Whilst I do not profess to fully understand the intricacies of the agreement, if ACDL do implement a "withdrawal" from 2015, effectively handing the airport back to LBC, as opposed to 2028, their options are somewhat limited surely.
1. LBC could run the airport themselves. God forbid, as we all know what happened in the past, and in the current highly competitive enviroment, this would be an absolute disaster. Legally now though, I don't think this can happen.
2. Put out to tender for another concession period of 30 years, or maybe this time slightly longer, to see if they can squeeze even more money from a new operator, but who in their right minds would then be willing to take that on, bearing in mind what has happened this time, since by now STN has got its second runway , all the airlines have moved over to Essex. Main user would be a local flying club + corporates.
3. LBC to sell the airport, lock, stock & barrel. Hey, mind that pig, passing overhead the 08 threashold.
4. Convert the field to sheep & dairy farming.
In all seriousness though, a pretty uninviting outlook, due to the total intransigence of a completely blinkered LBC.
Last edited by Powerjet1; 8th Jul 2007 at 06:23.