CabinCrewe do you even know why they'd want to keep PIK open? Have you thought on the subject matter before you launched your latest exclamation from the Private Fraser school of negativity?
As has been explained already.
The airfield was a former public facility which has already had a lot of taxpayers money used to build it. It was sold after BAA went private and became consistently profitable allowing a mass of cargo imports and exports and opening up loco travel to Scotland. However recent mismanagement by the current semi detached owners led to the addition of a high cost base and lost some major customers. It has been proven that the operation is actually viable and profitable and there is an expectation things can be turned around. Seasonal though traffic remains, it is rising.
At a strategic level PIK is a semi military asset and the main diversion point for hijacked aircraft in this part of the country. Losing PIK would see more of our air cargo landing in England and trucked. There would be a loss of military airlift capability in time of war and the country would have no runway capable of handling long haul air cargo at all. It's not purely a matter of Ryanair and spotters regardless of how much fun being vitriolic can be.
Last edited by Skipness One Echo; 11th May 2013 at 14:26.