Very interesting story
Birmingham Airport boss says Heathrow runway claims ‘a con’ : Birmingham Airport News Stories
23.04.12
Claims Britain's economy requires new runways in the south-east are a ‘con’ that an industry dominated by BAA will not question, according to the boss of Birmingham Airport. Paul Kehoe said that at the same time as Heathrow's owner BAA is claiming that the lucrative Chinese market only wanted to fly to the west London airport, he was in Chengdu talking to Chinese airlines that were happy to consider any entry point into the UK.
BAA said last week that foreign airlines were ‘ready to vote with their feet and base new flights outside of the UK because of a lack of Government policy supporting aviation’, highlighting a survey showing that 86% would put on more flights to the UK if additional take-off and landing slots were available at Heathrow. However, Mr Kehoe said his experience at a conference in China last week was that ‘taxes and visas are a problem, but the Chinese said they would be happy to come to Birmingham: they see the UK as an important market and don't care how they get here.'
He also took issue with Heathrow's claim to be a unique ‘hub’ airport, one that can provide routes due to the volume of connecting traffic. He said: ‘Only 30% of its traffic connects. It is just a very big, successful airport. Is it positioned to be a world hub? For US traffic yes, for Europe going east and everyone else, no. A con is being perpetrated and it's time we held BAA to account. Even if there was a third runway, where is runway four? Where is the extra capacity you say Britain needs?’
He said few airport executives would speak out because they were either owned by or linked to BAA, or rely on British Airways, whose interests at Heathrow are closely connected.