London City Airport submits plans for growth

UK's London City Airport submitted (19-Sep-2013) a planning application for permission to expand its current infrastructure to accommodate up to 120,000 flight movements (take offs and landings) p/a, a level already permitted under an application granted in 2009. The proposals will also allow the airport to double its passenger numbers (to six million) over the next ten years. The airport currently handles 70,000 flight movements and 3 million passengers p/a. The airport said the need for enhanced and expanded infrastructure is driven by three factors:

• The majority of passengers travelling through the airport are doing so for business reasons, and want to fly during the morning and evening peaks. The airport said "freeing up capacity on the existing runway is the only way to meet demand and achieve the permitted level of movements";
• The next generation of aircraft, expected to arrive at the airport in 2016, are larger (and quieter and more fuel efficient) and require larger parking stands;
• Increasing the capacity of the existing runway to allow more services at peak, combined with larger aircraft, will mean greater numbers of passengers.

The GBP200 million expansion planned for the airport includes new parking stands to accommodate larger aircraft, a parallel taxilane to optimise runway capacity in peak operating hours and a terminal extension. The airport is not proposing a second runway, or any extension to the existing runway. London City Airport's planning application has been submitted to the London Borough of Newham for determination. The airport has also made submissions to the Davies Commission, outlining its development proposals and highlighting its ability to relieve capacity pressure on other airports by accommodating more short-haul flights. [more - original PR]