.2 million and delicatessen, which recorded US$619,000. That's airports and mindless, rampant consumerism for you.
Click here to view full story...
Luton campaigners expose ‘broken promise’ over aircraft noise at Luton
Luton campaign group, HALE, has exposed a broken promise at the heart of the planning conditions which are supposed to control future night noise from Luton Airport. A specific commitment made in the planning application, to reduce night noise limits to 80dB by January 2015 and thereafter to 77dB, has been omitted from the planning conditions attached to the recently passed planning application, so the night noise limit is set to stay at its current 82dB level. There is an overall planning condition to ban noisier classes of aircraft by an unspecified date some time between now and 2028, and to set overall noise limits by aircraft class. But the public consultation and the planning application both presented this “Quota Count” method as being in addition to a reduction in night noise limits, not a replacement for it. Commitments to reduce daytime noise limits are reflected by a planning condition with a definite timeframe, but the unconditional promise to reduce night-time noise limits to 80dB by January 2015 has been dropped. HALE say this is a scandal, and they have written to the Council insisting that the public commitments made by the airport to reduce the night noise limit by 1 January 2015 to 80dB, with a 5-yearly review to bring it down to 77dB, are both enshrined in the planning conditions.
Click here to view full story...
Better broadband is better for economy than bigger airports, says survey
Though it is only a survey (and AirportWatch is a bit sceptical of surveys, bearing in mind how they can be used to justify almost anything!) a survey has been carried out by MORI, asking over 2,000 adults in the UK, on behalf of the IET - the Institution of Engineering and Technology. The survey showed just 17% of respondents thought that building new airports would benefit the UK economy while only 12% said that building extra runways at existing airports would benefit the economy. But 43% of those asked thought extending superfast broadband to all UK households would deliver more economic benefit. “The public have told us that supporting the e-economy by rolling out universal superfast broadband will have more economic benefits for the UK than more traditional infrastructure projects like increasing airport capacity or high speed rail.” The survey, of 2,011 adults aged 16-75 in Great Britain, also showed that only 16% of respondents thought that building a high speed rail line would benefit the economy.
Click here to view full story...
Future oil supply, production, price, non-conventional supplies, transport use – what might the future hold?
The debate over whether or not we have reached "peak oil" continues. If peak oil is taken to be the highest rate of extraction of conventional crude oil, that may already have happened. Though total global consumption of oil is rising, part of this is now from non-conventional sources. In 2011 some 89 million barrels of oil and liquid fuels were consumed per day worldwide (nearly 32 billion barrels a year). The IEA says: "Our analysis suggests there are ample physical oil and liquid fuel resources for the foreseeable future." Forecasts of global oil use suggest slower growth in the total amount of liquid fuels available. BP says: "Oil and other liquids remain the slowest growing fuel in our outlook, with demand up by just 0.8% p.a., reaching 104 Mb/d by 2030". The IEA says: " Although liquid fuels—mostly petroleum-based—remain the largest source of energy, the liquids share of world marketed energy consumption falls from 34% in 2010 to 28% in 2040, as projected high world oil prices lead many energy users to switch away from liquid fuels when feasible." The price of oil is expected to rise. IEA says: "With prices expected to increase in the long term, the world oil price in real 2011 dollars reaches $106 per barrel in 2020 and $163 per barrel in 2040 in the IEO2013 Reference case." Many fear the high oil price will mean economies will thus face prolonging global economic recession. A high oil price will necessitate cuts in demand, which in turn may maintain a longer undulating oil production plateau. The transport sector used 55% of the world's total liquid fuels in 2010.
Click here to view full story...
Committee on Climate Change to report in July 2014 on climate implications of Davies runway proposals
The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) has announced it will report to parliament in July 2014 on the impact of the Airports Commission's plans on the UK's climate commitments. The Commission's report referred to the previous recommendations of the CCC, but was opaque on how those targets could be met, if expansion is permitted. The Commission said aviation CO2 emissions could be kept at 2005 levels by 2050 if passenger demand growth is kept to 67% by 2050. [The earlier CCC advice in 2009 was maximum 60% passenger growth over 2005 level by 2050]. The CCC's David Kennedy said: "The expansion of Heathrow by one runway would stay within the 60% limit, depending on the extent of demand growth at other locations." But a second runway probably would not. The Commission itself suggested that to meet the CO2 targets, the carbon price would have to rise to £600 per tonne of CO2 by 2050, as opposed to the current price of £3 per tonne, if runway capacity was totally unconstrained. The cost of flights would have to rise substantially. The CCC said that the cost of long-haul flights would need to rise by up to £200 to curtail demand and stay within the UK's carbon emissions targets. "The higher the level of aviation emissions, the deeper the emissions cuts required in other sectors to meet the economy-wide targets".
Click here to view full story...
A sad day for democracy as Luton Council approves Luton airport expansion
HALE have commented, on the hastily convened development control committee meeting on Luton airport's expansion application, that it was a sad day for democracy. A 9-hour meeting ended by approving plans for doubling the capacity of Luton Airport from 9 million to 18 million passengers per annum. Only 5 voting members of the 11-strong development control committee were present, plus the chair. Objectors from local town and parish councils, campaign groups and private individuals voiced serious concerns about the proposals. These included number of late evening and early morning flights; reduction in quality of life due to aircraft noise; damage to health from noise and air pollution; and noise control, among others. Unfortunately none of the councillors had the courage to oppose the plans. Andrew Lambourne, from HALE, said: “Ultimately this was such a big decision that to make it with half the committee absent was simply not democratic – and is another good reason why it should be called in” he added.
Click here to view full story...
Council backs Luton airport expansion but it needs Sec of State Eric Pickles’ authorisation
Luton Airport’s expansion bid to fly over eight million more passengers a year has been given the green light by its owner, Luton borough council. It was agreed to by just six members of the council’s 11-strong development control committee at the rescheduled meeting, which ended after eight hours. The scheme includes nearly doubling passenger throughput to 18 million people a year, which could mean 45,000 extra flights per year. It involves extending terminal and car park buildings, constructing a new parallel taxiway and extending aircraft parking aprons. However the approval must now be communicated to the Secretary of State for Local Government Eric Pickles. On November 18th Luton council received a direction, under the Town and Country Planning Management Order 2010 not to grant permission without specific authorisation from him. This direction was issued to enable him to consider whether he should direct that the application be referred to him, under Section 77 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. Councillors at the meeting heard objections from residents and councillors from St Albans, Harpenden, Stevenage, Luton, Hitchin and Flamstead. People are very concerned the expansion would bring an unacceptable increase in noise and air pollution. The airport is proposing 60% more planes and many very late in the evening and very early in the morning.
Click here to view full story...
How well did the Airports Commission’s interim report do on the AEF’s 3 environmental & social tests?
The Aviation Environment Federation has set out three tests, to apply to the Airports Commission's Interim Report, published on 17th December 2013. These are on climate: "Does the Commission demonstrate a pathway to meet our national climate change target in a one or two new runways scenario using realistic assumptions?". On quality of life: "Does the Airports Commission only short-list options that will not worsen the quality of life for communities around airports?" and on Social Cost Benefit Analysis: "In light of extensive challenges to the assumptions of economic benefits of expansion and recommendations by a well known economic consultancy firm, does the Airports Commission commit to carrying out a Social Cost Benefit Analysis of each of the short-listed proposals over the course of 2014?" They have had a quick, initial look at the Interim Report, and set out areas on each of these where there is evidence of "positive steps" and areas of "missed opportunities". On climate AEF regret that there is uncertainty on international agreements, and that non-CO2 impacts of aviation may need to be taken into account in the future - but are not yet. On quality of life, AEF regrets that noise, air quality and local impacts have not yet been satisfactorily addressed. AEF say a clear and transparent social cost benefit analysis of each of short-listed options is needed as part of the Commission's appraisal in 2014.
Click here to view full story...
Campaigners fear democratic deficit as Luton Council decides on expansion application of the airport it owns
A hastily reconvened development control meeting at Luton Borough Council on 20th December decides on the planning application for doubling the capacity of Luton Airport from 9 to 18 million passengers / year. The timing of the meeting, just before Christmas, means many people who wanted to speak at the meeting are unable to attend, which is not democracy working well. An additional democratic problem is that the decision is being made by the Council which owns the airport. The local group, HALE, said “This decision should not be made by airport shareholders – it should be called in for independent scrutiny. It is a hugely unpopular plan: 88% of the respondents are opposed to further expansion, with only 9% in support." A Hertfordshire County Councillor has succeeded in getting an article 25 planning order issued which prevents Luton Council from actually granting planning permission until the Secretary of State decides whether or not to call in the application. The scale of the proposed works are such that the application counts as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, based on the extra capacity this would allow, though the airport has tried to claim otherwise. There are serious concerns locally about the noise impact, and therefore health impact, if the expansion is allowed.
Click here to view full story...
