Well I'm just pleased that Carolyn McCall has made a professional statement about the future of UK aviation, and it does come over like that rather than the sort of narrow partisan view that the likes of O'Leary would make. Yes, it is in the overall interests of UK aviation to increase the capacity at Heathrow. Build a second runway at Gatwick and you will STILL have everyone holding at Lambourne for 30 minutes most days, while the doubled capacity at Gatwick, which Easy as the No 1 user will have to pay for, goes unused.
Obvious isn't it! Amazingly, there are still many who can't get their heads round this basic fact of life. Ho hum.
It's also in Easy's interest as well. A 50% increase in Heathrow capacity and both BA and Virgin will be gone from Gatwick overnight, just like the US carriers all walked out on the place the moment the Bermuda 2 restrictions were lifted.
As it turns out, U2 could be in a very strong position with LHR expansion:
(1) it gets the opportunity to create a sizable operation at LHR;
(2) plenty of available slots give it the opportunity to expand at LGW as the "waiting room" (for LHR) empties, and other migrations to LHR to take place.
To be frank, I'm getting fed up with Gatwick's ludicrous and partisan advertising. Recently they have taken to posters along the M4 to Heathrow saying that traffic along there would get worse if Heathrow's extra runway goes ahead.
Me too. Also not impressed to get one of the "Gatwick obviously" leaflets through my door (in Middlesex!).
Desperation on the part of Gatwick airport Ltd.?
Just how long do they think it would take to get out down the unmodernised A23 through Brixton and Croydon if Gatwick doubles its runways ? Not everyone wants to fag over to Victoria and run the gauntlet of the most unreliable rail service in London out through East Croydon etc.
Indeed.
Personally i'm still at a loss to understand why it has to LHR or LGW, surely if both can fund their respective runway plans then why not?
Exactly!
If LHR gets the green light i hope its for two additional runways, it will be 2025 before anything is flying from them.
Two more rwys
will be needed, possibly before 2040. Some long term thinking is needed (for example, build two M25 tunnels at the same time - one lot of disruption instead of two), but unfortunately, the flock of pigs is flying again.
It will still be a long haul airport with few UK feeder services
Possibly, but not necessarily:
long haul flights need feeder flights. UK feeder services to/from LHR could be the saviour of many struggling smaller airports.
I guess much will depend on the general election in May, if the SNP have labour by the tail, then it might be PIK
Ha ha. Would be a mistake for Labour not to make it clear that it will
not get into bed with the SNP.
It will be presented as party that nearly bankrupted the UK linking up with the party that nearly broke up the UK. Whether true or not, it would be toxic for Labour. "Vote UKIP get Miliband" is lame in comparison.
Maybe not good for the SNP either now that Labour has thrown it away in Scotland: "Vote SNP get Miliband".
How would a Lab/SNP deal affect a decision on airport expansion?