Fair point Mickyman..The only mistake they made with the 2nd runway was that it was built too close to the 1st so cannot do mixed mode.
The UK government said last week that they have downgraded passenger forecasts for air travel down from 445 million to 330 million due to the recession,and no new runways will be needed before 2050 ?
So looks like Birminghams runway extension starting next year may be the largest project for a while on that front then.
With APD rises I think the smaller airports will fade.. Durham I think has just been put up for sale, and LPL will probably have to settle for just low cost.
It will be MAN,BHX,LGW that will be the growth airports, purely because they are closest to large conurbations.
Nigel