NGO letter to governments of France, Germany, & UK on inclusion in ETS of flights in EU airspace
France, Germany, and the UK governments have come out jointly to oppose the European Commission’s proposal to amend the aviation ETS to cover emissions from all flights within EU airspace. They want to continue to “stop the clock”, which exempts all long-haul flights. That means 75% of emissions from flights using European airports are uncontrolled or unregulated. Such a move is clearly not motivated by environmental considerations. Four NGOs (Transport & Environment, the Aviation Environment Federation, Réseau Action Climat France, and Bund (Friends of the Earth – Germany) ) have written to French president François Hollande, German chancellor Angela Merkel, and UK prime minister David Cameron to express deep concerns about their governments’ continued efforts to weaken aviation ETS. The NGOs are calling on the leaders to urgently withdraw the UK/Germany/France joint proposal and lend their government’s support to base the ETS on regional airspace. They also urge the leaders to support the European Commission's proposal to ensure enforcement measures are taken against airlines which have failed to comply with their 2012 obligations.
Click here to view full story...
Why the Commission’s ‘green light’ for a new runway could still turn out to be a ‘red light’
James Lees, from the Aviation Environment Federation, writing in the Huffington Post, says that while recent days have seen the 3 major parties edge towards a potential about-face on the desirability of a new runway for the south east, the underlying reasons for their opposition to it back in 2010 have not changed. In 2010 David Cameron famously promised "no ifs, no buts, no third runway" at Heathrow; Nick Clegg warned a 3rd runway would be a "disaster", and Ed Miliband threatened to resign from Cabinet over the issue. The reason that politicians came out against a new runway in 2010, reversing a decision in favour of new runways at Heathrow and Stansted, wasn't for a lack of perceived need but down to the power of local opposition. This came from the impact of aircraft noise, its associated health impacts - and also local air pollution and air quality limits. The Airports Commission has so far only paid lip service to the importance of community opposition, mainly addressing only the issues of demand and capacity. The interim report provided no more than vague reassurances to the affected communities. Without satisfactory reassurances from the Commission, communities will look to politicians to provide these. The Airports Commission has failed for now to achieve its purpose to take the politics out of the airports issue. The Interim Report has just re-opened the political debate.
Click here to view full story...
Fears Ifield would be swallowed up if Gatwick builds second runway
With the Airports Commission having made a southern runway at Gatwick one of their options, the people of the villages of Ifield and Langley Green are very concerned about the impact of a very busy full length runway, merely a few hundred metres away. The Ifield Village Association has expressed fears that a runway would destroy Ifield as a pleasant place, and convert it into an area beset by noise and acting just as a service area for an enlarged airport. A 2nd Gatwick runway could lead to there being aircraft flying across the northern tip of Ifield village every few minutes for much of the day. Ifield is already disturbed every few minutes by aircraft climbing out of Gatwick Airport about a mile to the north. If the runway brings huge development and many new jobs, that would mean bringing in workers from other areas - from the UK and from Europe - who would require up to 40,000 new houses. "Crawley already has a housing crisis, new houses would be built on open country in neighbouring authorities. Ifield village could be absorbed into massive new housing estates and lose its access to open country."
Click here to view full story...
It’s ‘Like being on death row’: residents facing devastating impact of Heathrow runway plans
Residents of a historic village that could be obliterated under today’s proposals to expand Heathrow said the plans would have a “devastating” impact on their lives. Some 1,500 buildings would be lost in Harmondsworth and neighbouring Longworth by a north west Heathrow runway - one of the options short-listed by the Airports Commission. People fear the prospect of being as little compensation as the airport can get away with. Residents and business owners in Harmondsworth urged the Government to speed up their decision-making - comparing the impact to “being on death row”. Parts of Harmondsworth are over 1,000 years old and the village contains the Tithe Barn and St Mary’s Church, both places of heritage value. The vicar of St Mary’s Church said: “We lost one-third of our congregation due to the uncertainty over the runway. We used to have 45 on a regular Sunday; it’s come down to 25 or 30, half of whom come from outside the village.” Geraldine Nicholson, who lives in West Drayton just 100m away from one of the proposed runways, said it is not just the villages that would be affected, and 10,000 homes north of the M4 would suffer too - there would be very negative social, as well as environmental, impacts.
Click here to view full story...
Closing stretch of M25 for years, to build new Heathrow runway, is ‘unthinkable’ and a ‘non-starter’
Both locations for a new Heathrow runway, suggested by the Airports Commission, involve building a runway over a particularly wide and busy section of the M25. As the map below shows. The Standard reports that the UK's main motoring organisations are united in horror at the prospect of closing this stretch of the M25 for up to 5 years to build a runway. The plans would mean the six-lane motorway having to be sunk into a tunnel for at least a half-a-mile south of junction 14. In its runway submission to the Commission in July, Heathrow just said the M4/M25 motorway junction requires “major reconfiguration” but did not add further detail. A spokesman for the AA said: “If you thought the protests from residents was bad just wait for the howls from motorists if this goes ahead. They are already stuck in daily traffic jams on this stretch of the M25 and the prospect of something on this scale doesn’t bear thinking about. For the millions of drivers who use the M25 regularly this is a non-starter. The M25 is the artery on which millions of commuters and businesses rely. Any suggestion of large-scale disruption there will cause major backlash.” Another said: "A five year closure borders on the unthinkable. It’s a hugely busy section of motorway where are they going to put all the vehicles?”
Click here to view full story...
Stansted campaigners heave a huge sigh of relief – but it’s not over yet ….
Stop Stansted Expansion (SSE) has expressed huge relief that Stansted has not been short-listed by the Airports Commission as a potential location for an additional runway or runways to meet future aviation demand in the South East. SSE Chairman Peter Sanders said: “This is exactly the outcome that the entire SSE team has been working so hard to achieve all year.... The environmental consequences of even one extra runway would have been catastrophic and there has never been a viable business case for any extra runways at Stansted.” Stansted is currently operating at less than half of its potential capacity. In addition, it has no long haul flights and it primarily caters for outbound leisure travel by UK residents rather than the business market, and low-cost carriers Ryanair and easyJet account for over 90% of its passengers. Unfortunately, the Airports Commission has not completely ruled out an extra runway at Stansted. They have said that its final report in 2015 it will consider whether a 2nd Stansted runway might be a plausible option in the 2040s. “It will therefore be another 2 years before we can even think of letting our guard down."
Click here to view full story...
Environmental groups question feasibility of new runway, in the face of climate, noise and air quality constraints
In response to the Airports Commission's interim report, announcing that a new runway at either Heathrow, or Gatwick (distant possibility of estuary - but unlikely), some of the main environmental NGOs have commented. The AEF says "The Commission’s report reaches a conclusion on the need for a new runway before it has undertaken a comprehensive environmental and social analysis that could still rule out all the options on the table. Building a new runway will not be possible within our national climate targets unless the Government is willing to limit growth at all the other airports in the UK". "The report gives no reassurance on how huge local constraints on air quality and noise will be met." Friends of the Earth commented: “If our airports are allowed to expand, other sectors of the economy will have to make even bigger carbon cuts to enable the UK to play its part in tackling climate change. The south east doesn’t need aviation expansion - London has more flights to the world’s business centres than its European competitors.” The RSPB says further airport expansion will undermine efforts to reduce our climate impact in the UK, “Emissions from aircraft are one of the fastest increasing sources of greenhouse gases. The impacts of climate change on wildlife in the UK and abroad are already being felt with seabirds struggling to find food as sea temperatures increase." And there are more comments.
Click here to view full story...
Robert Peston asks, of the airports ‘crisis’: “What’s the big fuss?”
Robert Peston has written about the economics of building a new runway, on his blog. He says a striking conclusion of the Airports Commission is that the economic cost of the capacity constraints at UK airports, and at Heathrow in particular, will be between 0.03% and 0.05% of GDP by 2030 and up to 0.09% of national income by 2050. "This is not huge. A loss of income of this size looks like a rounding error in comparison with the peak-to-trough fall in national income of more than 7% caused by the 2008 banking crisis or the 20% gap between today's GDP and where it would have been if the pre-Crash growth trends had been sustained." Peston says it is also interesting that the Commission's report "pours cold water on the notion that top rank economies must have a so-called hub - an airport flying almost everywhere and servicing gazillions of transit passengers - of unlimited capacity, which is what both Heathrow and Boris Johnson rather imply." Peston says the report paints a picture of a constrained Heathrow still performing extremely well. And it believes existing capacity can be used more efficiently through improved transport links between airports and better sharing of information by them.
Click here to view full story...
GACC says they have fought off runway plans in 1970, 1993 and 2003 – and they’ll fight this one too
Responding to the news that a second, southern, runway is on the Airports Commission shortlist for further detailed consideration next year, the local community group GACC (Gatwick Area Conservation Campaign) said the news was no surprise. For the past year GACC has assumed that Gatwick would be included. Now it is clear the so-called ‘wide-spaced’ runway option will be examined – the one that would cause most environmental damage. Brendon Sewill, chairman of GACC, said: ‘Now the battle is for real. The battle lines are drawn. Now the spotlight is on Gatwick the next step will be to examine the runway plans in detail, and it will be found that Gatwick is an unsuitable site. GACC agrees with Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, RSPB, WWF and other national environmental organisations that any new runway cannot be reconciled with the UK’s obligations under the Climate Change Act. A new runway used to full capacity would cause substantial environmental damage to all the towns and villages for many miles around Gatwick. In addition to the usual issues of noise, pollution and climate change, one of the emerging concerns is that making Gatwick larger than Heathrow would lead to the urbanisation of much of Surrey and Sussex. That will be fiercely opposed. GACC has fought off plans for new runways about every 10 years, in 1970, 1993, and 2003. And GACC say they will do it again this time.
Click here to view full story...
Airports Commission publishes interim report with 2 options for a runway at Heathrow and 1 at Gatwick. Estuary still being considered
The Airports Commission’s interim report has put forward 3 options for a new runway, and have kept their options open on an estuary airport. There would only be one runway, not two and they consider this should be in operation before 2030. At Heathrow the choices are a north west runway, 3,500 metres long, destroying Harmondsworth; and an extension westwards of at least 3,000 metres, of the existing northern runway. They also consider a wide spaced Gatwick runway to the south. The Commission also says "there is likely to be a demand case for a 2nd additional runway to be operational by 2050." They claim this is "consistent with the Committee of Climate Change’s advice to government on meeting its legislated climate change targets." Stansted is ruled out, and on the Thames Estuary they say: "The Commission has not shortlisted any of the Thames Estuary options because there are too many uncertainties and challenges surrounding them at this stage. It will undertake further study of the Isle of Grain option in the first half of 2014 and will reach a view later next year on whether that option offers a credible proposal for consideration alongside the other short-listed options." The report also contains recommendations to the government for immediate action to improve the use of existing runway capacity. Among others, these include better airspace organisation and surface transport improvements such as enhancement of Gatwick station, a rail link from the south to Heathrow, and a rail link between Heathrow and Stansted.
Click here to view full story...
Responding to the Airports Commission’s interim announcement, campaigners vow to fight any expansion at Heathrow and at Gatwick
The long-awaited interim report from the Airports Commission has now been released. After leaks that Heathrow had been the main choice for another runway, this was confirmed. The shortlist sets out 3 main options: the north west runway at Heathrow, (not demolishing Sipson, but putting it right under the flight path); the northern runway option of the Heathrow Hub concept, which had suggested two runways, built west of the existing ones; and a second runway at Gatwick. Stansted is ruled out. Most Thames estuary options are ruled out, but the Isle of Grain proposal will be given further consideration and is not yet "ruled in or ruled out". The Commission will be deciding over the next 18 months on whether the runway should be at Gatwick or at Heathrow. There is already fury over much of west London, that people face not only uncertainty for the next year and a half, till the Commission's final report in summer 2015, but also the nightmare of a massive increase in the number of flights. The announcement will act as the trigger to 18 months of intense campaigning against Heathrow expansion, and against Gatwick expansion. John Stewart, chair of HACAN, said that at Heathrow “The scale of the opposition will be so great that we believe that they are politically undeliverable and should have been dropped at this stage.”
Click here to view full story...
Free-market think-tank suggests airports should buy the right to expand and emit more noise by paying local residents
A far right, free-market think-tank called the Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) has produced a report, which they call a discussion paper "DEPOLITICISING AIRPORT EXPANSION: Market-Oriented Responses to the Global and Local Externalities of Aviation". It puts forward some predictably climate sceptic ideas, and the suggestion that airports should be able to expand as much as they want to, and they should be able to buy the right to expand and emit more noise by paying compensation to local residents. They suggest that rather than getting involved in decisions about where to expand capacity, politicians should give airports a means to reach agreements with residents affected by their decisions. The IEA says we should not stigmatise "pleasure as ‘excess’, enjoyment as ‘hedonism’, progress as ‘hubris’, voluntary adopted consumption habits as ‘addictions’..." We should "welcome mass air travel not despite, but precisely because of the fact that it is not, strictly speaking, ‘necessary’ – for what is the point of economic progress, if not the ability to consume things for the sake of enjoyment rather than necessity?" "Supporters of airport expansion should stop hiding behind an instrumental defence of aviation, and openly make the case for air travel as a leisure industry."
Click here to view full story...
“Back to the Heathrow barricades as government gets ready for an airport U-turn”
Those who fought the plans for a 3rd Heathrow runway only 3 - 4 years ago have not gone away. The young environmental campaigners, who care passionately about the world's future climate and their future, are deeply concerned about the climate implications of another runway. They know that ensuring the UK meets its target of cutting CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050 will be virtually impossible if any of the new runway options proposed by Sir Howard Davies are taken up. There really is no airport capacity crisis. An activist summed it up as: "The truth is that Heathrow has long been Europe's biggest hub airport. Already more passengers fly in and out of London than any other city in the world, and the airport has more flights to the top business destinations than any other in Europe. A [recent] study ....showed that 9 of the 10 top destinations served by the airport are short-haul. Plenty of capacity could become available if we moved most of these journeys to alternative and less polluting methods of travel, such as rail on routes from London to Paris and Edinburgh, which are the fifth and sixth most popular Heathrow destinations." No new runway is needed - certainly not in the short term. He adds that they are "wiping the dust off our d-Locks. Thousands of climate change protesters are on alert. Here we go again."
Click here to view full story...
WWF data show the case for airport expansion to deal with business travel demand ‘does not stack up’
WWF-UK has analysed figures from the CAA, which show business flights have shown a modest recovery since the financial crash, but are still below 2000 levels. WWF says the data does not support the case for building new airport capacity for business travellers. Despite an improvement in the economy, business flights have not picked up from the decline they have been experiencing for more than a decade. The number of business passengers is down 13% since 2000, and down as much as 23% in that time at Heathrow, where the aviation industry persistently argues for a 3rd runway - allegedly to benefit business travellers. Jean Leston, transport policy manager of WWF-UK, said: "The Airports Commission seems to have bought the line that business needs airport expansion. But where's the evidence to prove it? At Heathrow, now the most likely site for a new runway, figures show that business flying has been on the decline for over a decade, even before the recession." The DfT forecasts have considerable uncertainties in forecasting business travel, as the extent to which electronic communication will replace air travel for some trips in future is unclear.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow residents to demand financial compensation for impact of Airports Commission report on their house prices
People with homes near Heathrow will press for financial compensation if the Airports Commission announces on 17th that they are backing a new Heathrow runway. As the Commission is not due to report till summer 2015, at the least they face blight and an impact on their house prices over the next 18 months, while they are held in limbo. Anti-Heathrow campaigners will appeal to Sir Howard Davies, chairman of the Airports Commission, to ensure homeowners receive financial support for the uncertainty and potential damage that the 17th December announcement may cause. The leak of the report suggests the Commission favours first one runway, and also a second runway at Heathrow. That would mean a large number of people across west London affected by one or other proposal. The issue of blight and house prices is key for thousands, let alone the threat of compulsory purchase and demolition. Boris Johnson has accused the Prime Minister of using the Commission just “to provide cover for a U-turn on Heathrow” and he continues to fiercely oppose Heathrow expanding.
Click here to view full story...
Speculation that Airports Commission interim report may say need for new runway not urgent – not before 2030
There are now suggestions that the Commission's interim report, to be announced by Sir Howard Davies on 17th, will downplay the urgency of the alleged airport capacity problems, and may look instead at the possibility of a new runway being in place as late as 2030. The Observer reports that Government sources said that they expected Davies to say that, while extra capacity will be needed in time, there is no "crisis" yet. The Tories would be relieved if Davies were to downplay the urgency of the problem, as they are worried about their electoral chances in west London, having clearly said at the 2010 election: "No ifs, no buts, no 3rd runway". Heathrow is not losing out on flights to key destinations, despite the propaganda that it is. Even the 2013 DfT forecasts of passenger demand show there is no shortage in capacity for years ahead, and no need for a runway before 2030. Lord Adonis, who is heading Labour's economic growth review, has said the final report by the Airports Commission should be published earlier than 2015. - as people affected by its proposals have a right to know. The Adonis Growth Review is meant to be setting out an agenda for change to revitalise the UK economy by innovation and growth.
Click here to view full story...
Stansted airport owners would question the integrity of Airports Commission if Stansted not on the shortlist
The Sunday Times says that the owners of Stansted airport, the Manchester Airports Group, are concerned by the leaks that have circulated in the past week, that a runway at Stansted is not on the short list. The Sunday Times says MAG will demand a full analysis of how the Airports Commission came to their decision, how independent the process has been, and they will want to see all the methodology of how the decision was reached. They would question the integrity of the process, if only Heathrow is selected as the runway location. MAG claim a new Stansted runway could be built for £4 billion, while a new Heathrow runway would cost £14 - 18 billion. Meanwhile, Stansted's owners are just working to build its passenger numbers back to where they were 7 years ago. With the airport currently operating at only half its permitted capacity a 2nd runway is not commercially viable, and it would be completely unacceptable to local communities on environmental grounds. This challenge by MAG is strangely ironic considering the legal challenge by Stop Stansted Expansion, against the Commission, due to potential bias because of the involvement of MAG's Geoff Muirhead in the process.
Click here to view full story...
Zac Goldsmith warns Cameron that going back on his promise on Heathrow would never be forgiven in west London
Zac Goldsmith. the Conservative MP for Richmond Park and North Kingston, has said the main party leaders should "come clean" about the expansion of Heathrow. He also questioned the independence of the Airports Commission's interim report, to be published on 17th. The Conservative Party insisted the Commission's report was independent - but Zac said: "It looks very much like George Osborne in particular has been knocking it about in the last few days so that what finally emerges on Tuesday will not just be about Heathrow expansion. We will have a few other synthetic options thrown in as well just to enable the government to maintain that ambiguity, cynically I believe, until after the next election." Zac also said that David Cameron himself has to think very carefully about what he says on Heathrow. "Politically a U-turn on this issue would be catastrophic for him. You have to remember it wasn't just a few party speeches, David Cameron went to every single constituency affected and stood up and said 'no ifs, no buts, there will be no Heathrow expansion'." If Cameron went back on this promise it "would be an off-the-scale betrayal and he will never be forgiven in west London".
Click here to view full story...
2nd Gatwick runway could ‘spell the end’ for Hever Castle as a tourist attraction due to the relentless aircraft noise
A 2nd runway at Gatwick could “spell the end” for one of the area’s top tourist attractions, Hever Castle, which was the home of Anne Boleyn. The castle's chief executive Duncan Leslie fears the increase in planes overhead could ruin the historic castle and gardens, due to the relentless, almost non-stop noise. To make the situation still worse, planes enter the airport's ILS landing system close to Hever, and tend to come up into it from below, with extra engine noise, especially if simultaneously making a turn. Duncan Leslie explained that when visitors come to rural attractions they are expecting a degree of peace and tranquillity. However, with the flight path for Gatwick - just some 13 miles away - over the castle and its grounds, visitors are being deterred. Already putting on outdoor theatre is almost impossible, as the plays are interrupted every couple of minutes. A group of Chinese tour operators visiting Hever had said they were astonished that the Government allowed aircraft to fly low over Hever. A high proportion of Hever's visitors are from overseas. Mr Leslie said: "If our internationally popular tourist attractions become noise ghettoes, it does not matter how big the airports are, we will not get more tourists coming here." Mr Leslie has asked his local council, Sevenoaks, to oppose Gatwick's plans for a 2nd runway.
Click here to view full story...
Manston owner Ann Gloag brings in Alastair Welch to work with Charles Buchanan to try and turn it round
Back in July, in a surprise move, Southend's managing director Alastair Welch, who led the airport since before the Stobart Group bought it for £21 million in 2008, left at the end of July. Now failed Manston airport, recently bought by Ann Gloag for £1, has taken Alastair Welch on to work with Charles Buchanan to try and breath some life back into it. Ms Gloag said: “As the new owner of Manston Airport, I am ready to work on investigating opportunities for growth at Manston. I have over 30 years experience in the transport industry and will use that expertise as best as I can to optimise both freight and passenger growth at Manston." Mr Welch worked for BAA at Heathrow and Stansted before Southend. He said “For the airport to thrive and fulfil its potential, it is vital that we create an environment where new partners are attracted to do business at Manston." However, at present all it has is a twice daily KLM flight to Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow airport plans in relation to the reservoirs that supply part of London’s water
Plans drawn up by Heathrow airport, or others, to show indicative locations for new runways to the south and west show them in the areas where reservoirs are now. There are the Queen Mother reservoir; the Wraysbury; the King George VI; and the Staines reservoirs. Together they are an important water resource for London, for which water requirements grow each year as the city's population increases. There are huge technical problems in building a runway across part of an important reservoir, the ground levels being one. With climate change likely to make future water supplies less predictable, Thames Water anticipates that there will be a slight drop, of perhaps 5%, in its water availability in 2040 compared to 2012. Meanwhile it forecast "a total increase in population in our area of between 2.0 million and 2.9 million people by 2040 – three quarters of which is forecast in London. Overall, we forecast household water demand to increase by approximately 250 Ml/d" (mega litres per day). Household water is only one sector using water. Creating a huge new reservoir to replace one removed by a Heathrow runway would be an immense undertaking. One was proposed, and rejected, near Abingdon, in 2011. Even transporting water into the Thames from the Severn would have huge costs and environmental implications.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow residents fears as 3rd runway threatens homes and their communities’ futures
Barely three years after plans for a third runway were scrapped by the incoming government and abandoned by Heathrow, the airport has restated its case and returned with even bolder expansion plans. One local historian living in Stanwell remembered the Terminal 4 inquiry: "I sat in the room for the Terminal 4 inquiry – not even Terminal 5 – and the planning inspector said, 'Ladies and gentlemen, I can promise you this is the very last one.' You can't believe them when they say this is the end." According to a single well-placed source, the draft shortlist to be presented by the Airports Commission on 17th December contained three options, each including a Heathrow runway. People due to be badly affected if Heathrow is allowed a runway fear it will "swallow up the borough". Although Stanwell Moor is threatened with total destruction, the people in its 850 homes will be compensated and can move away – regarded by some, at least, as better than being trapped in unsaleable houses. A local councillor said: "I liken it to a funeral – it's not so much the people who die as the ones who are left behind." Communities both to the north and the south fear the dreadful prospect of being left close to the end of a runway, but not near enough to be demolished.
Click here to view full story...
Extra runways at both Gatwick and Heathrow not viable without ‘illegal’ state aid
Gatwick has complained that “massive” and potentially illegal public subsidies would be needed to support the construction of additional runways at more than one airport in the South East. They say there will be insufficient demand from passengers to support building a second runway at Gatwick and a third at Heathrow at the same time. An injection of taxpayer funds would, therefore, be required to justify the costs, the airport said, although that could potentially breach state aid rules. Gatwick has published a report listing 10 reasons why Heathrow expansion would be bad for Britain in a last ditch attempt to persuade the Airports Commission that its own proposals should be included on a short-list to be published on Tuesday 17th. Rival airports have been growing increasingly concerned after leaks that Sir Howard is likely to short-list only 3 potential options for new runways, all including at least one at Heathrow. Charlie Cornish, chief executive of MAG, said: “We firmly believe all credible options should be considered and taken forward for more detailed assessment during the next phase of the process. This is not, and should not be a two horse race."
Click here to view full story...
Report by Hounslow, Ealing and Slough councils says Heathrow closure would create 70,000 job losses
A new report commissioned by the London boroughs of Hounslow, Ealing and Slough Borough Council into the economic effect of Heathrow on the area, and the likely repercussions if it was to close. The report concludes that if Heathrow was to close, "up to 70,000 jobs across 3 boroughs neighbouring Heathrow would vanish, with devastating economic consequences, if the airport were to close in favour of a new hub airport elsewhere." The three local authorities, all of which have differing positions on the future of Heathrow, were concerned that the local impact of any decision was not being given sufficient weight in the deliberations into how to increase airport capacity in the south east. The report, by Parsons Brinkerhof and Berkeley Hanover Consulting, sets out 6 possible scenarios for the airport - but it came out just before the Airports Commission leak indicating that it proposes one - or even two - Heathrow runways, with no suggestion whatsoever of it closing. The report contains estimates of the number of direct and catalysed jobs, caused by Heathrow, or proximity to it. The Leader of Ealing Council, said: “Thousands of local families depend on Heathrow for their livelihoods and the airport plays a critical role in the local economy. Closing it should not be contemplated." It would appear that its closure is, indeed, not being contemplated. At all.
Click here to view full story...
David Cameron had talks with Sir Howard Davies as a row looms over leaked new runway proposals
Sky News reports that David Cameron has held a secret summit on 11th December with Sir Howard Davies in the run-up to the interim announcement on 17th December, due to the anticipated row generated by the report being leaked. It has been revealed that the report will shortlist just 3 favoured options, each of which includes the construction of at least one new runway at Heathrow. Boris has expressed his fury that Heathrow has been chosen, for not only one - but 3 - options. Sky says "People close to the Commission's work said that Sir Howard had been irritated by the speculation, suggesting that much of it had been inaccurate." As Gatwick has said there would be no point in them building a 2nd runway if Heathrow builds one, that leaves only 2 out of the 3 recommended options (ie. a 3rd runway, or a 3rd + 4th). Mr Cameron is understood to have urged Sir Howard to include in next week's report an alternative option not involving Heathrow. ie. perhaps estuary or Stansted, though the Commission has thoughts against both of these. However, the Airports Commission is meant to be independent; it is not meant to carry out the government's instructions. Sir Howard met George Osborne earlier this week, and Sky says Boris met Patrick McLoughlin on 12th to discuss a range of issues including the Airports Commission's review.
Click here to view full story...
Labour denies Heathrow third runway U-turn – but there has been a shift away from opposition
Labour has played down reports that Ed Miliband is set to abandon his opposition to a 3rd Heathrow runway. But he is under pressure from the shadow chancellor Ed Balls to be more supportive when the Airports Commission reports next week (though the report has been leaked already). A parliamentary row has been brewing over claims that No 10 has pressured the Commission into keeping a broader shortlist to avoid an early row focused on Heathrow - though Heathrow appears to be the main focus. Ed Balls in a recent speech to the CBI said he would like to see the Airports Commission make recommendations before the general election. The party's previous shadow transport secretary, Maria Eagle, was shifted in the recent shadow cabinet reshuffle partly due to disagreements with Balls over HS2 and Heathrow. Eagle's replacement as shadow transport secretary, Mary Creagh, has tried to be non-committal towards the Airports Commission, saying: "No party can say now that it will implement its recommendations when we simply don't know what the costs of any proposals will be. Obviously the Conservatives and Lib Dems haven't made any such commitments." She said Labour would not rule any runway options in or out while the Commission was still deliberating.
Click here to view full story...
Boris Johnson’s warfare threat if Airports Commission report pushes “catastrophic mistake” of Heathrow expansion
Boris has threatened open warfare against the Airports Commission if it makes the “catastrophic mistake” of pushing for Heathrow expansion, in its interim report. He launched a pre-emptive strike after it emerged that commission head Sir Howard Davies has briefed senior Government figures (including Osborne) a few days ago, a week in advance of the report's launch, that it opposes every runway option other than Heathrow. The leaks indicate that Sir Howard indicated he planned a shortlist of three options, all of which involved expanding Heathrow. The first was to revive a 3rd runway, which David Cameron originally pledged to stop, only to change his mind in the face of business pressure. Option two was to approve Heathrow’s latest expansion blueprint, for 2 extra runways. Option three was one extra runway at Heathrow plus one extra runway at Gatwick. Speaking from Doha where he is on a trade mission, Boris said: “I cannot conceivably believe that Howard Davies would inflict the misery of a 3rd runway at Heathrow, let alone a 4th, on a million people or more in west London." Mind you, Boris still wants his mega airport in the Thames estuary. The Standard says: Mr Johnson’s mood was said to be of shock and incredulity — but also a “steely resolve” to fight the plan.
Click here to view full story...
Gatwick chairman says Gatwick could not get their money back on a 2nd runway if Heathrow builds a 3rd
Gatwick's Chairman says it will not build a second runway if the British government allows a simultaneous expansion at Heathrow. Roy McNulty said building a Gatwick 2nd runway was a "bet the company type of investment" and the timescale of getting returns on the project would double if Heathrow was allowed to expand at the same time. He said Gatwick would also be wary if it was only allowed to expand sometime after Heathrow constructed a 3rd runway. Heathrow would remove the traffic Gatwick would need to run a new runway profitably. His comments were prompted by the leak, a week early, of the Airports Commission's interim report and its shortlist of schemes for new runways - all of which appear to involve another runway at Heathrow. Gatwick, owned by GIP (who are likely to want to sell it before 2020) suggested in July that they could build a new runway for around £9 billion, rather than over £14 billion for one at Heathrow. lt could take a decade to build either - if they could indeed ever get planning permission and meet all social and environmental constraints.
Click here to view full story...
Airlines increasingly using capital markets, rather than banks, to fund plane purchases
Globally airlines are buying passenger planes at huge cost. This year they may spend $104 billion this year, and $112 billion in 2014. Banks and export credit agencies have been the main source of aircraft financing in the past. They are retreating from this sector, due to having stricter regulations on minimum capital requirements, and also government restrictions on export credit. So airlines are finding more diverse funding sources. They are making greater use of capital markets, and pension funds, to fund purchases of aircraft. American airlines have used asset-backed bonds for many years, but now others including BA are starting to do so. They have issued asset-backed bonds called Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates to finance the purchase of new aircraft. Boeing estimated that capital markets will provide 14% of aircraft financing this year, and 22% in 2014 – compared with just 3% in 2010. Boeing said export credit-backed funding fell from 31% of aircraft financing in 2010 to 23% in 2013 and 18% in 2014. Borrowing from banks was around 30% of the total before 2008, but will be around 25% in 2014, with less from European banks and more from Chinese and Japanese banks.
Click here to view full story...
Easyjet’s Manchester to Moscow direct flights to be cut next summer – more sunny tourist destinations instead
In March, EasyJet launched the Moswow route with the expectation of carrying around 60,000 passengers during the first year, with 4 flights every week. But from May to September there will be just 2. There isn't the demand. Instead EasyJet (what a surprise) will put on extra flights to Mediterranean holiday destinations - to meet their "customers' needs". The Moscow flights were heralded as critical to the strategy to see North West firms increase their presence in emerging markets and away from its current reliance on the EU. A Manchester Airport spokesman said: “We’re disappointed to lose frequency on Moscow but pleased to see that the capacity will be used on increased flights to popular destinations such as Athens and Thessaloniki....The Moscow route remains important for businesses based in the North West which are looking to serve new markets such as Russia and is helping to increase trade between the two regions.” It is claimed "Manchester’s exports to Russia have grown by 27% in the last two years." The airport says it has 190 direct destinations.Manchester had 24% of its passengers travelling on business in 2012.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow campaigners furious over leak that Sir Howard Davies is backing 2 new runways at Heathrow
Heathrow campaigners have reacted with anger and disbelief to the leaked news that the Airports Commission Interim Report, which is due to be published on 17th December, favours 2 more runways at Heathrow. From the leaks, the Commission is expected to go for a 3rd runway at Heathrow followed by a 4th Heathrow runway or a second runway at Gatwick. The draft of the report, presented to Chancellor George Osborne, ruled out new runways at Stansted or an Estuary Airport. It is thought, however, that Tuesday’s report may formally retain more options in an attempt to give it some balance. This news will cause fury across whole swathes of London and the Home Counties. with the Airports Commission's work over the next two years in selecting from its "short list" seen as a "busted flush” with its decision already taken. John Stewart, Chair of HACAN - which represents residents under the Heathrow flight paths, said: “It is astonishing that Davies has put so much faith in an option he must know is politically the hardest to deliver. The one good thing is that he will force political parties to come out for or against a 3rd runway before the 2015 General Election.” Another Heathrow runway means thousands of people stand to lose their homes. They are not going to stand by and let that happen. The campaign against a 3rd runway starts today.
Click here to view full story...
Heathrow 3rd runway being pushed ahead by government, says Goldsmith
Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith - on Twitter - has claimed the government was trying to push through a 3rd runway at Heathrow by hiding behind initial recommendations made by the independent Airports Commission,chaired by Sir Howard Davies, whose interim report is due out next week. Zac has accused George Osborne of "yearning for a China-style government", saying on Twitter: "Osborne has spent public money on a review whose only purpose is to make a 3rd runway decision look like it was reached independently." This comes after "sources close to the inquiry," which will recommend where a new runway for London should be built, claimed Davies would set out 3 options for extra airport capacity in the south-east in the interim report - which is due to be revealed on the morning of 17th December. The 3 are thought to be: 1). A 3rd Heathrow runway. 2). A 3rd and 4th runway at Heathrow. 3). Another runway at both Heathrow and Gatwick. The Guardian says if the initial speculation is correct and Heathrow is the main focus, this is a potential source of embarrassment for the government. The Guardian adds that: " One source said Davies had been asked by No 10 to broaden the shortlist to avert any outcry about Heathrow. But this could not be verified."
Click here to view full story...
“Planes, ships & taxes: charging for international aviation & maritime emissions” paper by IMF and World Bank experts
A paper entitled "Planes, ships and taxes: charging for international aviation and maritime emissions" has been written by two IMF experts, and one from the World Bank. They consider that aviation and shipping should be taxed, and that the proceeds should go to climate finance. The paper says: “The exclusion from any kind of charge on fuels used in international aviation and maritime is highly anomalous, and interacts with other unique and extraordinarily favourable tax provisions for these sectors to generate significant costs in terms of the environment, government revenue and welfare more broadly defined." And "In the aviation sector in particular, it has been seen that substantial fuel charges would be warranted even in the absence of climate concerns as an imperfect correction for failure to levy VAT or other sales tax on international leisure travel". And "The revenue at stake is also sizeable..... charges could raise (from both industries combined) around $22 billion a year in 2020." And "in aviation, progress has been allowed to be held up by a mass of outdated legal provisions." And "Perhaps the most fundamental difficulty, however, is that it has been left to the sectors themselves to come up with charging schemes. One consequence has been the emergence of principles of doubtful merit: quite why a tax-based approach should be ruled out in aviation, for instance, is entirely unclear, and the general emphasis on earmarking proceeds to the benefit of the industry itself is no less questionable."
Click here to view full story...
In Toronto expansion of lakeside Billy Bishop airport is strenuously opposed by thousands whose lives it would adversely affect
Pearson airport is the main airport for Toronto. It has several long runways, can take large jets, and had around 35 million passengers in the past year. By contrast, Billy Bishop waterfront airport is tiny, lying along the lake edge close to central Toronto. Its one runway, by the water, is only about 1,200 metres and it had 2 million passengers last year. There are plans to greatly expand Billy Bishop airport, with the runway extended by 200 metres at both ends, to take jets rather than the current turboprops. There are plans for greatly increased numbers of passengers. There has been very vocal opposition from the local group, NoJetsTO, who fear having this enlarged airport will have highly negative impacts on the city, creating noise, air pollution, water pollution, disruption to leisure activities that take place on the lake, traffic congestion, interference with childrens' learning in school, and lowering the quality of life of many living in the area. They say the large jets should stay at Pearson airport, which is well equipped to deal with them. Now the airport's plans, by Porter Airlines, will not be considered by the city until February. Toronto city’s executive committee voted to defer debate of the controversial proposal till February 4 or to a specially called meeting.
Click here to view full story...
