Airfields report 'imminent'

Results of a government study by Britain’s first general aviation champion, Byron Davies, on the future of UK airfields will be known shortly, transport secretary Chris Grayling said last week.

Davies was appointed by the government to identify a network of UK aerodromes, many of which are under threat of being built over, that are most important for non-scheduled flying to flourish (BTN 12 February).

Grayling told the British Business and General Aviation Association (BBGA) Farnborough-week reception in the Terrace Pavilion of the House of Commons he “absolutely got” the need for a thriving general aviation sector in the UK.

He said Davies was on the point of bringing forward his recommendations which the Department for Transport was looking forward to working on to ensure the right balance for the future was found.

He added: “It is a balance; we have some airfields that are flourishing and some that are less used and you can’t simply say to the owner of an airfield that it must always remain so.”

Paying tribute to fellow guest Grant Shapps MP, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on General Aviation, Grayling said: “But I do buy the argument we need a network of general aviation airfields that ensures that the sector survives and succeeds, that the training is there, that the facilities are there.

“My goal is to work with Byron and alongside the parliamentarians who feel so passionate about this and alongside [aviation minister] Liz Sugg to make sure we have the right strategy for the sector.”

www.bbga.aero

Index/Home page
 

OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)

All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum