MANSTON -3
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Last minute saviour?
Buyer in contact with Sir Roger Gale MP as Manston airport in consultation over closure
Interest has been shown by a buyer - backed by a consortium - to take over the running of Manston airport.
North Thanet MP Sir Roger Gale, a committed supporter of Manston, has outlined the latest moves to save the airport.
It follows the bombshell announcement to staff last Wednesday that the airport could close following a 45day consultation period - leaving 150 staff without a job.
Already more than 11,000 people have signed a petition to keep the airport running.
Sir Roger said there had been significant developments since the announcement.
He said: “Most significantly, I am in contact with a willing buyer who has, I believe, a consortium with the resources necessary to acquire the airport as a going concern and with a view to operating it as such.
"There are others who have also expressed interest in contributing financially, on a realistic basis, to an acquisition.
"It now remains to be seen whether the present owner is willing to sell and, if so, upon what terms.
He has spoken with the Secretary of State for Transport and with the Minister for Aviation, and had raised the issue on the floor of the House at Transport Questions last Thursday.
Sir Roger had also “raised the obvious concerns” with the Minister of State for Defence and was awaiting his response.
He continued: “I am in ongoing discussions with the Leader of Kent County Council, who has clarified his position and confirmed his support for Manston as an operating airfield and his continued support for the fast rail link and proposed Manston Parkway station.
Sir Roger and Thanet South MP Laura Sandys are due to meet the Aviation Minister on Wednesday.
They are also in the process of arranging further ministerial meetings on Thursday, together with the assembly of the necessary high-level working group.
They are hoping to brief a public meeting in Thanet on Saturday.
Sir Roger said: “I remain of the view that Manston is a national as well as a local asset and that it should, if at all possible, remain open for aviation and as a major diversion field and Search-and-Rescue base.”
Interest has been shown by a buyer - backed by a consortium - to take over the running of Manston airport.
North Thanet MP Sir Roger Gale, a committed supporter of Manston, has outlined the latest moves to save the airport.
It follows the bombshell announcement to staff last Wednesday that the airport could close following a 45day consultation period - leaving 150 staff without a job.
Already more than 11,000 people have signed a petition to keep the airport running.
Sir Roger said there had been significant developments since the announcement.
He said: “Most significantly, I am in contact with a willing buyer who has, I believe, a consortium with the resources necessary to acquire the airport as a going concern and with a view to operating it as such.
"There are others who have also expressed interest in contributing financially, on a realistic basis, to an acquisition.
"It now remains to be seen whether the present owner is willing to sell and, if so, upon what terms.
He has spoken with the Secretary of State for Transport and with the Minister for Aviation, and had raised the issue on the floor of the House at Transport Questions last Thursday.
Sir Roger had also “raised the obvious concerns” with the Minister of State for Defence and was awaiting his response.
He continued: “I am in ongoing discussions with the Leader of Kent County Council, who has clarified his position and confirmed his support for Manston as an operating airfield and his continued support for the fast rail link and proposed Manston Parkway station.
Sir Roger and Thanet South MP Laura Sandys are due to meet the Aviation Minister on Wednesday.
They are also in the process of arranging further ministerial meetings on Thursday, together with the assembly of the necessary high-level working group.
They are hoping to brief a public meeting in Thanet on Saturday.
Sir Roger said: “I remain of the view that Manston is a national as well as a local asset and that it should, if at all possible, remain open for aviation and as a major diversion field and Search-and-Rescue base.”
Stagecoach should be offered £2, just to p1ss them off ;-)
Joking aside, Manston may not be exactly in the right place, but it is a national asset, so I hope a solution can be found.
Joking aside, Manston may not be exactly in the right place, but it is a national asset, so I hope a solution can be found.
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Sir Roger had also “raised the obvious concerns” with the Minister of State for Defence and was awaiting his response
Manston could be described as a national asset because:
- it has an under-utlised runway, amongst the longest in the UK, with a good weather record and decent navaids/lighting
- it's not that far from our largest centre of population (and faster trains will bring it closer)
- it's not far at all from our of our biggest sea ports (Dover)
- it's the closest airfield (maybe apart from Lydd) to the near-Continent
Yes, people will ask why it hasn't been a success already, if all of the above is so relevant.
Under-investment is the answer, I would suggest. And not just in the airfield itself.
But this is the UK, and under-investment is a way of life.
- it has an under-utlised runway, amongst the longest in the UK, with a good weather record and decent navaids/lighting
- it's not that far from our largest centre of population (and faster trains will bring it closer)
- it's not far at all from our of our biggest sea ports (Dover)
- it's the closest airfield (maybe apart from Lydd) to the near-Continent
Yes, people will ask why it hasn't been a success already, if all of the above is so relevant.
Under-investment is the answer, I would suggest. And not just in the airfield itself.
But this is the UK, and under-investment is a way of life.
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I think we have too many semi decent airports fighting for business in a capacity crunch rather than too few. It will be interesting to see what happens to LCY when Crossrail brings Canary Wharf and LHR so much closer. LTN adds capacity but is full up at peak times as is LHR and LGW, but STN, LGW, LTN and LCY all have a fair amount of off peak capacity.
What the market wants, and I think what we need, is additional capacity where it brings most bang for our buck. LHR, to connect long and short haul like no other airport comes close, a huge asset to the wider economy. The market is reluctant to use STN/LTN unless it is cheap, LGW remains leisure dominated, more so than LHR. MSE is irrelevant to any of this, we already have over segmentation and too much choice in the UK.
BHD/BFS batter each other, DUB win.
NCL/MME, we actually have a clear winner for once.
LPL/LBA/MAN wars until recently, MAN badly handicapped.
GLA/PIK meant EDI took a large lead over GLA
LHR/LGW muddies capacity with hub capacity, LGW win with a smokescreen of grey areas!
STN/LTN um, no one wins.
SEN vs STN/LTN/LCY/LHR/LGW, PR wins as SEN can't be compared to any of the others simply by slapping "London" in the title. Great little local airport that ought to and will have no baring on real capacity benefits for the London area!
Investment is fine only if you can expect a return on it. In many of the examples above, the businesses have taken on too much debt during the last bubble with no real prospect of robust profit at the end of it, the same would apply to any investment at MSE.
What the market wants, and I think what we need, is additional capacity where it brings most bang for our buck. LHR, to connect long and short haul like no other airport comes close, a huge asset to the wider economy. The market is reluctant to use STN/LTN unless it is cheap, LGW remains leisure dominated, more so than LHR. MSE is irrelevant to any of this, we already have over segmentation and too much choice in the UK.
BHD/BFS batter each other, DUB win.
NCL/MME, we actually have a clear winner for once.
LPL/LBA/MAN wars until recently, MAN badly handicapped.
GLA/PIK meant EDI took a large lead over GLA
LHR/LGW muddies capacity with hub capacity, LGW win with a smokescreen of grey areas!
STN/LTN um, no one wins.
SEN vs STN/LTN/LCY/LHR/LGW, PR wins as SEN can't be compared to any of the others simply by slapping "London" in the title. Great little local airport that ought to and will have no baring on real capacity benefits for the London area!
Investment is fine only if you can expect a return on it. In many of the examples above, the businesses have taken on too much debt during the last bubble with no real prospect of robust profit at the end of it, the same would apply to any investment at MSE.
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- it has an under-utlised runway, amongst the longest in the UK, with a good weather record and decent navaids/lighting
- it's not that far from our largest centre of population
- it's not far at all from our of our biggest sea ports (Dover)
- it's the closest airfield (maybe apart from Lydd) to the near-Continent
Try developing an airport on the "way in" to London, not on the "way out" of London and certainly not one at the end of a bl00dy long cul-de-sac!
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As I recall, from my RAF ATC days, it was RAF Manston (not Manston Airport) and, I think, RAF Leeming (or somewhere up north) that could lay foam carpets.
