Future aviation strategy in the UK.

[Ray Finkle]

The link below is the meeting of the transport select committee yesterday with some very interesting comments from representatives of MAN, BRS and BHX.

The clip is two hours long with the first hour being representatives of NATS and the CAA. Skip to 56 mins to watch Robert Sinclair Chief Executive Officer Bristol Airport Ltd, Paul Kehoe Chief Executive Officer Birmingham Airport and Andrew Harrison Chief Operating Officer Manchester Airports Group.

http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Playe ... ngId=12053

 

[TheLocalYokel]

UK’s Regional Airports in Fight for Viability

An American view on the UK regional airport scene.

http://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/ ... -viability

 

[Aviador]

Whilst there is no specific mention of the airports that would go, to suggest airports like Southampton should stay, yet airports like Luton, Leeds Bradford, East Midlands and Liverpool should go is completely ridiculous. The eight airports suggested there don't show any respect for the populations centres and in any case, to close the smaller regional airports would only lead to an economic bias to the cities closest to the eight remaining airports and the need for more runways at the remaining airports.

 

[TheLocalYokel]

Whilst there is no specific mention of the airports that would go, to suggest airports like Southampton should stay, yet airports like Luton, Leeds Bradford, East Midlands and Liverpool should go is completely ridiculous. The eight airports suggested there don't show any respect for the populations centres and in any case, to close the smaller regional airports would only lead to an economic bias to the cities closest to the eight remaining airports and the need for more runways at the remaining airports.

The comments in the article (see the quoted section below) appear to suggest that Paul Kehoe (BHX CEO) has not included his own airport in the eight regional airports he believes should remain. I suppose Luton is regarded as a London airport and not a provincial one.

I suspect he was trying to make the point that he believes there are too many regional airports and thought a way to get some publicity would be to go overboard. I wonder whether he really believes the airport network should be so constricted. I'm inclined to doubt it. It won't happen anyway short of a dictatorship government issuing a decree.

The idea of an American publication (usually one of the most insular of western countries in outlook) taking an interest in UK regional aviation was the reason I posted the link.

He also claims that the UK–whose land area roughly equals that of California–has too many regional airports outside London and could better do with just eight: Bristol, Manchester, Newcastle and Southampton (in England): Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow (Scotland, excluding highland/island airports that enjoy public-service status); and Belfast (Northern Ireland).