It has been reported by cynics that the fire, and the much publicised reduction of the licenced (not actual) runway length, have been very conveniently helpful for those wishing to see the demise and alternative use of the airfield.
Mike
I'm not sure that reporting in that way is actually being cynical. It sounds a perfectly reasonable statement.
What would be cynical is to assume that it was done deliberately - that would probably be libellous too.
Where I live there have been a number of convenient fires which have removed a surprisingly large number of inconvenient listed buildings and opened the way to modern developments. In some cases this was proved to have been deliberate and the miscreants are now serving time at HMQ's pleasure.
Since the Sandown fire, there has been little attempt to rebuild the restaurant, which, I'd have thought, brought in a lot of business.
I do hope that it will be reincarnated soon.