Originally Posted by
davidjohnson6
LTNman - I think you are being a bit harsh on Luton compared to Gatwick.
Gatwick has the luxury of far more acres of land and a longer runway. 3 years ago, Luton was cheap and nasty. The terminal extension with the new shops has tried to target a slightly wealthier passenger.
However Luton seems to feel far more overcrowded than other airports leading to the grotty feeling overall. This will only really be resolved by the airport having a bigger area of land to use
That said, most airports would consider overcrowding and too many pax, to be a nice problem to have
The upmarket shops are always devoid of any passengers apart from the occasional Romanian shoplifter so I have been wondering how long most of them will last. Also it seems a great waste of terminal floor space having shops containing zero passengers for most of the time when a Greggs would attract the masses.
As for Luton needing a bigger area of space I think I would prefer to keep my local park which is one of the three biggest in the town. The offer of a replacement field in Hertfordshire is no substitute to a mature much loved local amenity.
Also anyone wondered what a second terminal would look like? Another grot box comes to mind that will be built on the cheap with again every pipe and heating duct on show. I am still staggered daily how bad the ground floor infill looks as it doesn’t get any better with time and all because they didn’t put a ceiling in to save a few pounds.