stewyb
Not so much a starter strip, more a runway extension so that it can be used as part of the LDA for 02. Part of the penalty incurred with a wet runway affects the landing weight so every extra metre helps, albeit not for 20 as the rail sheds and some houses at the west end of Campbell Road necessitate use of the current 20 displaced threshold.
And don't forget the northern taxiway that has been proposed many times.
The party line put around by BAA was always that the Section 106 Agreement with Local Planning Authority prevented a runway extension, not the case (unless the original has been changed), if a planning application is put in the runway shall not be extended to more than 2000 metres.