But then the RAF dispensed with that idea like they dispensed with a lot of other things based on cost.
But then the RAF dispensed with that idea like they dispensed with a lot of other things based on cost.
Saudia to end cargo flights at Manston from next Monday
http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent_bus...airport-14670/
http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent_bus...airport-14670/
Last edited by davidjohnson6; 25th Mar 2014 at 14:12.
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I wonder if the announcement that STN will no longer effectively be price controlled by government from 1st April will see MAG offering competitive deals to the MSE cargo operators? Could be an alternative option to these carriers in uncertain times but a further blow to Manston if it happened.
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What were Saudia cargo using? Was it their own B747-8F or Air Atlanta? Days of operation? Worth going for a look before it's all too late. This has all been very quick, Gloag has previous at PIK where Stagecoach added cost after costs to the Ayrshire businesses once lean cost base.
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Such a real shame, I really do hope that there is (or could be) a quick fix. Having used Manston in the days of EUJet, I can only add that it was worth the extra drive as it was probably one of the nicest airport experiences I've had in the UK.
For those who held out hope of a temporary blip in the booking system, KLM have issued a press release confirming the suspension of flights from Manston from 10 April
http://news.klm.com/uncertainty-surr...-manston-kent/
http://news.klm.com/uncertainty-surr...-manston-kent/
Last edited by davidjohnson6; 26th Mar 2014 at 13:15.
Phileas, you make some decent points in response to my previous post, but in terms of these:
You and I both know that there are immovable reasons why some of those would never be able to operate scheduled commercial flights.
Often today in the logistics/transportation industry, aeroplanes, trains, trucks and ships work together to move things, in an "intermodal" way.
It's not that many years ago that cruise pax were being flown direct into and out of MSE from the US to join cruise ships at Dover. Year-by-year the no. of cruise ships running through Dover continues to increase.
And neither are/were Dunsfold, Farnborough, Greenham Common, Upper Heyford, Hatfield, Radlett to name but a few.
Why does Dover seaport need an airport? ... Absolute nonsense.
It's not that many years ago that cruise pax were being flown direct into and out of MSE from the US to join cruise ships at Dover. Year-by-year the no. of cruise ships running through Dover continues to increase.
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You and I both know that there are immovable reasons why some of those would never be able to operate scheduled commercial flights.
Have you ever heard of a saying "Never say never"?
Often today in the logistics/transportation industry, aeroplanes, trains, trucks and ships work together to move things, in an "intermodal" way.
It's not that many years ago that cruise pax were being flown direct into and out of MSE from the US to join cruise ships at Dover. Year-by-year the no. of cruise ships running through Dover continues to increase.
It's not that many years ago that cruise pax were being flown direct into and out of MSE from the US to join cruise ships at Dover. Year-by-year the no. of cruise ships running through Dover continues to increase.
Once in a blue moon a B747 (or similar) might trundle thru NQY but hardly worth maintaining a 9,000ft runway airfield for the minimal amount of revenue such may generate over the course of a financial year.
Just lamebrain excuses I would suggest!
You are probably right (not about the lamebrian bit, no need for that kind of derision), but the cruise ship operation at Dover is now significant (although granted it's mainly in Spring/Summer/Autumn) and way, way bigger than anything that Falmouth (or wider Devon/Cornwall) could support.
NQY suffers even more from where it is than MSE does, of course. The former could never be a freight hub, whereas MSE sees multiple daily heavy freighter ops on some days of the week currently (and from big players in that industry, the likes of Cargolux).
The local MP seems to think he has identified a credible backer who says he can make it work, so let's see.
NQY suffers even more from where it is than MSE does, of course. The former could never be a freight hub, whereas MSE sees multiple daily heavy freighter ops on some days of the week currently (and from big players in that industry, the likes of Cargolux).
The local MP seems to think he has identified a credible backer who says he can make it work, so let's see.