Mayor’s adviser admits ‘Boris airport’ may be dumped by Airports Commission
Boris Johnson's aviation adviser, Daniel Moylan, has admitted that proposals for a new hub airport in the Thames Estuary are “at risk” of being ditched by Sir Howard Davies when he publishes a shortlist of options for additional runway capacity in the South East on 17th December. The mayor has also put forward suggestions to transform Stansted (an area he does not represent in any way) “out of all recognition” into a new four-runway hub and advocated closing Heathrow and transforming it into a new London borough with up to 80,000 new homes. This week a jobs report from three councils in the Heathrow area, Hounslow, Slough and Ealing, will spell out the dangers of shutting Heathrow. The airport claims that the 76,600 people it directly employs would be made redundant overnight if Heathrow was to be replaced by a massive estuary airport, but the 3 councils' report is likely to put the figure far higher. The councils say the closure of Heathrow would have a huge impact on thousands of families.” Curiously and inconsistently, Boris is not bothered about the harm his Stansted plans would inflict on people there, but Mr Moylan talks about Heathrow expansion inflicting misery on a million people, or developing Gatwick into a four-runway hub airport.
Click here to view full story...
Telegraph article discussing some of the issues for the Airports Commission’s interim statement, due on 17th December
The Airports Commission will make its interim announcement on 17th December, on short term measures, and its short-list of runway options for the long term. The Telegraph writes about this with great enthusiasm at the prospect of aviation capacity equivalent to the size of Gatwick today being added to the south east, (mainly to accommodate more leisure air travel). Some of the points they make are that, predictably, the Airport Operators Association (AOA), say after 2015 any Prime Minister "who rejects the findings of that commission in 2015 would look very weak.” Heathrow expansion would need at least £4 - 6 billion of public funding for the road and rail links. It appears that MAG is lukewarm on the idea of a mega-hub at Stansted. Even Boris' own advisers fear the tide may have turned against any of the Thames Estuary options, which have been fiercely attacked by critics for the associated costs. Stewart Wingate of Gatwick fears the commission could simply choose to drop the most whacky options, and just ask for more work to be done on the most ones - Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and an airport in the Thames Estuary. It is not yet clear if the commission will shortlist a location or a specific option there (they don't yet have enough detail on them to choose). Several groups, including Heathrow hedged their bets by submitting more than one option, which met the various "sift" criteria in different ways
Click here to view full story...
Thousands delayed after flights delayed and many cancelled due to NATS air traffic control technical problems at Swanwick
Thousands of passengers were left stranded on Saturday after hundreds of flights were grounded at airports following a technical fault at the country’s main air traffic control centre. The problem at Swanwick led to delays to flight across southern England, Ireland and Europe, with Heathrow, Stansted, Gatwick, Luton, and ot others badly affected. Problems began when the control centre’s computer systems failed to automatically switch from night to day operations, forcing flight controllers to carry out the procedure manually. Only a few airspace sectors are needed at night, with more in use from early morning, when the increasing number requires a larger number of controllers handling them. The problem was with the telephone system, causing NATS difficulty reconfiguring the sectors. The fault took much of the day to fix, and there were large numbers of flight delays and cancellations, with stories of those affected and inconvenienced. The Swanwick centre opened in January 2002 at a cost of £623 million. NATS said their system is not simply internal telephones, it is the system that controllers use to speak to other ATC agencies both in the UK and Europe and is the biggest system of its kind in Europe. (And there are plans perhaps to add another runway in the southeast, adding the equivalent of another Gatwick to the system?)
Click here to view full story...
Branson keen to get jet biofuels from waste CO2 – though it could be put to other, non aviation, uses
LanzaTech has a joint venture facility in China, which is aiming to produce future supplies of biofuel for its partner airline, Virgin Atlantic. LanzaTech has a patented fermentation technology that transforms CO or CO2 gases generated by the steel industry into bioethanol, using GM "proprietary"micro-organisms - algae. The bioethanol can then be converted into jet fuels, and other platform chemicals. The waste CO2 could alternatively be used to produce plastics, or fuels for road vehicles, or animal feed. Aviation fuel is only one of the options. Waste CO2 from factories, power stations etc could also be ducted to greenhouses and used to boost production of vegetables and other foods, as well as using the waste heat. Richard Branson and others have been keen to promote this waste CO2 as a "low carbon" fuel for the aviation industry in future. However, it would appear that this waste CO2 could perfectly well be put to other uses, and indeed, diverting it to aviation prevents it being used to produce animal food, which in turn would produce human food. The Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) has certified LanzaTech’s joint biofuel venture facility in China, and Richard Branson has said the LanzaTech process is "a major breakthrough in the war on carbon."
Click here to view full story...
Lydd airport and its wishful thinking: “Lydd Airport to ease UK congestion” !
Lydd airport is getting into the act, in the run up to the interim announcement by the Airports Commission, which is likely to be on 17th December. Lydd is a tiny airport, built in a very remote location on Romney Marsh, close to Dungeness nuclear power station. The airport has hopes that it will become a "a modern regional airport" and "will help to meet growing demand for airport capacity in the South East, and help ease congestion in the skies." The first phase of its expansion – the construction of a 294m runway extension, plus a 150m starter extension – is due to start in 2014, allowing the airport to handle 737-type jets. A new terminal building is planned once passenger numbers begin to improve. Approval for the development was won after an eight-year battle for planning permission. It is still being opposed on legal grounds, due to nuclear safety concerns. While the expansion will cost £25 million, the airport owner has already spent £30 million on modernising in the past 10 years. Lydd is currently working on more than 60 pre-commencement conditions, which are expected to be complete in early 2014, at which point the runway contract extension will be put out to tender
Click here to view full story...
Airports Commission input into National Infrastructure Plan on improvements to surface access to main airports
Sir Howard Davies wrote to George Osborne on 26th November, on surface access to airports. This has influenced the National Infrastructure Plan for 2013, now released. The Airports Commission says that as adding any new runways will take a decade (or decades), in the interim “there is a strong case for attaching a greater strategic priority to transport investments which improve surface access to our airports.” The letter gives specific recommendations on improving surface access at UK main airports. On Heathrow it recommends: "Recognising the importance of encouraging modal shift towards more environmentally sustainable forms of transport at Heathrow, not only for supporting future expansion plans [!?] but also for optimising the airport's operations within its current capacity constraints, the Government should work with Network Rail to undertake a detailed study to find the best option for enhancing rail access into Heathrow from the south. Initial indications are that up to roughly 15% of Heathrow's passengers in the London and South East region could benefit from improved Southern Access." They "remain concerned that the proportion of users (particularly workforce) accessing Heathrow using private cars remains high, with consequent implications for air quality."
Click here to view full story...
Prospects of the ETS survival weakened by pressure against it from UK, Germany and France
The prospects of carbon emissions from aviation being adequately accounted for by the EU ETS in future look bleak. The Commission has proposed changing the law so aviation emissions that take place outside EU air space are exempt. But Germany, France and the UK want to exempt foreign airlines from the ETS entirely - even for the portions of flights that take place within EU airspace - because anything less would not be politically acceptable to China, India, Russia and the United States. Some MEPs are now lining up against the Commission as well. The Parliament is still likely to be evenly split, when it comes time to vote, between those who oppose any retreat, those who support the Commission's semi-retreat, and those who support the member states' full retreat. The problem with the partial retreat is that foreign airlines (other than those from small developing countries) would still be liable for emissions taking place within EU airspace for flights landing or taking off at EU airports. Even the most stalwart European lawmakers have admitted privately that they could not hope to hold out against the combined pressure of Beijing, Washington and Airbus. The choice now lies between partial retreat and (more likely) full retreat. There will be a vote in January about the draft proposal.
Click here to view full story...
Airports Commission surface transport improvement plans for Gatwick airport including £180 million station upgrade
Sir Howard Davies (Chairman of the Airports Commission) has written to George Osborne, on the subject of surface access to airports. He says that as adding any new runways will take a decade (or decades), in the interim "there is a strong case for attaching a greater strategic priority to transport investments which improve surface access to our airports." The Airports Commission have recommended improvements for Gatwick including improvements to the train station, which could cost £180 million - "subject to the airport providing an appropriate contribution to the costs of the scheme." It is not currently regarded as being well suited to travellers, especially those with heavy luggage, so better luggage space would need to be added. The Commission says Gatwick is succeeding in getting more long haul routes, and due to capacity constraints at Heathrow, "we believe that the UK's interests to enable passengers to more effectively access Gatwick's increasing connections to new markets, as well as its existing route network." The government says it will provide £50m towards the redevelopment of the station, subject to satisfactory commercial negotiations with Gatwick airport.
Click here to view full story...
Stansted launches consultation with leading businesses to help attract long-haul carriers
While in 2012 over 92% of Stansted's passengers were travelling to or from the EU, and only a bit of 7% were to other countries, the airport's management say they are keen to develop more long haul routes. They are calling on more than 300 businesses from across the East of England to work together to help attract direct long-haul services to the airport.The aim is to demonstrate to airlines that don't currently use the airport that there is demand for more long haul business destinations from Stansted (apart from the huge majority of leisure trips - which are about 85% of Stansted's passengers). The study will focus on companies that use long-haul air links but which currently have to travel from other London airports. Stansted says more than 46 million journeys are made each year by people living within Stansted’s catchment area, but only 12m of those flights are actually from the airport itself. Of the remaining 34 million flights, around 6 million involving flying long-haul to and from the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Australasia, and 4.6 m passengers take flights to and from North America. Andrew Harrison, MD of Stansted wants to "make long-haul destinations a reality from Stansted.”
Click here to view full story...
VisitBritain data shows countries with highest spending by inbound tourists: top is USA (13% of the total), France (8%), Germany (7%) and Australia (5%)
Visit Britain has commissioned a report, by Deloitte and Oxford Economics. The report indicates (though Oxford Economics is well known for using extravagant multipliers for their job and economic benefits estimates) that the tourism sector in the UK is worth some £127 billion per year now, and might grow at 3.8% per year. They say it could be worth £257 billion to the UK economy by 2025 (which, of course, is a guess). Their report says that UK income from foreign tourists in 2012 was £24 billion, (giving a net UK tourism deficit from outbound tourists of £13.8 billion). The £24 billion contributed £6.7 billion to HMRC. Data for 2012 show that the countries whose visitors to the UK spent the most were the USA (by far the most at 13% of the total), France (8%), Germany (7%) and Australia (5%). Then Ireland, Spain and Italy at 4% each. By far the largest number of visitors came from France (12% of the total), next Germany at 10% and USA at 9%. Predictably those who have come long haul spend more on their visits than Europeans. In 2012 about 73% of inbound visitors reached the UK by air. In 2012 there were 179,000 visits by Chinese people to the UK (0.6% of all overseas visits). They accounted for 1.7% of all nights in the UK by overseas visitors, and they spent £300m spent, accounting for 1.6% of the total spent whilst in the UK by overseas visitors
Click here to view full story...
Government and VisitBritain to launch “China Welcome” initiative to get more income from Chinese tourists to UK
The UK is blatantly trying to get as many high spending Chinese tourists as possible to visit, and more importantly - as the government sees it - spend their money here. More and more of it. The shameless touting for Chinese business is, frankly, embarrassing. We don't even try to be subtle in our desire to leech money out of tourists from China. Now all the stops are being pulled out to increase visitor numbers - including making obtaining visas easier. Sec of State at DCMS, Maria Miller, will launch a "China Welcome" initiative in Spring 2014, and Visit Britain says the initiatives to attract more Chinese could see 650,000 Chinese visitors per year by 2020, spending about £1.1 billion in the UK. The UK travel industry is salivating at the prospect that “In the last 12 months China has become the largest tourism source market in the world, worth $102 billion." VisitBritain says number of Chinese tourists coming to the UK was up (?21%) in the first half of 2013 compared to a year earlier, and their spending was up by much more. Airports are keen to benefit, with Birmingham jumping in, to get its share. Earlier this year, VisitBritain said the UK's tourism economy will be worth around £127 billion in 2013. They hope UK tourism will be worth £257 billion per year by 2025.
Click here to view full story...
EU proposal to phase out state aid to small regional airports after 10 years prompts worries of “closure of 100 small airports”
In July 2013 there was a consultation on rules for state aid to European airports and airlines. There are concerns that state aid and subsidies to small airlines, or to start up air routes to small airports, distort the market. The airports and airlines that benefit are keen to see the state help continue and say it has a marked effect on boosting their local economies, and creating wider benefits than just the companies involved. Now the EU has suggested state aid should not be given to small airports until they become profitable - and many of them will not be profitable. State aid should only be for a transition period of 10 years maximum. It is suggested by parts of the aviation industry that this could lead to "the closure of around 100 airports” around Europe. The Swedish argue that their small regional airports are vital, as surface links are impossible over the huge distances. The EU's Committee of the Regions has called for public financial support for airport infrastructure construction and development not to be considered a state aid. They say “A 10-year transition phase for all airports with under 3 million passengers per year cannot work," and the different situations of different airports must be taken into account. They want airports with less than 1 million passengers per year to get support beyond the 10 year transition period.
Click here to view full story...
Stop Stansted Expansion comment on the failure of their bias challenge against Airports Commission in the High Court
High Court Judge Mrs Justice Patterson has issued her ruling on the challenge brought by SSE arising from the role played by Mr Geoff Muirhead as a Commissioner on the Airports Commission. She agreed it was right for him to step down from the Commission as soon as it became known that his former employer, MAG, the owners of Stansted Airport, would be submitting proposals for extra runways there. But she ruled against SSE in deciding that no previous harm could have been done by Mr Muirhead, in terms of bias, during his involvement with the Commission from 2.11.2012 until his resignation on 20.9.2013 - which happened only after SSE had instructed its lawyers to commence legal proceedings. She did say that it could not be regarded "as the most wise" for him to remain on the Commission for so long. SSE still has some concerns about the integrity of the process going forward. SSE say that because there is so much at stake and the position is still not entirely satisfactory, they will be considering the ruling and whether aspects need to be taken to the Court of Appeal.
Click here to view full story...
German study: air travel taxes are an important instrument for climate protection
A study in Germany has been commissioned by a range of development and environmental organisations, into the effects of taxing aviation. It found that charging some taxes to air travel does not lead to movement of passengers from German airports to use foreign airports or to job losses in the aviation business - which is what he Federation of German aviation industry claims, probably incorrectly. The report says that additional revenue should be generated from air travel, to help fund mitigation and adaptation to climate change in developing countries. The organisations are calling on the coalition government in Germany to keep, and increase, air travel tax. The tax started in January 2011, and is charged based on distance travelled with rates of €7.56, €23.62, or €42.52 for short, medium and long haul flights. In Germany, as in the UK and in most of Europe, jet fuel is exempted from the energy tax on international flights and VAT is not charged. This tax break amounts annually to about €10.4 billion euros lost to the German tax authorities, which is massively more than the approximately €1 billion from air travel tax currently paid. The report wants to see taxation incentivise the most efficient utilization of planes.
Click here to view full story...
Some 250 CEOs write to Chancellor (yet again) to try and stop APD rises in line with RPI due in 2014
Regularly, every few months, there is another push by the aviation industry and its supporters, to get Air Passenger Duty (APD) reduced or scrapped. There is an other of these lobbying events again now. Some 250 chief executives have written to the Chancellor, accusing the Treasury of "ignoring evidence that APD is harming the economy." The UK has one of the highest aviation tax regimes in the world. Most other countries barely tax aviation. Several others in Europe do tax in one way or another. The reason the tax is charged is that UK air travel pays no VAT and no fuel duty. APD is intended to reduce this massive tax break, and in some way and incompletely, put a fair amount of tax onto air travel. The aviation and business lobby ignore this, and claim APD has a substantial negative effect on the UK economy. They ignore the need for fair taxation, and the Treasury's need for revenue. The businesses say: ....we are bitterly disappointed with the Government’s decision to keep increasing a tax which acts as a barrier for business in attracting inward investment and creating new jobs.” They quote a study earlier in the year by PwC on which the Treasury commented: “We do not recognise the figures in this report or agree with the assumptions behind it.”
Click here to view full story...
Luton plans to increase passenger capacity to be heard at Luton council meeting on 20th December
Plans to increase capacity at Luton Airport will be heard at a council meeting on 20th December. The meeting had been due for 21st November, but was postponed. The 10am meeting will be open to the public to attend. The application would effectively allow an increase in passengers of 10 million, so it should be regarded as an Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project and therefore referred to the Secretary of State, and not determined by the local council. The plans are not for any new runway capacity but road improvements, a new mult-storey car park, car park extensions, terminal improvements and extensions, and more taxi-ways and aircraft parking - enabling more planes and more passengers.Local campaign, HALE, says the reason for the hurry is that the the planning application expires on 27th December. As well as the NSIP issue, the other key area of disagreement is a lack of clarity relating to the noise levels governing the airport. Luton Borough Council has not justified the basis for its interpretation of the 1999 noise levels. This means that governance of the noise environment around Luton remains open to question and lack of clarity.
Click here to view full story...
Police helicopter crashes onto crowded bar in Glasgow – 8 confirmed dead, many more badly injured
A police helicopter has crashed into a crowded bar, smashing through the flat roof and entering the building. The bar was full of people listening to live music. The helicopter, weighing around 3 tonnes, did huge damage to the building (there was no fire though) and many people were trapped in collapsed masonry and rubble. The three in the helicopter died, and 5 others s far are confirmed dead. There are many others seriously injured, as well as more with minor injuries. The helicopter apparently does not have a black box. Accident investigators are already working to establish the cause of the accident. Some eye witness reports indicate the rotors stopped and the helicopter virtually fell to the ground. The helicopter is an Eurocopter EC135 T2, which is the standard Scottish police helicopter. It began service in 1996 and there are now around 1,000 in operation, for police and emergency services. Witnesses spoke of hearing the helicopter's engine spluttering as it fell. The crash will add to pressure on the Government to look into the safety of helicopters. Last week, the Transport minister Robert Goodwill rejected calls for a full-scale public inquiry into offshore helicopter safety.
Click here to view full story...
