Bruce Dickinson, of Iron Maiden fame, is a keen aviator and is looking at building an aviation business at St. Athan. He won’t be looking at Filton because he needs a runway.
So could you clarify exactly what you are arguing here? Following demise of AEU, is Bruce trying to start a new airline, or do somethign else aerospace related?
St Athan is so close to CWL, surely there is little case for an airline there?
Filton might have presented a different story - a city airport for Flybe types using the quietest lawnmower engines, anything remotely noisy use BRS, similar to the set up in Belfast.
But as mentioned, Filton surrounded by housing, and as such even such a small operation was denied at a Public Inquiry, little chance of surfacing again.
Now I can't comment much on non-commercial aviation uses, but such a long runway, with space either side, needs a good business case, otherwise it will indeed be better off as housing or light commercial use, as we're already seeing planned for PLH, as I'd expect to see at CVT within 5 years, and probably also at MME and BLK.
Be glad at least that, despire its disadvantages, BRS still handles around 6m px pa, whereas BHX, as the centre of a much more substantial catchment, struggles to make it to 9m. In that respect, with or without Filton, Bristol is still a success story.