Constucting the terminal to the south of the runway would have proved impossible. This is due to the fact the airport is almost right next door to the Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire border and this idea would have meant the terminal being built in Hertfordshire. This is something I can assure you Herts council would have fought desperately. Not only that, the land is anything but flat. It would have made no economical sense to flatten the land out, not to mention re-alligning the roads and demolishing people's homes.
But that is exactly the plan in project 2030 to be revealed before the years end. The airport are using
http://www.urscorp.com/URS_Division/...9§ion=0601 for the consultancy
Surely an airport which has seen its passenger useage rise from around 1.9 million in 1994, to just under 9 million nowadays per annum, and the fact it posts considerable profits proves it's efficient?
After tax and after paying Luton council £11.8 m in fees the airport made 16p profit per passenger in 2004