AEF comment on CAA review of environmental landing charges at airports
The CAA published a review in October of environmental landing charges at the 6 largest UK airports. The CAA review considered whether differential landing charges, based on noise and air pollution by NOx emissions, could be used to encourage the take up of cleaner and quieter aircraft. The main finding of the review is that environmental landing charges have some incentive effects but are unlikely to be the main financial driver for using quieter and less polluting aircraft. Currently, charging varies across the 6 airports, with some offering greater financial incentives for better performing aircraft which limits the effectiveness of environmental charging. The Aviation Environment Federation believes future schemes should assess the cost of local air quality impacts and then charge airlines for their contribution (the differential would mean that the polluter pays more in addition to the existing landing charges). The environmental charges collected should not be retained by the airport but could be used to fund effective mitigation and avoidance measures.
Click here to view full story...
Chiswick group says new hi-tech BA ‘Magic of Flying’ adverts may become ‘tragic roundabout’ if drivers distracted
BA hopes it has hit upon a dramatic new form of advertising, with massive ad billboards, near roads, which can detect the presence of a BA plane overhead. When one is detected, it plays a film of a child looking up excitedly at the plane, and then shows which flight it is, and where from. BA hope this will make viewers ".. dream of an amazing holiday or warm destination." and “We hope it will create a real ‘wow’ and people will be reminded how amazing flying is and how accessible the world can be” (and get them to buy flights, of course). A bit of slick marketing. They have put one of the massive billboards at the Chiswick Roundabout, which is several hundred yards north of the northern runway approach path and has exceptionally heavy traffic. The local West Chiswick and Gunnersbury Society, which opposed the building of the advert towers originally, are very concerned the BA ads are a safety issue, distracting drivers. They say when the billboards were approved, the displays had to be "identical at all times and shall be static and two dimensional only with no moving or apparently moving images" etc, Hounslow Council need to decide if the BA ads breach their planning condition
Click here to view full story...
Peter Liese MEP seeks to strengthen draft EU directive on aviation in the ETS
The European Parliament's environment committee rapporteur, Peter Liese, wants to tighten an EU directive on aviation in the EU ETS. The German liberal MEP, who is steering the draft directive through Parliament, is backing the EC's compromise proposal, while proposing amendments to further strengthening the ETS. Peter Liese is advising the EU to revise its relevant legislation by 2016, not 2020, to put more pressure on ICAO to reach a global deal sooner rather than later. ICAO agreed in October to develop a global MBM to reduce aviation CO2 emissions, at its next general assembly in 2016. That could take effect in 2020. But European trust in the ICAO outcome is waning, as its record on action on CO2 in the past is dismal. Liese said: “....it is not at all sure that the ICAO Assembly in 2016 will really succeed to adopt clear rules for the MBM.” His draft proposal is effectively threatening the ICAO that the EU will revert to a full ETS from 2017 if global agreement is not reached. Already aviation gets special treatment in the ETS as only 15% of its permits are auctioned (higher % for other sectors) and the cap on emissions is only 5% lower, while other sectors have to reduce their emissions by 21% from their 1990 level by 2020. Environmental organisations reacted warmly.
Click here to view full story...
New 7 year deal between Gatwick and Norwegian, that includes airline’s backing for 2nd runway
Gatwick airport has struck a deal with European low fares airline Norwegian, which includes getting their active support for the airport's plans to get a 2nd runway. This comes weeks after the CAA agreed that Gatwick can make bespoke commercial arrangements with its airlines. Norwegian is to start low-cost transatlantic services to 3 US airports, using Boeing 787 Dreamliners next summer in addition to an increased European network. It is expected that there will be 3 flights per week to New York after July 2014, and 2 flights per week each to Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale. These may cost as little as £150 one way. The number of destinations served by Norwegian from Gatwick will rise to 33 in 2014 with 6 aircraft based there. This will make Norwegian one of the top 4 airlines at Gatwick during 2014. Low fares to the USA is expected to draw in more passengers. The airline's CEO said: “Norwegian is very supportive of Gatwick’s runway expansion plan which would mean that the airport could offer even better operating facilities in the future.”
Click here to view full story...
University of Calgary analysis tar sand oil extraction show it is sometimes not even a net producer of energy
According to a new scientific analysis, many tar sands wells are actually using more energy than they produce. If it requires a barrel of oil - or its equivalent in gas - to retrieve a barrel of oil, then what's the point? It appears this is only possible at present in Canada as the price of oil is lower than the price of oil, so it is commercially viable to burn the cheaper gas in order to get out the more expensive oil. It may make some (warped) financial sense, but it makes no energy or environmental sense. But if the price of gas rises, in relation to the price of the oil, these tar sand wells will go bust. The economics of oil extraction use the term EROEI (Energy Return on Energy Investment) - ideally with EROEI as high as possible (eg. the light, sweet crude found near the surface in Iraq). Other assessments have found the EROEI for tar sands may be 7:1 for extraction and 3:1 after it has been upgraded and refined into a useful fuel. Squeezing oil out of tar sand is an extremely wasteful process, requiring between 2 - 4 tons of tar sand and 2 - 4 barrels of water to produce one barrel of oil. The richest deposits are being exploited first, but already produce a low return - which will become worse once the "lowest hanging fruit" has been removed.
Click here to view full story...
Many regional airports doing badly – falling numbers of passengers and falling profits
Many of UK's regional airports are not doing well - with the sale for only £1 of Prestwick, and the sale of Manston for little more recently. Over the past 5 years, with the recession, many have seen falling passenger numbers. Paul Kehoe, CEO of Birmingham airport, is quoted as saying nationalising airports (Prestwick and Cardiff) is not the answer. “If you’re nationalising (airports) – then something’s not working. Governments shouldn’t have to interfere.” A venture capitalist specialising in turnrounds, says there are too many airports, and very few UK airports are profitable. Many of them therefore need to close. While airlines fight for customers, competitively cutting fares, the airports fear this passes the economic pain onto them. The proliferation of regional airports means that many have overlapping catchment areas, intensifying the scrabble for a limited pool of travellers. Airports have to keep their aeronautical charges low in order to keep airlines, and make little or no profit. Many regional airports were bought for high prices, and there was undue optimism about their growth - which has not materialised. However, some regional airports within reach of London may be used to increase the south east's airport capacity.
Click here to view full story...
Happy 5th Birthday to the UK Climate Change Act
In hard economic times there is always a temptation for politicians to prioritise short-term economic growth and electoral success above cutting carbon emissions - despite recognition that man-made climate change is one of humanity's most important issues. This shows the importance of the Climate Change Act, which reached its 5th birthday this week. It was given Royal Assent in 2008, when it became the first national law committing to legally binding annual cuts in CO2 emissions. Its purpose is to limit the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted, not just long-term reduction targets, so 5 year carbon budgets are needed. And these are legally binding. There are people and politicians now who advocate weakening the 4th carbon budget, 2023 and 2027. But the CCC says there is no scientific or legal basis to do so, and if anything carbon pollution limits should be made tougher. The problem is that these budgets are set by politicians, not scientists. UK international aviation remains outside the carbon budgets. The UK Climate Change Act has so far successfully constrained UK politicians who want to ignore the reality of climate change. But it only covers the UK - the world needs a global carbon budget.
Click here to view full story...
Gatwick boss Stewart Wingate says: “It’s between me and Heathrow” for a new runway
Stewart Wingate, the CEO of Gatwick, has said the growing number of new routes and rising passenger traffic at Gatwick are proof the airport is the best place for an extra runway. This comes in the run-up to the anticipated interim report by the Airports Commission, due in mid December, short-listing possible sites for a new runway. Stewart Wingate has said he will resign if Gatwick is not on the short-list, which it is bound to be. He said: "What I’m offering is a mixture of carriers with low costs, low environmental impact [?] that nobody else can offer.” There are a growing number of long haul routes from Gatwick, and Gatwick firmly believes that the hub model that suits Heathrow is not necessary for UK aviation. Much of Gatwick's travel is low cost holiday flights to Europe, which Heathrow does little of. The recent CAA air passenger survey showed that in 2012 Gatwick had 17.5% of its passengers on business trips (12.6% international) with the remaining 82.5% travelling for leisure purposes. The number of passengers using Gatwick in the first 6 months of 2013 was 2.6% up on 2012.
Click here to view full story...
Monbiot on our relentless and unceasing consumerism – and its impacts on us
George Monbiot, writing on the damaging modern phenomenon of accelerating consumerism says that advertising and consumerism dull our capacity for empathy. The Greendex survey in 2012, indicates countries with the highest consumption levels often have some of the lowest levels of guilt about environmental harm done. That includes the UK. Monbiot says the government’s programme for economic recovery depends on unceasing consumption: that if people start repairing things or doing without, the scheme collapses. "Christmas permits the global bullshit industry to recruit the values with which so many of us would like the festival to be invested – love, warmth, a community of spirit – to the sole end of selling things that no one needs or even wants." "Are we so bored, so affectless, that we need to receive this junk to ignite one last spark of hedonic satisfaction? Have people become so immune to fellow feeling that they are prepared to spend £46 on a jar for dog treats or £6.50 a bang on personalised crackers ...." Air travel is one particularly high carbon type of consumption; buying a trip by plane is just another product, albeit a particularly environmentally damaging one. .
Click here to view full story...