Sandown Closing?
 

The staff at Sandown have all been given notice that they will no longer be employed at the end of the month. Are we to loose another GA airfield?

Hi, that would be a real shame but it's been on the cards all year I think. I gained my PPL at Sandown in the early eighties and have enjoyed regularly flying in mainly from Redhill in recent years (to see my sister). At least Bembridge airport has gained and improved by picking up the tourist trade - a beautiful alternative to fly into. That doesn't comfort the Sandown staff though:sad: Rgds, Neil

An absolute tragedy.

I prefer Sandown to Bembridge and really miss the trips to the restaurant. Did the police ever catch those little *rs*holes who torched it?

It has certainly turned out to be a boon for those wanting to shut the airfield.

Ahh yes, those Aviator burgers! :)

If this is the case that's really sad but not entirely a surprise. Last time I was there in the summer, I noted absolutely no progress or effort had been made on rebuilding the old restuarant aside from clearing the debris. Also, for a considerable time now, some property developer scum have been trying to get hold of the site for (I think) another bloody caravan park - guess they've succeeded then as usual (money talks).

I think the 05 runway has been reclassified to only about 350m earlier this year due to obstructions??? Can't recall the exact details, may have been a Pooleys guide update - feel free to contradict this if I'm wrong.

All the best to the Sandown staff anyway.

on another site there is mention that some redevelopment (aviation-related) is about to start on the airfield. So it may not be all doom and gloom

Fingers crossed

Robin: Hope you're right and I'm wrong but there was talk in the local press (I work in Telly down here) about a caravan/holiday park at one time though that may well have gone west with the advent of the recession.

It has been reported by cynics that the fire, and the much publicised reduction of the licenced (not actual) runway length, have been very conveniently helpful for those wishing to see the demise and alternative use of the airfield.

Infuriating loss of another excellent GA facility.

Mike

I'm not sure that reporting in that way is actually being cynical. It sounds a perfectly reasonable statement.

What would be cynical is to assume that it was done deliberately - that would probably be libellous too.

Where I live there have been a number of convenient fires which have removed a surprisingly large number of inconvenient listed buildings and opened the way to modern developments. In some cases this was proved to have been deliberate and the miscreants are now serving time at HMQ's pleasure.

Since the Sandown fire, there has been little attempt to rebuild the restaurant, which, I'd have thought, brought in a lot of business.

I do hope that it will be reincarnated soon.

i work at sandown airport and have been told my last working day will be 24th january 2010

Sorry, I MEANT licenced length, the runway is of course unchanged physically. I think the fire isn't regarded as sinister, just usual chav retard scum up to their normal tricks.

How much would it cost to rebuild? Any chance of getting a consortium together to put towards the cost?
I loved flying into sandown during my PPL even with the old hut but the new one was so much better.
I know it's a long shot but it has to be asked.

All the best to those involved there.

No point. The cost would pale into insignificance compared to the cost of alternative use redevelopment which is presumably what we all expect to happen and which will presumably be a more profitable investment.

Perhaps worth mentioning that, rose tinted glasses aside, there is no money if providing airfields for nice sunny weekend flyers:ok:

If it was my property I would want to extract as much return as possible on my investment.

Yes, that is the problem with the planning policy. Every UK airfield is in danger from property sharks.

If it is possible to get a planning permission to build houses, that will always happen - there is no alternative whatsoever. Every airfield where this is possible will eventually close.

It is purely down to the owner to be an aviation enthusiast and to not sell out. But his successors will invariably sell out eventually. Property sharks will always be around, circling and sniffing, and making offers to the landowner.

In all honesty I can see a lot of aviation enthusiast owners selling out too - many will get fed up with the standard level of dissent among based owners. GA is not a very cohesive group generally.

What this means for UK GA is probably that facilities will end up being either the big stuff (Biggin and above), and farm strips owned by small groups of pilots. The problem is that most strips are not and will not be owned as freeholds; most country land is owned by farmers and farmers really hate selling land if there is the slightest chance of getting a redevelopment permission one day, because they make an absolute killing over using it for farming....

But what is a property shark?

Are you telling me IO540 that you will sell your house for what you paid for it and throw in the aircraft for what you paid for it to someone who turns up with a pilots licence?

Do you think for one moment that anyone buying a lease on Llanbedr or Coventry is not looking for a return? Of course they are and it will not be taking care of weekend pilots in a 152.

I'd sell my grandmother (if she was still alive) and enjoy the flying in nice warmer climes :ok:

There is no business plan in the few cups of tea and coffee plus landing fees
to be taken at the average UK GA field.

You'd be better off selling burgers and tea in a trunk road layby:ugh:

= property developer.

Personally I would be looking for a profit on my house but that's irrelevant to the future of GA airfields which if operated purely for a capital gain on the property portfolio will always end up closing.

There is more to life than making money.

I'll tell you how to make a huge pile of money.

Work all your life (pay doesn't have to be good).
Never go out.
Never have relationships.
Keep your trousers well zipped up.
Have no hobbies.
Do nothing interesting.
Stash away every penny in financial instruments.

You are guaranteed to die very rich (£ millions).

Is this what you want?

Even if we exclude property sharks from the picture, the fact is that no airfield can make a decent business return on "low net worth" GA traffic willing to pay that sort of landing fee, and do some kind of maintenance.

I suppose this means that the future of GA is like I said: the bigger airports (charging £50 a time, eventually, if we are lucky) and private co-operatives running grass strips.

Can you see another solution?

Coventry is a much bigger place, with potential for high landing fee traffic. Sandown would never attract anything paying significant fees, especially as Bembridge is right next door, with a hard runway.

IO540

It's not like that. Years ago there were allotments owned by Norwich City Council next to the airport. A handful of people had sheds there and grew veg and socialised. However after years of protest the site was sold and is now a hotel/McDonalds etc.

Public money returned to the public domain and more a social site than a few people living the good life.

Try telling the local shopkeeper at Sandown that a few weekend flyers will buy his papers and milk every morning.

We private pilots are the lucky few and our hobby is not cheap.

And with a tag like yours you must be flying a Lance or Saratoga.

If I owned the airfield I'd milk it for all it was worth and enjoy flying on the proceeds elsewhere.:ok:

yes but at this rate there won't be an "elsewhere", eventually.

My a/c is a TB20; much more civilised :)

Anyway, it is totally wrong to reduce society to the highest financial return / lowest common denominator.

Why not close the local scuba centre / mountain bike shop / [name your favourite activity which is not participated in by the burger munching TV-watching lowest common population denominator].

There is always the option of a supergroup of 20 or so fans of Sandown putting their money where their mouth is and buying/leasing the airfield.

From my experience it is hard enough to get a £10.00 landing fee from a UK GA pilot let alone ask them to buy a share of an airfield.:ok: