Aviation

NEW OWNERS RULE OUT SECOND RUNWAY AT GATWICK!

February 2010
 Speaking at the Gatwick Airport Consultative Committee (GATCOM) meeting on 28 January 2010, Sir David Rowlands, former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport and current Chairman of the Board of Gatwick Airport Ltd ruled out a second runway at Gatwick for the foreseeable future.

Even if the Government changed its policy in favour of a second runway, it is not certain whether such a multi-million pound project would ever produce a commercial return, especially given the fact that a planning application would cost £100-200 million and undoubtedly attract massive local and national opposition.

In the meanwhile, the Gatwick Area Conservation Campaign (GACC) remains on guard in case this position changes. CPRE Sussex also should stand ready to support GACC and the many other local groups in their opposition to a second runway at Gatwick because of the harm it would cause to the countryside, environment and local communities.

>See Press Release

CAMPAIGNING AGAINST UNECESSARY AIRPORT EXPANSION

In conjunction with our National and Regional offices CPRE Sussex is campaigning to prevent the unjustified expansion of our County's airports. We participated in the Government's Aviation Expansion Consultation during 2003 (>link to CPRE Sussex response PDF 730kb) .

We held meetings and made press releases, informing residents of the need to respond to the Government's consultation paper. We are delighted that our recommendations have been taken into account and that the Government has accepted that they are bound by legal agreement not to undertake further expansion at Gatwick until after 2019. 

However, this does not mean that they have abandoned plans to add an additional runway after then, so we have to continue campaigning to prevent expansion of our principal airport.  We are pleased to report that the opponents to any airport development in the south of England have been granted leave for a Judicial Review of the Government White Paper. 

This will, at least, delay development for a period during which it will become clearer whether there is actually any real demand for a 300% increase in passenger traffic into and out of the UK.  The low cost airlines Ryanair and Easyjet are currently experiencing financial difficulties that are unlikely to go away in the near future.

It has been stated that Gatwick could double its existing capacity by expansion of facilities within its current boundaries, so an additional runway is certainly not even justified by 2020, yet the threat remains.

The Prime Minister's concern about global warning should mean that he will press for a European imposition of a tax on aircraft fuel as this would considerably reduce global pollution as well as future increased demand for passenger movements."

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