A fair assessment I think. The question is, is it sustainable? Seems to me to be a playground for Ben Houchen and a useful political pawn (see also DSA!). It is getting investment, which is encouraging, but TUI have barely grown since returning. Ryanair may add the odd route possibly to be announced this month, but with bases at LBA and now NCL is there much scope for growth in that sector? How much is the revenue generated by the extra Ryanair and TUI movements contributing to overall profitability or is it, as I expect, widening losses? Is freight really seeing an upward trend? What is the breakdown of Commercial Air Transport vs puddle jumpers and light GA?
2Excel have now decamped which must be disappointing considering the promotion of the new hangars used pictures of their aircraft. Are there any tenants signed up to use them?
With regards to the economic benefit of a regional airport;
KLM must provide some return to the regional economy, but what else? And does it justify the millions in public funding?
Our comments crossed - I certainly think the airport is sustainable, but as an aviation focused business park with a runway in the middle of it. The things being done are the right things but in the wrong order and priority. Assuming there is a market for the business park, that should have been the initial project, building a solid base with Draken (whose expansion appears to have fallen into the airports lap) and the Willis village (who saw that coming?). The Terminal and Freight centre seem to have been developed on a "build it and they will come" basis, where as successful airports seem to get the business first and then scramble to cope while building the supporting infrastructure.